Compare MSDN Subscriptions: Premium, Professional, Visual Studio Team Editions, and Operating System subscription levels

MSDN Subscriptions

Compare MSDN and Expression Subscriptions

MSDN Subscriptions give you access to an incredible range of software, tools and support, making it easy for you to build outstanding applications. Your MSDN Subscription provides past and present developer tools, operating systems, servers, and application software to use in developing and testing your applications. With MSDN Professional or MSDN Premium subscriptions you also get Software Assurance for Visual Studio so you can always upgrade to the latest technology. Additionally, as an MSDN subscriber you get access to technical support, Managed Newsgroups, MSDN Library reference materials, and a wide array of online forums to help you get the support you need.

MSDN and Expression Subscriptions include software licensed for the design, development, testing, and demonstration of your programs. MSDN Subscriptions support developers, testers, architects, and database professionals, whereas Expression Subscriptions focus on software designers. For more information on how you can use software included in an MSDN Subscription, see MSDN Subscription Software Use Rights.

You can also purchase subscriptions to TechNet Plus, which include software you can use only for evaluation purposes. For more information about TechNet Plus subscriptions, see Compare MSDN and TechNet Plus.

The table below summarizes the benefits of the MSDN and Expression Subscriptions. For detailed information, you can download the complete list of products available through MSDN and Expression Subscriptions.

Comparison Chart

Side-by-side Subscription benefit comparison chart:
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Download a detailed product list comparison chart.

Subscription and Pricing*

Software Benefits

Other Benefits

Who should subscribe?

Visual Studio Team System Team Suite with MSDN Premium

New:	£7,341.16
Renewal:	£2,348.18

Visual Studio Team System 2008 Team Suite
VSTS Team Foundation Server Workgroup Edition (5 users)
Expression Studio
Servers
Windows
Windows Embedded operating systems**
Operating Systems
Office
Microsoft Dynamics
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

4 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Software developers, testers, and architects who perform different roles on the same project or different roles from one project to the next. This gives the full Visual Studio toolset.

VSTS is appropriate for members of moderate to advanced software teams needing automated builds, bug tracking, performance optimization, and other features in VSTS and TFS.

Visual Studio Team System Editions with MSDN Premium:

Development
Architecture
Test
Database

New:

£3,670.25

Renewal:

£1,542.86

The Visual Studio Team System 2008 role selected
VSTS Team Foundation Server Workgroup Edition (5 users)
Expression Blend, Expression Web
Servers
Windows
Windows Embedded operating systems**
Operating Systems
Office
Microsoft Dynamics
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

4 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Software developers, testers, and architects who consistently perform the same duties, requiring only one type of VSTS tool.

VSTS is appropriate for members of moderate to advanced software teams needing automated builds, bug tracking, performance optimization, and other features in VSTS and TFS.

Visual Studio Professional with MSDN Premium

New:	£1,677.08
Renewal:	£1,341.53

Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition
Visual SourceSafe
Servers
Windows
Windows Embedded operating systems**
Operating Systems
Office
Microsoft Dynamics
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

4 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Professional developers, software testers, or IT professionals needing access to the largest pool of Microsoft software for use in software development projects, including installation of test or development environments.

Visual Studio Professional with MSDN Professional

New:	£804.65
Renewal:	£536.21

Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition
Visual SourceSafe
SQL Server, all versions
Operating Systems
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

2 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Professional developers, software testers, or IT professionals needing access to Microsoft operating systems and SQL Server for use in software development projects, including installation of test or development environments.

Visual Studio Professional with MSDN Embedded

New:	£804.65
Renewal:	£536.21

Visual Studio 2008 Professional Edition
Visual SourceSafe
Windows Embedded operating systems
Windows
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

2 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Embedded developers, professional developers or IT professionals needing access to Windows Embedded operating systems for use in software development projects, including installation of test or development environments.

MSDN Operating Systems

New:	£469.10
Renewal:	£334.87

Operating Systems
Toolkits, SDKs and DDKs

2 Technical support incidents
MSDN Library
Managed Newsgroup support
Online Concierge
MSDN Magazine
MSDN Flash

Software testers or IT professionals who need to set up test labs with Microsoft operating systems, but do not need additional products.

Example: Test or IT staff at a video card manufacturer needs to set up a lab for testing drivers on multiple versions of Windows.

Expression Professional Subscription

New:	£671.06
Renewal:	£436.17

Expression Studio
Visual Studio Standard Edition
Windows Vista Business & Ultimate
Windows XP Professional
Office Standard
Visio Professional
Project Professional
Groove
Virtual PC
Parallels Desktop for Mac

2 Technical support incidents

Professional Designers and Web Developers

*Prices listed are Estimated Retail Prices (ERP) in British Pounds Sterling and do not include applicable taxes. Organizations should contact their Microsoft representative or preferred reseller for Volume Licensing prices. Click here for pricing and purchasing options in your region.

** Availability pending

The information is representative and not comprehensive. Products, versions, and availability are subject to change.