Yes — standalone Word 2024 is available as a one-time purchase for both PC and Mac. But the pricing picture around it is worth understanding before you commit. This guide gives you the honest comparison, the Mac-specific answer, and the clearest route to the right product.
The Direct Answer
Yes, you can buy Microsoft Word on its own. Word 2024 standalone is available as a genuine perpetual licence — one-time purchase, no subscription — for both Windows PC and Mac at — each. Word 2024 for PC → · Word for Mac →
That said, there is a cost comparison worth seeing before you proceed. On PC, Office Professional Plus 2024 adds five more applications for just — more. On Mac, the standalone is a genuine option — but if you ever need more than just Word, the full suite is your only one-time-purchase route.
PC Buyers: What — More Gets You
Word standalone for PC is priced at —. Office Professional Plus 2024 — which includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Access — is priced at —. That is a — difference for six applications versus one.
+ Outlook + OneNote + Access
+ Outlook + OneNote
The sharp comparison: Office Professional Plus 2024 at — gives you five more applications than standalone Word for just — more — and it is cheaper than Office Home & Business 2024, which actually includes fewer apps. For most PC buyers, Pro Plus 2024 is the more logical purchase once you see the full picture.
This is not a reason to avoid the standalone product — if Word is genuinely the only application you need, — is the right answer. But many people searching for standalone Word are not aware of this pricing structure. Better to know now.
Even occasional use of any other Office app makes the full suite a significantly better return on — more. Office Pro Plus 2024 is the most logical purchase at this price point — and cheaper than Office H&B 2024.
Office Pro Plus 2024 — — →A genuinely contained use case — a specific project, a single workflow, no foreseeable need for Excel, Outlook, or PowerPoint. If that is truly your situation, — is the right answer.
Word 2024 standalone — — →Mac Buyers: A Different Picture
Unlike some standalone Office apps, Word is available as a perpetual licence for Mac. At — it is the same price as the PC version. If you genuinely only need a word processor and nothing else, this is a legitimate option.
However, there is an important constraint to understand: Office Professional Plus 2024 does not exist for Mac. If you decide later that you also need Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook, the only perpetual route on macOS is Office Home & Business 2024 for Mac at — — there is no cheaper multi-app option. On Mac, the upgrade path from standalone Word costs — more rather than —.
Apple Silicon native
+ Outlook + OneNote
On Mac there is no mid-range option between standalone Word (—) and the full suite (—). If you think you might need any other Office application now or in the future, Office Home & Business 2024 for Mac is the only perpetual route — buying standalone apps individually would quickly cost more than — combined.
There is no cheaper multi-app option on Mac. If there is any chance you will need more than Word, buying the suite now at — is more economical than purchasing standalone apps one by one later.
Office H&B 2024 Mac — — →Word standalone for Mac is a genuine perpetual option at the same price as the PC version. If your use case is Word and nothing else, — is a clean, straightforward purchase.
Word for Mac standalone — — →The Office Licence Advisor asks a few quick questions — platform, usage, subscription preference — and recommends the right product for your situation.
The Products in Detail
- Full desktop Word 2024 for Windows
- One-time purchase — no subscription
- One PC licence, perpetual
- Instant digital delivery
- Windows 10 and Windows 11
- Genuine Microsoft product key
- Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook not included
- Installed via ODT / LTSC channel
- Word 2024 — full desktop version
- Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote
- Access included
- One-time purchase — no subscription
- One PC licence, perpetual
- Instant digital delivery
- Windows 10 and Windows 11
- Support through October 2029
- No Microsoft account required
- Installed via Office Deployment Tool or LTSC channel
- Full desktop Word for macOS
- One-time purchase — no subscription
- One Mac licence, perpetual
- Instant digital delivery
- Optimised for Apple Silicon (M1–M4)
- Genuine Microsoft product key
- Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook not included
- Office Pro Plus not available on Mac
- Word — full desktop version
- Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote
- One-time purchase — no subscription
- One Mac licence, perpetual
- Instant digital delivery
- Natively optimised for Apple Silicon (M1–M4)
- Support through October 2029
- Microsoft account required to redeem licence
- Access not available on Mac
- No PC version included
Full Comparison at a Glance
| Feature | Word Standalone (PC) | Office Pro Plus 2024 | Word for Mac | H&B 2024 Mac |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price (one-time) | — | — | — | — |
| Platform | Windows only | Windows only | Mac only | Mac only |
| Word | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Excel | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| PowerPoint | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Outlook | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Access | ✗ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ (Mac only) |
| Microsoft account needed | ✗ Not required | ✗ Not required | ✓ Required | ✓ Required |
| No subscription | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Support until | October 2029 | October 2029 | October 2029 | October 2029 |
| Best for | Word-only workflows, PC | Most PC buyers | Word-only workflows, Mac | Mac users needing full suite |
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Word 2024 is available as a standalone perpetual licence for both PC and Mac — a one-time purchase with no ongoing fees. On PC the product key activates via the Office Deployment Tool and does not require a Microsoft account. On Mac, a Microsoft account is needed to redeem the licence, but there is no subscription or recurring charge after that.
Word standalone is the cheapest entry point, yes. However, Office Professional Plus 2024 — which includes Word plus Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, and Access — is only — more. Unless you are certain you will never need any other Office app, the full suite represents significantly better value per application for PC users.
Office Home & Business 2024 for Mac at — is the only perpetual suite available on macOS. Office Professional Plus 2024 — which is cheaper — is a Windows-only product. Mac users do not have access to the Pro Plus route, so — is the floor for a multi-app one-time purchase on Mac.
Not by upgrading the same licence — each standalone app is a separate product key. You would need to purchase additional standalone licences individually. On PC, this is why buying Office Professional Plus 2024 up front typically makes more sense: adding just Excel standalone would already cost you more than the price gap to the full suite. On Mac, the same logic applies to Office H&B 2024.
No. Standalone Word does not include OneDrive storage. You can save files to OneDrive manually if you have a free Microsoft account (which includes 5 GB), but the 1 TB of cloud storage bundled with Microsoft 365 subscriptions is not included with any perpetual licence. Your documents are saved locally by default.
Security patches only. Microsoft supports Word 2024 — and all Office 2024 products — with security updates through October 2029. New features introduced after the 2024 release are exclusive to Microsoft 365 subscribers. The feature set of your perpetual licence is fixed at purchase. This is consistent across all standalone and suite products in the 2024 generation.
Yes. Software Supplies sells genuine Microsoft product keys that activate directly with Microsoft’s servers. Activation status is verifiable through your Microsoft account. All licences include instant digital delivery and UK-based customer support.
Office Home & Business 2024 (PC) is activated through setup.microsoft.com — you redeem the product key there, link it to a Microsoft account, and download directly. It is the simpler, more consumer-friendly route and does require a Microsoft account.
Office Professional Plus 2024 uses the Office Deployment Tool (ODT) or LTSC channel — a slightly more technical setup but well-documented by Microsoft. Crucially, it requires no Microsoft account at any point. For users who prefer software independent of a Microsoft login, or for small businesses managing installations across several machines, this is typically the preferred route — and it is cheaper than H&B while including more applications.
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Microsoft Office, Productivity, Software
Original price was: £159.99.£69.00Current price is: £69.00. Add to cart -
MAC Licenses, Microsoft Office, Productivity, Software
Original price was: £159.99.£69.00Current price is: £69.00. Add to cart
Gary Walsh is the Head of Tech Support at Software Supplies, with more than 20 years in the IT industry. Fully Microsoft-certified and experienced across the full business software stack — from Windows and Office to cloud infrastructure and device management — Gary delivers practical, no-nonsense advice that helps users and businesses get the most from their technology.
