[Locked] Too expensive!

[KarlaBeattyArt]

Adobe CC full version is way too expensive. How do people manage $600 year?

[Nancy OShea · Accepted solution]

I use Adobe products in my work. So the cost is offset by the work I am able to complete for clients.

[Onvibe]

Plenty of unhelpful comments here, if everyone could use their client based income to pay for this platform annually no one would be bringing up this issue.  I have been using Adobe Programs since 2007 and I completely understand the need to change from the culture from one-off purchase to subscription based sales but by having the price so high annually you cut of a big part of the market that don't have the luxury of already being in a full time design role or people have a desire to use the platforms but charity and other such project which is the issue I'm having right now. I'm stuck tossing up paying the annual fees or finding another alternative so I can work with charitable groups without having to charge them for my help.

[Abambo]

Design12345  wrote

(...) so I can work with charitable groups without having to charge them for my help.

So, when you need to put 1000 or 2000 $ on the table, you could afford this?

[Onvibe]

Firstly, I thought these forums were for Adobe users voice their concerns and to unite on points of contention such as issues with the programs or price in a way that Adobe staff could address a group rather and individual complaints but It appears to me I was wrong and the forums are for "Adobe Community Professionals" such as yourself to belittle peoples concerns. If you're not going to be helpful or at least slightly sympathetic, why respond at all?

Secondly purchasing something and subscribing to something are two completely different things. I was able to spend $2000 once every few years to purchase (not rent) the programs so when I need to do the charitable work like I mentioned I would have the programs ready and waiting, now with the subscription you pay $900 every year and the second you stop you lose your right to use the programs and your money, it's hardly the same value is it?

[Abambo]

Design12345  wrote

Firstly, I thought these forums were for Adobe users voice their concerns and to unite on points of contention such as issues with the programs or price in a way that Adobe staff could address a group rather and individual complaints but It appears to me I was wrong and the forums are for "Adobe Community Professionals" such as yourself to belittle peoples concerns. If you're not going to be helpful or at least slightly sympathetic, why respond at all?

These fora are mainly for resolving technical problems with the programs.

I made up the numbers and my findings are that the subscription model is more economical than the old for buy model. And it is a wrong ownership feeling that you have. I “own” a massive amount of software that I can’t use any more because it is not running on current computers.

Adobe all apps costs 720$ on a yearly basis, far away fron the 6000$ that the old equivalent did cost, just to find out that half a year after, Adobe upgraded the line and that you would need to shuffle out about half of your price for the update. More, if you were on an older version. It is simply not true that the for buy solution is more economical.

And if you arn’t doing permanent work with the products, you take a per month license and for the rest of the year, you save the subscription fee.

In addition it is not for other users to decide, what thread I answer and what not.

FYI: 1000$ was the price at the time of Photoshop alone. It was at the time the product I was looking for, but unfortunately that was to expensive for me at the time. And 20 years ago the 1000$ were even more expensive in relation with the costs for living.

[Onvibe]

Never said you couldn't answer on the forum, of course, go right ahead, I'm just asking why you feel the need to be so rude and belittling to legitimate users of Adobe products.

I have older Adobe Creative Suites including 5.5 and those are working just fine on my new mac running Mojave so what your saying is incorrect. My issue is that there are a few programs like After Effects that don't want to play nice with the newer macOS which is what lead me to these forums to see what people were saying about getting a better deal or other outright purchase options so I don't have to pay every year for something I don't use all year round, hence the beauty of a one-off purchase.

[BenPleysier]

There are other products out there that are ideal for those that do not need professional products on  regular basis. Have you had a look at https://www.gimp.org/ and Draw Freely | Inkscape?

Agreed, they are not quite as good as the paid for products, but then, I use a shovel while the professional uses a mechanical digger.

[Abambo]

BenPleysier  wrote

Agreed, they are not quite as good as the paid for products, but then, I use a shovel while the professional uses a mechanical digger.

Nothing to say against the open source community, but the means are quite limited. For the OS (Linux) there are also big names behind that contribute, because they have an interest contributing. I doubt that is the same as with Gimp and Inkscape.

But they are great products.

However, there is a reason to pay 50 bugs a month ...

[Abambo]

Design12345  wrote

Never said you couldn't answer on the forum, of course, go right ahead, I'm just asking why you feel the need to be so rude and belittling to legitimate users of Adobe products.

I do not feel to be rude. I'm paying more in phone and internet and TV services than the cloud apps do cost.I do not consider the 50 bugs a lot.

Design12345  wrote

I have older Adobe Creative Suites including 5.5 and those are working just fine on my new mac running Mojave so what your saying is incorrect. My issue is that there are a few programs like After Effects that don't want to play nice with the newer macOS (...)

You are contradicting yourself in the second sentence.

Design12345  wrote

(...) about getting a better deal or other outright purchase options so I don't have to pay every year for something I don't use all year round, hence the beauty of a one-off purchase.

...hence the beauty of a subscription for the month...

Because of the subscription, we added 2 licenses so that we have now 6 licenses. It would have been much more difficult to get the licenses if they would have costed 5000$ each.

...and I have software lying around that did cost a fortune at the time (more than my car of that time) and I can't use anymore because they do not run on my current system.

[Onvibe]

Abambo's thinks $50 isn't a lot, problem solved, that's some great advice.

Where's the contradiction? I have the programs CS5.5 running fine on Mojave and the only one out of the whole suite that's having a few issues is After Effects, and they're not even huge issues, it's usable just less practical and it's certainly not worth a full upgrade or being berated by a keyboard warrior.

I only came here to see if anyone had any solutions and to give my two cents in case Adobe was interested in the program users thoughts. You clearly just love a fight, I can see you belittling other users on more than one discussion.

I don't agree with you and you're certainly not convincing anyone with your belligerent attitude. There's ACP's here giving actual solutions or at very least being polite so maybe you could take a page from their books.

[Abambo]

Design12345  wrote

Abambo's thinks $50 isn't a lot, problem solved, that's some great advice.

I pay more for other services: My internet+land line phone, my mobile phones 3 subscriptions, my car lease, my TV cable ...

I don't say that it is not expensive, but compared against the old pricing model, it's more economical.

You're running CS5.5. Fine. You're telling us that you have only minor problems. Fine. Continue to use it. But I suppose you are not collaborating with others. You would be in trouble if every user would work with a different version. I experienced that very often at the times where we had a perpetual license (well, technically, we still have). I'm an Indesign user from version 1 on, Photoshop from version 3 on. I've bought all those software and upgrades. I've put a fortune in. And I've made the calculations: the subscription model is more economical for my company than the previous perpetual model. And it is good business for Adobe, because we added 50% licenses to the pre subscription area. We would never have the opportunity to do that with the old model.

Who thinks 50$ is too much (you see: too much and too much is different from a lot) ?

Non-professional who think that they need to use the top tools but do not want to pay the top price. Those people would also find that paying 5000$ for the perpetual license would be too much.

Now look the situation of a person, needing the software for 2 months a year. That person take a per month subscription. That costs 160$. You can use the programs for 30+ years like that before you are at an equal level.

Design12345  wrote

I only came here to see if anyone had any solutions and to give my two cents in case Adobe was interested in the program users thoughts. You clearly just love a fight, I can see you belittling other users on more than one discussion.

There are several types of discussions I'm participating. This discussion is not a discussion about a technical problem or a how do I do this or that but this is a free speech discussion. You say what you think, I say what I think. That's "de bonne guerre". You don't need to agree with me.

Design12345  wrote

(...) and you're certainly not convincing anyone with your belligerent attitude. (...)

I'm belligerent? Just because I don't agree with you? Well be it so! Quite interesting that you come from the 3rd person to the second one when discussing with me and that in one and the same posting. We don't agree, that's quite ok.

Design12345  wrote

There's ACP's here giving actual solutions or at very least being polite so maybe you could take a page from their books.

May be you should look at all my posts. There are quite a lot. And my answers here are the easiest, because I do not need to be an expert to contradict your arguments. Thanks and bye.

[John Waller]

If you're a hobbyist, it depends on your priorities. People will always find money for what they want to do.

Some people spend $1,000+ a year on coffee. Many spend the same on their cell phone plan.

[annem90014170]

Adobe is losing it's customer base of loyal users who are now retired and on a limited income.

[KarlaBeattyArt]

That's me, exactly. I have used both photoshop and illustrator since the 1990s. I need to upgrade, but $600 a year seems painful.

[Nancy OShea]

Photoshop Elements 15 is the entry level version of Photoshop aimed at photographers, image editors and hobbyists. It contains most of the features of the professional version but with fewer and simpler options. The program allows users to create, edit, organize and share images.   You can purchase PS Elements 15 on Amazon for approx $70.

Amazon.com: Adobe Photoshop Elements 15: Software

For vector graphics editing, if you can't justify spending $30/mo for Illustrator CC, have a look at Inkscape. 

https://inkscape.org/en/

Nancy

[BubbaBear]

The plans need to be restructured..... Package a plan for web designers, web developers, artists etc...... You would be able to get the tools you need without having to pay for all the products.... I know I will be cancelling my subscription, can no longer afford it...

[Nancy OShea]

You can still get the tools you want à la carte but the 2 bundles offered (Full Plan or Photrography Plan) give users the biggest bang for their buck.

[Sterphy]

Agreed.  I only want to deal with video, so After Effects, Premier Pro and maybe Photoshop. Audition I can take or leave.  Point is they seem to think it's some great attractive package to offer you all these things for one price, but I'm never going to use Dreamweaver, InCopy, InDesign or any of that lot.  So my choice is to pay £40 a month for two apps, which is 14% of the apps available for 80% of the price or pay £60 for the three apps (23% of all the apps) I use (obviously I won't)... so Adobe go "oh but you can have all of them for £50, and look how many you're getting"

I don't want or need all of them! That still means I'm paying £50 for 23% of the full offering of apps.  If you used all the apps you're paying £3.84 per app per month, but when you're only using three it means you're paying £17 per app per month - hardly any better than the cost of the individual apps at £20.  If they did a video package where it's £30 for the three apps you actually want as a video editor they still get a big markup on the full CC package and people can buy the thing they want instead of saying "screw it... I'll pirate it".

Thing is at work we use Premier because the company pays for it, but at home and for freelance I use Davinci Resolve because they don't take the mick with their pricing.

[edwinorlando]

Totally agree with you

[Elvenien]

I have now moved to Affinity products. Adobe is inflexible with its pricing especially if you are a retired creative and just needs an inexpensive package. Also no replies to any requests for a cheaper deal. Goodbye Adobe.

[americajr]

Totally agree. I have used Photoshop and Illustrator forever to help people for free and play around with fun ideas in my downtime. I committed to Photoshop CC and pay the monthly but now I need Illustrator and I cant do $600/yr for the next 6 years. It makes me want to cancel and go back to my old version because I don't have much of a choice.

I will add its great software. I love it.

[Nancy OShea]

americajr  wrote

I committed to Photoshop CC and pay the monthly but now I need Illustrator and I cant do $600/yr

Get Inkscape

https://inkscape.org/en/

Nancy

[liamcoded]

most people would agree Inkscape is garbage… so stop bringing it up <profanity removed>

[jakubkeller]

I used Inkscape extensively and have created some of the best imagery around. You obviously haven't used it.

If anyone needs help, I can show them how to create better artwork with Gimp and Inkscape.

I have Photoshop/Illustrator at work and use the alternative at home.