Buzz
Office for Mac 2011 is a popular office suite for Mac users, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. However, Microsoft officially bids farewell to Office for Mac 2011, signifying the cessation of technical support, addition of new features, bug fixes, and security updates—paralleling the recent retirement of Microsoft Office 2007 earlier this week.
Microsoft officially discontinues Office for Mac 2011
Security vulnerabilities found in Office suites may still persist in Office for Mac 2011. With Microsoft ceasing all technical support, hackers can exploit these security vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to users' Mac systems.
Almost a decade ago, Microsoft officially released Office for Mac 2011. However, due to the company's emphasis on supporting core features, support for many other integrated features has waned.
Microsoft primarily provides support through delivering feature updates and security patches. Extended support mainly involves supplying security fixes for the company's products.
Office for Mac 2016 or Office 365
After Microsoft officially retired Office for Mac 2011, users of this Mac 2011 version are advised to upgrade to higher versions as soon as possible. Clearly, Office 2016 for Mac is the best choice, as the application's support lifecycle extends until 2025.
In addition, Office 2016 is also supported on macOS High Sierra. Compared to Office for Mac 2011, Office 2016 operates much more smoothly. However, Microsoft also notes that some compatibility issues in Office 2016 may never be resolved. At this moment, you can install Office 2016 for Mac here.
Instead, Microsoft recommends Mac users transition to using Office 365, the latest version, ensuring the longest technical support.
Compared to Office 2016, Office 365 is provided as a subscription-based service, meaning customers will always have access to the latest updates, with security vulnerabilities patched. Office 365 is also the application that Microsoft encourages users to utilize.
