Software licence and renewal comparison worksheet

Compare the access each software option actually provides before comparing its headline price. Record the exact plan, edition, permitted use and device or user limits, then give licence scope, renewal and cancellation their own sources. This keeps information from one plan or help page from being applied silently to another.

Use current official publisher or institutional wording for the option you are considering. Where access depends on student status, an organisation or a renewal event, record the condition and what remains unclear. This worksheet organises terms and questions; it does not claim you have an entitlement, validate a licence key or calculate a cancellation deadline.

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This tool does not save your entries automatically. Download a copy to keep your work, and clear the worksheet on a shared device before leaving. Do not enter passwords, account numbers or other sensitive personal information.

Define the required access

Start with the task, accepted file formats and software you already have access to.

Task, course or project and required software or file formats

Existing access or possible institutional provision to check

Period during which access is needed

Required device count and operating-system context

Required use, collaboration or export conditions

Plan identity and licence scope

Use one row for each exact plan and keep its scope source distinct.

Entry 1

Comparison label and exact plan or edition

Software publisher or official institution

Direct, institutional or named reseller route

Licence type as stated

Permitted use, users, devices and included features as stated

Eligibility and verification conditions as stated

Official licence-scope source URL

Date licence scope was checked

Unresolved scope or eligibility question

Renewal record

Attach renewal facts to the comparison label; do not extend an introductory period by assumption.

Entry 1

Exact plan or comparison label

Initial access period and expiry wording

Renewal period and method as stated

Stated renewal amount and currency, or unknown

What changes when eligibility ends, as stated

Official renewal source URL

Date renewal information was checked

Unresolved renewal question

Cancellation and exit record

Keep cancellation wording separate from renewal and licence scope.

Entry 1

Exact plan or comparison label

Cancellation process, timing and fees as stated

File access or export after access ends, as stated

Official cancellation source URL

Date cancellation information was checked

Unresolved cancellation or file-access question

Compare the recorded options

Make differences visible before a price comparison.

How the recorded scope and periods meet your requirements

Questions to ask the publisher or institution

Next step

Using your worksheet

Use the same plan label on licence, renewal and cancellation records.
Check possible existing access through the official institution or publisher route before buying another licence.
Record source URLs and dates separately for scope, renewal and cancellation.
Do not paste licence keys, account credentials or identity documents into the worksheet.
Use the separate subscription-total calculator only when its monthly two-rate assumptions match the recorded plan.

Assumptions and limits

No named software entitlement, price, renewal condition or file-access promise is supplied.

The worksheet does not interpret legal rights, redeem a key, cancel a plan or contact an institution.

A source recorded for one plan is not evidence for a different edition, region or access route.