Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft PowerPoint is developed and maintained by Microsoft as part of Microsoft 365 (formerly Office); the desktop app also ships as a one-time-purchase perpetual license, PowerPoint LTSC 2024 (released October 2024, five years of mainstream support). Native files use the .pptx OOXML format. Current pricing: Microsoft 365 Personal $9.99/mo (1 user, 1TB storage), Family $12.99/mo (up to 6 people, 1TB each); business tiers were repriced July 1, 2026 to Business Basic $7/user/mo (web/mobile PowerPoint only, no desktop app), Business Standard $14/user/mo (full desktop app), Business Premium $22/user/mo. Real-time co-authoring over OneDrive/SharePoint recommends capping at 10 concurrent editors (hard limit 99) before new users get bumped to read-only. Usage-tracking firm enlyft counts PowerPoint at roughly 15-20% category share across 43,000+ customer organizations, trailing Canva. Current version/status: Microsoft 365 (continuously updated, cloud channel); perpetual PowerPoint LTSC 2024 (Oct 2024). License: proprietary — subscription (Microsoft 365) or one-time perpetual license (PowerPoint LTSC 2024). Pricing: Microsoft 365 Personal $9.99/mo, Family $12.99/mo (up to 6 people); Business Basic $7/user/mo (web/mobile only), Business Standard $14/user/mo (desktop app), Business Premium $22/user/mo, all repriced July 1, 2026. Maintained by Microsoft.
Pick PowerPoint when client deliverables must be .pptx: consulting, finance, and enterprise gatekeepers still reject anything else, and its VBA macro and animation-timeline control has no real equivalent. Skip it for live team drafting — Google Slides' simultaneous-edit experience beats PowerPoint's co-authoring, which Microsoft's own docs cap at 10 recommended concurrent editors before extra users get bumped to read-only. Skip it too for template-heavy marketing decks run by non-technical staff; Canva's drag-and-drop library wins there, even at a higher per-seat price ($18-25/mo vs. PowerPoint bundled into a $7/mo Business Basic seat). Its own vendor documentation admits offline edits stay invisible to collaborators until the file re-syncs. Known weakness: Microsoft's own co-authoring documentation recommends capping real-time sessions at 10 concurrent editors (hard limit 99) and offline edits stay invisible to collaborators until re-sync, making live collaboration weaker than Google Slides.