Glossary
Perpetual license
A perpetual license is a software license you pay for once. It lets you keep using that version without renewing. Updates, support and new major versions are often separate, time-limited or paid extra.
Updated October 16, 202610 cited facts, each traced to its source
Also called One-time purchase, Lifetime license.
A perpetual license is a software license you buy once. It lets you keep using that version of the program with no monthly or yearly renewal. The license itself does not expire. What can end is the vendor's support and updates, and those are often handled as a separate question.
A perpetual license covers one version, not every future release
The license permits use of a specific version. It does not promise anything about the versions that come after it. A new major release can require a new purchase or an active support plan, and the terms you accept at checkout decide which. Read the license before you buy, and check whether updates are included, how long they last, and whether they cost extra.
Updates can stop while the license stays valid
Nuance's Dragon Premium 13 shows the difference. Owners kept a perpetual license, but Nuance stopped providing support or updates for it after January 1, 2019 1. For Dragon Professional Individual for Mac, Nuance said updates would stop after 22 October 2018 2. The company later said it had decided to discontinue that Mac line 3. Owners kept the version they had, but they received no further fixes or features for it.
Small vendors sell the same one-time model
The model is common outside the large vendors. VoiceInk's Solo license costs $25 once for one Mac, with lifetime access and no monthly bill 4. Superwhisper lists a lifetime Pro license at $249.99, paid once 5. Both are vendor listings as checked on 16 October 2026, so confirm them on the vendor's site before you buy.
A worked example: when a one-time price is cheaper
Superwhisper's monthly Pro plan is listed at $8.49 per month 6. At that rate, the lifetime license costs the same as about 29 months of the monthly plan 7. If you expect to dictate for longer than that, the one-time price costs less. If you might stop within two years, the monthly plan costs less. The arithmetic decides the price, but only if the license still covers the version you will use after the next update.
Dragon shows the same trade-off in older prices. Dragon NaturallySpeaking launched in 1997 at $695 8. Version 15 was offered as an upgrade for $150 to users of version 14 9. Each purchase bought a version, and the next version needed a new decision.
What to check before you buy
- The version covered. The license names one version, so confirm whether the next major release is included or costs extra.
- The support end date. Updates can end before the license does, as the Dragon Premium 13 case shows.
- The number of devices. The University of York's IT services describe one Dragon Professional Individual licence as allowing installation on up to 4 devices for the user's own use 10. Other licenses set their own limits.
- The platform. A Mac license does not cover Windows, and the reverse is also true.
Related terms and guides
A perpetual license is the opposite of a subscription, where you pay for access for each period. Dragon Professional Anywhere is one subscription example. The bring your own key model is a different question, about who holds the AI account, and it is separate from how you pay for the app. For the Dragon versions and their history, read our guide to Dragon NaturallySpeaking versions. For prices across the market, read how much dictation software costs and our overview of dictation software.
Evidence
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- 7.At the monthly price, Superwhisper's lifetime license costs the same as about 29 months of the monthly Pro plan.
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Related terms
- Dictation Software: How to Choose the Right AppThe topic this term belongs to
- AI dictationAI dictation is dictation in which a language model edits the recognized text after speech recognition, removing filler words, fixing punctuation and sometimes rewording a sentence. It can change your meaning, so check the result before you send it.
- Bring your own key (BYOK)Bring your own key (BYOK) is a setup in which you supply your own API key for an AI or speech provider. The app then sends requests through your account with that provider, so your agreement with the provider governs the data.
- Cloud dictationCloud dictation sends your recorded speech to a remote server, which recognizes it and returns the text. It usually needs an internet connection, and your audio leaves your device, so check the provider's policy before you dictate sensitive material.
- Custom vocabularyA custom vocabulary is a list of words, names and phrases that you add to dictation software so it recognizes and spells them as you intend. It matters most for names, jargon and product terms the recognizer has not learned.
- Dictation softwareDictation software is a program that recognizes your speech and types the words where your cursor is, as you say them. It comes built into many phones and computers and is also sold as separate apps.
- Dragon Medical OneDragon Medical One, abbreviated DMO, is Nuance's speech recognition product for clinicians who dictate notes into health records. Microsoft now combines it with DAX Copilot in a product called Dragon Copilot.
- Dragon NaturallySpeakingDragon NaturallySpeaking, usually called Dragon, is a speech recognition program for dictating text on a computer. Dragon Systems released it in 1997, and Nuance has sold it in several editions since.
- Dragon Professional AnywhereDragon Professional Anywhere is a subscription edition of Dragon that Nuance sells for professional and enterprise users. It is often shortened to Dragon Anywhere, a name that also belongs to Nuance's mobile app, so check which product a listing means.
- Free tierA free tier is the no-cost version of a dictation app, with limits such as a weekly word cap, fewer modes or no AI processing. Read those limits before you rely on it, because a free plan can run out in the middle of your work.
- Nuance CommunicationsNuance Communications was a speech technology company best known for the Dragon family of speech recognition products. Microsoft announced that it had completed its acquisition of Nuance on March 4, 2022.
- PowerScribePowerScribe is a family of radiology reporting products in which a radiologist dictates an imaging report by voice. It began as a Nuance dictation application, and Microsoft completed its purchase of Nuance in 2022, so Microsoft now sells the line.
- Voice profileA voice profile is the set of files that dictation software keeps for one user, with settings such as the microphone they use and their custom words. It is not the same as speaker recognition, which identifies who is speaking.
Pages that use this term
- Best Dictation Software and Apps, Compared by NeedGuide
- Dragon NaturallySpeaking Versions, Editions and PriceGuide
- AI Dictation Apps Compared: How the Major Apps DifferGuide
- How do you deactivate a Dragon NaturallySpeaking license?Question
- How do you move Dragon NaturallySpeaking to a new computer?Question
- How much does dictation software cost?Question
- How much does Dragon NaturallySpeaking cost?Question
- Is VoiceInk free and open source?Question
- What is the best voice to text software for business?Question
- What is the difference between Wispr Flow and Superwhisper?Question
- What software do Philips and Olympus dictation recorders use?Question
- Where can you still buy Dragon NaturallySpeaking?Question
- Why do AI dictation apps charge a monthly subscription?Question
- Bring your own key (BYOK)Glossary
- Dragon NaturallySpeakingGlossary
- Dragon Professional AnywhereGlossary
- Free tierGlossary
- Nuance CommunicationsGlossary