All three versions will open your Word documents and your spreadsheets without complaint, and if you only write the odd letter, you may never notice the difference. So how do you choose? Mostly by thinking about which features you'd really use and which Windows you're running.
The important bit: support
You should know this before you spend anything. Microsoft has now ended support for all three: Office 2016 and 2019 on 14 October 2025, and Office 2021 on 13 October 2026. The apps keep working, and your license doesn't expire, but they no longer receive security updates.
The versions side by side
| Office 2016 | Office 2019 | Office 2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windows | Older versions, including 10 | Windows 10 and 11 | Windows 10 and 11 |
| Excel XLOOKUP and dynamic arrays | No | No | Yes |
| Excel IFS, CONCAT, funnel and map charts | No | Yes | Yes |
| PowerPoint Morph and Zoom | No | Yes | Yes |
| Dark mode across the apps | Partial | Partial | Yes |
Who each one suits
Office 2021
The natural choice for most people, as it's the newest of the three. If you use Excel seriously, XLOOKUP alone might win you over. It's the function people wish had existed all along.
Office 2019
A solid middle option if you don't need the newest Excel functions but do want a more modern set of tools than 2016.
Office 2016
Really for one situation: you need to match an older setup. Maybe an add-in or a template your company relies on hasn't moved on. If nothing's forcing you to use it, go newer.
What's in the box
All three of our Professional Plus versions include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, Access and Publisher. If you only need Word and Excel, the rest will happily sit there unopened.
32-bit or 64-bit?
Choose 64-bit unless you have a reason not to, because it handles very large spreadsheets better. The main reason to pick 32-bit is an older add-in that needs it.
Decided? Browse our Office licenses.