The Perpetual CRM Licence Is Dying: What to Do
TL;DR: Two of the classic contact-management vendors have now closed the buy-once door: Act! retired Act! Pro in September 2023, and Germany's cobra moved ADRESS PLUS customers onto a rental tariff on 1 January 2026 — for some customers a several-fold increase in monthly cost. If you want to own your CRM rather than rent it, the shelf is smaller but it still exists: DejaOffice (from $69.95), CRM in Excel ($70), the free OfflineCRM.
This is not a conspiracy; it is arithmetic. Recurring revenue is worth more to a vendor than a single sale, and investors pay for predictability. The problem is that the arithmetic runs the other way for a one-person business: you pay every month, forever, for a table of contacts you could own outright. Disclosure: CRM in Excel is our product, and it is sold once.
What actually changed
Act! ended its last perpetual edition, Act! Pro, on 15 September 2023. Existing installations keep running; there is no new licence to buy.
cobra, a long-standing German contact-management vendor, converted its ADRESS PLUS tariff to a rental model with effect from 1 January 2026, at 19 € per user per month — where customers had previously paid single-digit euro amounts per licence. Dealers were notified in early December 2025. (Prices as published by the vendor; check cobra's price page for the current terms.)
What to do if this happened to you
- Export now, decide later. While your licence is still valid, pull a full CSV export: contacts, notes, activities. Do not negotiate from a position where your data is hostage.
- Count what you actually use. Most people using a classic contact manager use contacts, notes, a calendar and follow-ups. If that is you, you do not need a platform — you need a replacement for four features.
- Check the upgrade fine print of whatever you buy next. "One-time" can still mean paid major versions. Ask what year three costs.
What is left on the buy-once shelf in 2026
| Tool | Price | What it is | The catch |
|---|---|---|---|
| DejaOffice PC CRM | from $69.95 one-time | Classic Windows desktop CRM — the closest thing to the old Act! | Dated interface; paid major upgrades |
| CRM in Excel (our product) | $70 one-time | A CRM application built inside Excel: contacts, pipeline, follow-up reminders, templates | One user; Windows + desktop Excel; no automation or integrations |
| OfflineCRM | Free | Standalone desktop app, local data | Young product; export regularly |
Prices checked 13 July 2026 on vendor sites. Sources: DejaOffice, OfflineCRM, Sheetify, Lifetime CRM.
The honest counter-argument
If the subscription genuinely automates work for you — forms creating deals, sequences running while you sleep, a team sharing one pipeline — then paying monthly is the correct decision and the vendors are not robbing you. The people harmed by this shift are the ones who used a contact manager as a contact manager: a file of people, notes and dates. For them, the monthly bill buys nothing new at all.
Our answer to that group is CRM in Excel — the same daily routine (who to call today, what did we agree, send the message), in a file you own outright: $70 once, offline, free trial with 50 clients plus 50 leads. The full market view is in CRMs without a subscription, and the Act!-specific migration path is in Act! alternatives with a one-time licence.
FAQ
Can you still buy a CRM licence outright in 2026?
Yes: DejaOffice (from $69.95), CRM in Excel ($70), the free OfflineCRM. Act! and cobra have closed that door.
Why are vendors killing perpetual licences?
Recurring revenue is worth more and is predictable for investors. Legitimate — just not in your interest.
What if I refuse to move to a subscription?
Your installation usually keeps working, but with no new licences or upgrades. Export your data while the licence is valid.
Is one-time really cheaper?
Over three years, almost always — unless you genuinely use what the subscription automates.
— Michał B. Fedor