By now you’ve probably that the Act Pro product is no longer available. IYes, it is true that the Act Pro product is being discontinued but it does not mean that you have to panic. You have a number of options and things to understand.
First the fine print:
- If you have ACT! v18 Pro or newer your software will not stop working.
- If you have Act V17 Pro you will not be able to install it on another computer because your license number is no longer valid due to a change in the Activation Server used by Act.
- As of June, 2024 there will be no additional support for the Act V24 Pro product. That means that no future “release patches” will be provided for any ACT! Pro versions. For example, if your version of Office 365 “updates” and no longer works with Act, no “patches” will be created to fix it.
- If you move to the “Act Premium Desktop” product it does NOT mean that your database MUST be hosted “in the clouds.” You can install the Act Premium product on your own hardware exactly like you did with the Pro product. However, it does mean that you will have to pay an annual fee to continue using the product.
Here are your upgrade options:
- You can take advantage of a great opportunity and upgrade to ACT! Premium Desktop for $380/user/year. Yes, this is a yearly subscription. This option normally costs $450/user/year. Here’s what you get:
- Act Premium
- A “Professional” ACT! Marketing Automation account that will allow you to send 10,000 emails/month
- A phone app to view your contacts and calendar
- Free technical support
- All new versions and release patches
- You can move to Act Premium Cloud for $360/user/year.
- You can move to Act Premium Cloud with Remote Synch for $480/user/year. This will host your main Act Database on the Act’s server but also allow you to have Act on your own desktop allowing your changes to automatically update to the Act Cloud.
If you have any questions or concerns please feel free to reach out. I’m here to help!
Do you still offer ACT! V21 for $199/user? Thank you
Hi Albert,
No, that was a special promotion that ended on 12/31/19. The current price is $349.99. However, Act Premium Growth Suite has a special pricing of $225/year for all existing Act Pro users.
Karen, is Act! Pro v22 still able to be purchased? Any discount for volume purchases available?
We have the Act Pro v19.2 Real Estate version. We are NOT cloud based and don’t want to be. We have one user license but have it on two computers and have the “synchronize now” option to keep both up to date. Would like to have a 2nd user license so we can assign tasks, but were told we would have to purchase a new version. From what I can tell, everything has gone to a yearly subscription fee, even if you’re not cloud based. Is this true? What is your recommendation for us. I appreciate whatever help you can give.
Hi LaCaya,
Welcome to TechBenders.com.
There is so much misinformation floating around about Act. At this time you can still purchase an additional copy of Act v19 Pro. Once you make your purchase all you would need to do is refresh your activation and add the new user to your database. The synch would work exactly like it does now. However, you will not be able to add additional licenses after June 30, 2020.
Hope that helps! I’ll contact you directly for the pricing information.
Hi Dan,
Welcome to TechBenders.com. Yes, you can still purchase Act Pro v22 up until June 30, 2020 when it will be discontinued. There are no volume discounts for the Pro product. Right now the price through 3/31/20 is $249.95 which is $100 off the MSRP.
What happens if you don’t renew the annual fee for Growth Suite, can you convert your database back to Pro?
Hi Fred,
Yes, you can convert back to Act Pro IF you do so prior to June 30, 2020. After that date you might drop just the Act Marketing Automation portion of your subscription. However, depending on when you purchased Growth Suite your pricing might be such that’s it’s actually cheaper to remain with Growth Suite than switch to another Act product.
Karen
Is there any deal on V22 available? I have been a loyal Act user since 1994 v2.1 on floppy disks. Currently using v18 with no problems.
This $289 Act Platinum price is almost a bridge too far for our budget. I thought $199 was fair, but this gouging since Jan 1 is rubbing me the wrong way. Ready to switch platforms to Sales force or something else.
Any suggestions?
I don’t like the idea of paying a yearly subscription.
Thanks
Hi Tony,
Thanks for stopping by TechBenders.com. SalesForce? Hmmm. I don’t think they have a cheap one-time only purchase. Unfortunately software manufacturers can’t afford to remain in business without a continuing stream of revenue. The $200 you paid 4 years ago just isn’t enough for a company to continue to offer upgrades and continued compatibility with newer operating systems and other software. The retail price of Act is currently $349.99. Swiftpage has had a number of promotions since 12/19 but they’ve been gradually inching up the full retail pricing. I’m guessing since June is the final month for Act Pro sales they might run one final sale but I haven’t heard of anything yet. I don’t have a crystal ball into pricing but I do know you can get into a subscription for $225/year which is pretty cheap as it includes support. Honestly, I don’t know of another CRM solution that’s out there that let’s you but the product and not have to pay a yearly subscription.
I am using Sage ACT 2010. I use it to keep track of contacts, the equipment they bought from me or their equipment I’ve serviced for them. I don’t use emails, letters or anything else.
ACT has locked me out. I can no longer log on. I have a license number and all.
What can I do?
Hi Mike,
You’re only recourse is to buy a new copy of Act. You’ve been using your existing copy for over 10 years so I think you’ve gotten your money’s worth. I’m going to assume that you want to continue with the Pro product; if so you need to make a purchase ASAP as the Pro product is being discontinued at the end of the month. Here’s a purchase link: https://www.act.com/products/pro?ror=4000919342
Karen
Hi Karen,
I used Act! for years up until about 2016. I’ve always been a single user, do not need to have it in the cloud and want the data base to reside on my desktop. Is there a version of Act! Pro, compatible with Windows 10, that can still be purchased out right and not via subscription? I don’t mind using an older version like v18, even though it may have issues. Any suggestions are appreciated. Thank you.
Don’t waste your time with the Cloud version…it is GARBAGE!!!!!!!!!! You can’t do HALF the things that you could do with the desktop version, and it’s SLOWER than molasses!
WTF has this company done to their product? Oh wait…I know…RUINED IT!!!
Hi Rich,
I thought twice about approving your comment as it’s a bit “colorful” but I am dedicated to helping all users of CRM. You don’t “have” to use the cloud version; you can continue to use Act on your desktop exactly as you have done for years. If you are really unhappy and need a web-based CRM I have converted dozens of Act clients to Zoho. Please feel free to reach out if there is something specific I can help you with. We can either get you back to a desktop Act version (you have a few options) or help get all of your Act data into Zoho.
Karen
Hello Karen,
Respectfully, I have to agree with Rich’s comment. I’ve been a loyal Act customer for nearly 14 Years +/- and and purchased both the program as well as paid an extra support fee for several years. The cloud version does not intergrate well with outlook or word as far as I have seen.
Hi Bob,
Thanks for stopping by Tech Benders. We try our best to help ALL users with their CRM issues. In your case it’s hard to help you. You haven’t mentioned which of the three cloud versions you were using, or which of the many versions of Office you were using. I can tell you that if you try to use an older version of Act with Office 365 it won’t work if they aren’t compatible. I can also share my rule of thumb: you need to install Office first before using Act, and then you need to turn off Outlook’s auto updating feature. Those updates can break the compatibility between Act and Outlook. This does not hold true for the later Act cloud versions (CRM Classic and CRM) but it does hold true for Act Premium for Web. With APFW you will need to update Act most times after an Office. With the newer Act cloud offerings this is not necessary.
Hi Karen, My computer’s hard drive crashed and I am no longer able to get support for my Act Pro V16. I have a backup of my act program but I am not able to get the activation code to work. I am a single user. I use carbonite for my backup. I am wondering if Zoho would be an option for me. Appreciate all the help I can get. Thank you,
Thanks for reaching out! And you are correct: the Act! licensing software changed so you will not be able to register your Act! v16. One option would be to purchase Act! v24 Pro; the cost is $449.99. You can order it from this link. Act! also has other options available as well but Pro is the only version of Act! that doesn’t require a yearly fee.
And yes, Zoho is a great option as well. There are plans that range from free all the way up to $444/year for every bell and whistle known to man. Just remember that you will have to pay someone like me to convert your data and you will have to learn something new.
I have been a user of Act! for over 30+ years in my sales career. It is an easy to use database that I prefered over Microsoft Contacts. It is a shame that my relationship with Act! has to end since the company is going to a monthly recurring revenue model to boost its stock price [which I fully understand]. I still use Act! almost every day to look up names and phones numbers, etc., but I cannot justify paying over $300 per year every year forever. As the adage goes, “thanks for the memories”…
I am Using ACT! from 1999. I am currently retired from my job and use it as my day-to-day contact informatiomn of friends, relatives and few mechanics (plumber/electrician/lawn mower/snow cleaner etc). I also have all my personal notes (like my personal diary) very sensitive data. I want to continue to have acess to all of my personal inofrmation in ‘Notes’,. I tavel these days.What do you suggest me to use. Consider my retired status with fixed income I am visically using it like dynemic Electronic Rolo deck
is there any version of ACT ! wich maintains database of contacts (Phone/address/email address etc) and database of all Notes. I do not use any other feature. I do not have any business
All versions of Act will allow you to store your basic contact information as well as Notes.
Hi Steve,
Since you travel and are looking to keep down the cost the best option for you is Act Premium for Cloud.