Important: As of February 2023, Capture One has made changes to how licenses work. Read more about these changes here: Capture One Loyalty Program and Upgrade Pricing.
Capture One offers two license types:
- Perpetual license: one-time payment, lifetime access to a specific version; available for perpetual license only.
- Subscription license: ongoing payments, access to latest versions; available for All-in-One bundle, Pro and Studio versions.
Perpetual license
Note: this type of license is only applicable to Capture One Pro.
Pay once and own a license for life. The license activates the purchased version and any older versions.
Ensure your device meets the minimum system requirements to maintain compatibility.
Check your Max eligible version in your user account under Plans & Services Management.
When you purchase a perpetual license, for example Capture One 16.6, you'll receive all related service updates like 16.6.x, including bug fixes and improvements. However, new features and functionality are delivered in major versions only.
Capture One follows a "ship when ready" release model to provide new features more frequently. This may result in multiple major versions being released in a single year.
Upgrades to major versions are optional and are offered at a discount through the Upgrade Pricing. You decide whether to upgrade or continue using your current version.
If you prefer having the latest features as soon as they are released, a subscription plan would be the better choice.
Subscription license
Subscription licenses require monthly or annual payments. While active, they grant access to the latest Capture One version and allow activation of older versions.
Note: An internet connection is required to validate and maintain your subscription license, but continuous connection is not necessary. Validation occurs once every 30 days.
Subscription plans
| Subscription plan | Description |
|---|---|
| Annual prepaid | One yearly payment upfront. Renewal charges occur on the same date each year via your Order History. |
| Monthly | Pay month-to-month for maximum flexibility. |
Cancelling your subscription
Cancel your subscription through your Capture One account. See detailed instructions here.
Note: You’ll retain access until the end of your current billing cycle. After that, your license key will be disabled and access will end.
The number of activations per license
Capture One licenses are cross-platform compatible (macOS and Windows) and allow activation on a set number of machines. The activation limit depends on your license type.
For more information, see How many computers can I install Capture One on?
Backward compatibility
Capture One licenses are backwards compatible, meaning they can activate older versions as well.
For example, a Capture One 23 license can be used to activate older versions on devices that require them. Download older versions from here.
Important: Backward compatibility depends on whether your license is managed by FastSpring.
FastSpring licensing started with Capture One 11.3.2. You can check if your license is FastSpring-managed by viewing your Order History.
- Capture One Pro subscriptions: from version 11.3.2 onward
- Sony & Fujifilm subscriptions: from version 12 onward
- Nikon subscriptions: from version 20 (13.1.0) onward
- Legacy subscriptions (pre-Nov 2018): from version 8 onward (no longer sold)
Terms & Conditions
You can view the Terms and Conditions of your license purchases in your Capture One account under Plans & Services Management.
Comments
105 comments
My Capture One 21 doesn't work. Where can I find a technical support?
Ivan, I totally agree with you. I've tried to determine what the price would be for subsequent years in the past and always came up empty, and, as you point out, it seems to be impossible to discuss this subject with anyone at Capture One. I'm sure this is intentional. Capture One is trying to suck us in by giving us the chance to misunderstand how pricing will progress in future years. Shameful marketing practice for a company like Capture One.
Steve, I really don't understand their thinking behind this but all I can say is that other competing brands seem to be way more transparent as far as their pricing is concerned and I've never felt like I was tricked into buying something that turned out to be something completely different. For sure this experience has already left a bitter mark with me as far as subscriptions in general are concerned and I really should have know better and trusted my gutt instinct, but the price comparison caught me off guard in that there is no logical explenation why the perpetual license + styles would be slightly less expensive (only a couple of quid, but still) than the equivalent subscription and the only reason I could think of is that the offer was for a reduced renawable fee of £89. I really feel stupid now, especially since I went to the upgrade page to get the perptual license in the first place which was offered at a much better deal!
PS Oh and the other thing I forgot about is that the subscription which was reduced to £89 also had "best deal" next to it which obviously isn't true either. Ach! Silly me 🙄
UPDATE: Just to say that Capture One Support has come back to me and dealt with the matter fairly, thank you, since I reported the issue promptly in a timely manner which they probably appreciated and I didn't actually use the new product. Oddly enough I no longer see the same perpetual license + styles deal I was offered previously, but I'm satisfied with the turn around and resolution, especially since they are probably inundated with requests at this moment in time.
Going forward I will be more careful not to repeat this situation and I will probably ask Capture One to clarify anything I'm not entirely sure about. I advise everyone else to do the same. However, I also still think they should look at their own wording more carefully and remove any ambiguity in order to come across more transparent going forward.
At the end of the day Capture One is a great product and the team also provide loads of great content/streams etc which I am greatful for, they just need to iron out all the little things.
The thing that really pissed me off was how you recently had some seemingly great promo offers THEN came out with this news (I had 21 and they had an offer before 23 was released where you could purchase 23 but get 22 in the interim). Say all you want about needing to make more money, competition, wanting to offer updates more immediately, blah blah blah. This most recent promo just seemed maniacally deceptive and greedy. C1 has never been great about adding new Raw camera support in a timely manner (see Z9) and I’ve found you customer support to be unresponsive with a tone of snarkiness and irritability at my questions, but this takes the cake.
side note: this is probably a good time to close the comments. You’re going to be responding to complaints for a while.
Hello,
I downloaded a trial version for 30 days, and about 2 days into the trial I bought a license. I can't find a way to add my license to the trial version and don't want to lose my sessions or work flow that I have created during the trial period. How do I add my license key to this software so it is recognized as a licensed version?
Thanks,
John
How can i buy capture one for my customer??, is there any option to buy in b2b? kindly guide
I'm fed up three times a day (and sometimes buying session coverage) they ask me to connect and give my credentials to check the license what is this story I don't have time to relate to This. The system exaggerates in addition only one computer is informed about the license while I have several it is scandalous to ask the same thing all the time
I bought an annual prepaid license and have version 16.5.2. When I start C1 it says I have 11 days left to buy it. I installed the trial version, the bought the license subscription and applied it. I can see my license key in help. Do I ignore the "buy" notice? What happens in 11 days?
Hello,
My "problem" has been resolved after you guidance. Many thanks. Once I deactivated ... everything worked as it should.
Thanks!!
Why does it seem to be significantly cheaper to purchase a brand new Sony license with style packs (roughly $163 with the current 25% off deal) than upgrading my current license with comparable style packs at $258? I thought the upgrade was suppose to be the better deal. Even without the 25% off, buying a new license is still a better deal. Am I missing something?
Hi, I have a pro perpetual license. I've installed 1 license on my personal laptop, can I still install 1 license on company laptop (for which I work, not my company)? I'm the only working on this laptop and softwares.
Thanks
Yes, the procedure for upgrading from a Fujifilm subscription to a Pro subscription is to start paying for a Pro subscription - but if I’ve prepaid for a year of Fujifilm, I’m now paying for two subscriptions. So, not an upgrade at all but a completely new purchase with no consideration for being an existing customer.
If I’d known how convoluted this process would be, I would not have switched from perpetual to subscription - a warning for other users! And a major request to C1. The length of this comment thread and the number of questions indicates that:
1) the process needs much better clarification and warnings for those switching license types
2) The licensing system needs a major overhaul
Hi Bombaert,
I have checked your case, so you have upgraded from perpetual to subscription.
That might be the case because subscriptions can activate only Capture One 11.3.2 and newer versions.
Hi Lily. I bought a monthly subscription and I don't know how to cancel it. Please tell me how can I cancel my subscription in Capture One 20.
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