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By4Geoff
Participating Frequently
February 7, 2019
Answered

InDesign licensing

  • February 7, 2019
  • 4 replies
  • 833 views

Am I correct in stating that Adobe InDesign is only available by subscription?

If so, I wonder whether Adobe has thought this through properly?  A subscription to Adobe Indesign is currently costing me over 200UKP/year.

The fact is, I only use it TWICE per year to create an annual Year Book of about 400 pages and an annual Meeting program of about 20 pages.

I would much prefer to simply buy a desktop licence version that I can use indefinitely without having to subscribe.  As things stand there is an overhead in costs of producing these two documents annually of 200UKP.  This must be added to the printing and distribution costs.

I have decided that this cannot continue and therefore I must look for an alternative.  Vis a vis, Adobe has lost a customer purely because of its policy on how it markets its software.

I surely cannot be the only user in this situation?  It is simply not financially viable for me to continue a subscription for such minor use of a product.

Before I defect to another product and start to climb another learning curve, can anyone suggest a reliable source whereby I might legally buy an older version of Indesign prior to it becoming a subscription product?

    This topic has been closed for replies.
    Correct answer Derek Cross

    This is the monthly plan that Bob mentioned – useful for the occasional user - just £60/$60 for a couple of months and with access to all the new bells and whistles!

    4 replies

    JonathanArias
    JonathanArias
    Legend
    February 7, 2019

    there are some free alternatives to indesign you can look in to:

    5 of the Best Free Adobe InDesign Alternatives - Make Tech Easier

    i have not use any of these. but you might find a better fit for your situation.

    Or you could work with a freelancer who does the layout for you and you just send that person edits on a .pdf.

    T
    Test Screen Name
    Legend
    February 7, 2019

    It would have cost more than £200 per year, before subscriptions, to buy InDesign and keep up to date with it. Seems a bargain to me. But if it isn't in the budget, then it isn't. For all software it's hard to find a fair price which accommodates both the people who use it 8 hours a day, every day, and the people who want to use it once a year. Hope you find a good alternative for your needs.

    Tip: if you subscribe to the monthly plan, it renews each month. You need to cancel before the end of the month.

    Derek Cross
    Community Expert
    Derek CrossCommunity ExpertCorrect answer
    Community Expert
    February 7, 2019

    This is the monthly plan that Bob mentioned – useful for the occasional user - just £60/$60 for a couple of months and with access to all the new bells and whistles!

    BobLevine
    Community Expert
    BobLevineCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    February 7, 2019

    It is subscription only and it will never change. I am sure you are not the only one that doesn't like it but there is no way to please everyone. There are alternatives but there is no legitimate source to buy an older version and why would you want to. Chances are it won't run on a new machine.

    All that out of the way...if you only need it twice a year, you can subscribe on a month to month basis.

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