Microsoft Office 2019 and 2021 for Mac view-only conversion

Toggle the table of contents Microsoft Office 2019 and 2021 for Mac view-only conversion (2026) Page Discussion English Read Edit Edit source View history Tools Tools move to sidebar hide Actions Read Edit Edit source View history Purge cache General What links here Related changes Printable version Permanent link Page information Cargo data Appearance move to sidebar hide From Consumer Rights Wiki Microsoft Office 2019 and 2021 for Mac view-only conversion (2026) is a scheduled remote degradation of perpetually-licensed Microsoft Office software for macOS and iOS, set for July 13, 2026 when a license-validation certificate used by the Office apps expires. [ 1 ] After Office 2019 for Mac reached end of support in October 2023, Microsoft assured customers their installed apps would "continue to function." [ 2 ] The July 13, 2026 conversion instead drops the apps into a Microsoft-defined "reduced functionality mode," in which files can be opened and viewed but not edited or saved. [ 1 ] [ 3 ] By May 30, 2026, the original 2023 end-of-support page had been re-dated and rewritten on Microsoft's site; the "continue to function" clause was removed. [ 4 ] [ 2 ] Background [ edit | edit source ] Microsoft announced general availability of Office 2019 for Windows and Mac on September 24, 2018. In the launch blog post, Microsoft's Jared Spataro wrote that "Office 2019 is a one-time release and won't receive future feature updates," positioning the product as the on-premises alternative to the Office 365 subscription. [ 5 ] Contemporary Microsoft Store pages marketed Office Home & Student 2019 as a "One-time purchase for 1 PC or Mac" at $149.99, with copy that explicitly contrasted the perpetual product against the Office 365 subscription model: "One-time purchases don't have an upgrade option, which means if you plan to upgrade to the next major release, you'll have to buy it at full price." [ 6 ] Office 2021 for Mac became generally available on October 5, 2021 under the