Are lifetime software deals worth it?

When a lifetime deal makes sense

Native apps are the safest bet. If the app runs on your own machine, it can keep working after the deal, and often even after the company stops updating it.

Do the sums against what you'd pay otherwise. If a licence costs the same as ten months of a subscription you'd keep anyway, it pays for itself quickly. If you're buying it because it's cheap, it's a cost, not a saving.

When to be careful

Hosted services have running costs, and a one-off payment doesn't cover those forever. Plans can change: KeepSolid's VPN Unlimited removed some features from legacy lifetime plans, according to its Wikipedia entry.

Be especially careful with AI features, cloud storage and anything that sends email, because each of those costs the company money every time you use it.

Six questions to ask first

Does it run locally or on their servers? How many devices does it cover? Are major version upgrades included? What is excluded, especially AI features? Can you get a refund, and for how long? Would you buy this at full price?

• See current lifetime deals

Questions people ask