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Read&Write vs. Microsoft 365 vs. Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)

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    Overview
    ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price

    Read&Write

    Score8.6 out of 10
    N/ARead&Write is a literacy support tool that helps individuals of all abilities read, write, and express themselves with confidence. For education and the workplace, its assistive features include text-to-speech, word prediction, and research tools for users with diverse learning needs.N/A

    Microsoft 365

    Score8.7 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft 365 (formerly Office 365) is a Microsoft Cloud subscription service that includes Microsoft Office products (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher, and Access). The software can be installed across multiple devices and ensures that users always have the most up-to-date version of the included Office applications.

    $5

    Per User Per Month

    Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)

    Score8.6 out of 10
    N/AMicrosoft Office 2016 is the familiar suite of Office products including applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for use on a single PC or Mac. The 2016 is no longer available for sale from Microsoft, and support is at an end since 2020.N/A
    Pricing
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Editions & Modules
    No answers on this topic
    Business Basic
    $5.00
    Per User Per Month
    Individual
    $5.84
    *Per Month
    Business - Apps
    $8.25
    Per User Per Month
    Enterprise - F3
    $10.00
    Per User Per Month
    Business Standard
    $12.50
    Per User Per Month
    Business Premium
    $20.00
    Per User Per Month
    Enterprise - E3
    $32.00
    Per User Per Month
    Enterprise - E5
    $57.00
    Per User Per Month
    No answers on this topic
    Offerings
    Pricing Offerings
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Free Trial
    YesNoNo
    Free/Freemium Version
    YesNoNo
    Premium Consulting/Integration Services
    NoNoNo
    Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup feeNo setup fee
    Additional Details*When billed annually.
    More Pricing Information
    Community Pulse
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Considered Multiple Products
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    Chose Read&Write
    While the Microsoft 365 features are convenient, Read&Write has the advantage that it can be used consistently in both Office products and the Chrome web browser, which helps students as they don't have to learn different systems. Crucially, Read&Write can be used in exam …
    Incentivized
    Chose Read&Write
    It has more functions than Speechify, however we find it harder to use overall.
    Incentivized
    Chose Read&Write
    Recommended by other institutions, and better than anything already built-in to existing apps/OS
    Incentivized
    Chose Read&Write
    This is the first piece of software of this kind we have used.
    Incentivized
    Chose Read&Write
    Early on our district was using Kurweil 3000 but that was restrictive to the computer that it was placed on. We also used co-writer (Don Johnson) for writing supports. By having both features available in one convenient toolbar along with other amazing features that follow the …
    Incentivized
    Chose Read&Write
    We still utilize Microsoft Immersive Reader as our Tier2 / UDL support tool. However, the word prediction is barely functional and there are confusing limitations to when certain tools are available (the picture dictionary is available in Word Online but not in Edge).

    We …
    Incentivized
    Microsoft
    Chose Microsoft 365
    Microsoft Office 365 is more complete than Microsoft Office 2016. It is cloud-based, and this is a great advantage. Furthermore, now updates and upgrades are automatic and can be scheduled or accepted, really saving time compared to Office 2016.
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    No comparison, we can do more with Microsoft 365 and we are more efficient. The pricing model is very fair. We don't have to worry about updating the software on each machine, the updates are handled by Microsoft directly and the Microsoft 365 programs seem much more stable and …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    We had been using Microsoft Office for a long time, but moving to Microsoft 365 [(formerly Office 365)] was a game changer because it is a cloud based system. Having the ability to access your email, files, or whatever you need wherever you are from any device is what really …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    In our company we have both Office 365 and regular Office 2016. We are transitioning more to 365 for the ease of managing the licensing. We don't have to keep license cards or numbers stored anywhere because 365 uses your microsoft login which you are using anyway.
    Compared to …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    We were looking to stay in the Microsoft Office 365 family, so it was either the cloud or a current desktop version. Ultimately the lower startup cost of refreshing all licenses at once, it was decided by the board to go with the new subscription-based Microsoft Office 365. At …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    Microsoft Office 365 simply drives through the cloud platform allowing to set a huge variety of options that can be set from custom to standard software in a single package or just to set an specific range of options enabled to the end users, and given the chance to the company …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    Microsoft Office 365 is the easiest to access on the go and is always up to date. It is also affordable given all of the features it offers. Being able to use most of Microsoft's products for one price is convenient and allows our organization to store and sort information over …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    Having all of the offerings and services in one easy to use administrative interface makes administration of our Microsoft suite of applications much easier. We are not able to get that same integration with separated applications. Gmail is not very intuitive if you're coming …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft 365
    Google Apps made famous real-time collaborative editing in Google Docs. Now that Office 365 offers Word Online, there is no competition. Google Apps have always been "Microsoft Office-Lite" products, giving very basic functionality. With Office Online apps, it's hard not to see …
    Incentivized
    Discontinued Products
    Chose Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    For certain situations there is a benefit to the "standalone" package of Office 2106, vs. a subscription-based product like Office 365. Especially in the case where there are shared computers, or computers that are used as a kiosk, Microsoft Office 2016 would be one of the few …
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    We have not tried to use an alternate. Office is the way to go.
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Microsoft Office provides the complete package. Everyone else is just a piece to the puzzle. Sure Microsoft Office costs more, but they give you all the software you need to have in one package. I don't want or need to find replacements for 5 different purposes.
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Not as robust and feature filled as office 2016. Also missing a mail client like outlook that can be integrated with exchange. have not used any further applications besides this.
    Incentivized
    Chose Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Microsoft Office 365 brings the same tools of Office 2016, but renewed. Office 2016 was sold for a one time, up front fee, on the other hand, Microsoft Office 365 is the new way Microsoft wants you to buy Office, you pay a monthly or yearly fee and get access to its latest …
    Incentivized
    Key User Insights
    Would buy again
    98%
    Would buy again
    156 Answers
    96%
    Would buy again
    195 Answers
    93%
    Would buy again
    50 Answers
    Delivers good value for the price
    95%
    Delivers good value for the price
    120 Answers
    97%
    Delivers good value for the price
    179 Answers
    94%
    Delivers good value for the price
    47 Answers
    Happy with the feature set
    97%
    Happy with the feature set
    154 Answers
    98%
    Happy with the feature set
    198 Answers
    96%
    Happy with the feature set
    52 Answers
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    95%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    86 Answers
    94%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    134 Answers
    98%
    Lived up to sales and marketing promises
    40 Answers
    Implementation went as expected
    91%
    Implementation went as expected
    104 Answers
    95%
    Implementation went as expected
    142 Answers
    98%
    Implementation went as expected
    41 Answers
    Features
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Writing and Proofreading
    Comparison of Writing and Proofreading features of Read&Write and Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Feature
    Read&Write
    7.0
    158 Ratings
    8% below category average
    Microsoft 365
    -
    Ratings
    Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    -
    Ratings
    Spelling and grammar check6.7137 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Machine translation6.2113 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Integrations7.0118 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Browser extension7.6141 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Speech-to-Text7.6142 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Picture Dictionary7.1125 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Dictionary7.1138 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Highlighters7.5142 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Audio maker5.8107 Ratings00 Ratings00 Ratings
    Best Alternatives
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Small Businesses
    No answers on this topic
    Google Workspace
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Google Workspace
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Medium-sized Companies
    Ginger Business
    Score7.9 out of 10
    Google Workspace
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Google Workspace
    Score9.1 out of 10
    Enterprises
    Ginger Business
    Score7.9 out of 10
    Microsoft 365 Business Premium
    Score9 out of 10
    Microsoft 365 Business Premium
    Score9 out of 10
    All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
    User Ratings
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Likelihood to Recommend
    8.5
    (162 ratings)
    8.4
    (262 ratings)
    7.5
    (64 ratings)
    Likelihood to Renew
    8.1
    (15 ratings)
    9.5
    (6 ratings)
    5.0
    (3 ratings)
    Usability
    8.1
    (10 ratings)
    8.7
    (30 ratings)
    7.0
    (3 ratings)
    Availability
    9.1
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Performance
    7.7
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Support Rating
    9.9
    (43 ratings)
    8.9
    (54 ratings)
    8.0
    (45 ratings)
    In-Person Training
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Online Training
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Implementation Rating
    7.2
    (6 ratings)
    9.0
    (2 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Configurability
    5.5
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    7.6
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Ease of integration
    9.1
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Product Scalability
    8.4
    (5 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Professional Services
    9.1
    (1 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor post-sale
    8.5
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    Vendor pre-sale
    8.5
    (3 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    -
    (0 ratings)
    User Testimonials
    Read&WriteMicrosoft 365Microsoft Office 2016 (discontinued)
    Likelihood to Recommend
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    Read&Write is especially well-suited to supporting students with reading accommodations during independent work, content-area instruction, and written-response tasks. In my 5th-grade classroom, one of the most effective scenarios is during science and social studies lessons, where students are expected to read complex informational texts independently. There can also be occasional challenges when websites, PDFs, or testing platforms are not fully compatible with all Read&Write features.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Microsoft 365 would be well suited for medium to large enterprises. This is where there are several hundreds or thousands of people. Since most everyone has used one of the applications the learning curve would be reduced. Another reason would be the ability to implement security measures to prevent access to sensitive data. This could justify the cost of an Enterprise license.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    I'd recommend [Microsoft] Office2016 for any business that has more than a couple of users, as the software is very scalable from just a small business to a large enterprise corporation. I don't know of any case where it might not be appropriate, as even home users and students use the software suite as well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Pros
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    • Creates vocabulary lists for students that include symbols, definitions, and space to add additional notes or images (a staff favorite)
    • Intuitive word prediction that supports spelling, grammar, and reduces the number of keystrokes needed
    • Text-to-speech on any digital text using the regular reader or screenshot reader, making almost any content accessible
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Chat with teams and the integrations with the other apps, and many more smaller ones, like to-dos, news, and the recent Outlook integration.
    • Easy embedding on SharePoint to broadcast all the content created in the different tools.
    • The office package is still robust with the good things from the past and new additions.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    • Data manipulation. Excel takes the raw data we receive and allows us to digest it in ways that are useful to our business processes.
    • Communication. Outlook serves as our primary means of communication and setting up appointments.
    • Documentation. Word is the default standard when it comes to using a word processor and we are no different in this regard. Nearly every user has to use the application on a regular basis in order to accomplish their work.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Cons
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    • I would like to use the practice reading aloud tool more, but the kids that I work with have a hard time understanding the concept. I think that, while there are a lot of tools available, sometimes they are hard for younger students to understand.
    • The hover to read function is nice as well, but my students struggle with the fact that if you move the mouse once it starts reading it will start all over in a new area. It's not as smooth as I would like it to be.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • Slack is 1000x better than teams. Why put a 250 limit on a chat? Our company hasn't moved fully to channels and it's making us lose transparency. Plus, the teams channels we do have nobody is going to. 90% loss in visibility and engagement.
    • Teams for web meetings. I think the UI/UX should match Zoom which is the standard for all our customers. They don't like it when we use Teams.
    • Chats and Channels need to somehow be on one screen automatically without having to choose that view because majority of our company hasn't opened Teams Channels and only stays in chats.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    • Office 2016 professional edition can be priced for a single user license, it would be nice to see a drop in the pricing.
    • Office 2016 home edition is a better price but does not include outlook 2016, so it is not a good fit for the workplace environments.
    • Office 2016 can run slowly on older systems, so you need to make sure you have a machine that is 4 years old or less for it to run smoothly.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Likelihood to Renew
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    I'm just really impressed with the software and the access it gives to learners who are used to coming up against barriers in education. It's a quick-fix for a learner - something they can access usefully and productively with very little training. I also love that learners can access Read&Write on their devices at home - that really is a game changer.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    There are many features of Office that we cannot replicate in any other tool. Plus people know it already. It's not going away anytime soon.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    We believe that office 2016 offers the best value when it comes to features included out of the box. The software is used in its entirety by our organization and is easily supported by our staff of IT technicians. Users find this software to be easy to learn and easy to use with minimal learning curve.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Usability
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    I am giving this an 9. Not a perfect score because working on PDFs is better but not yet as easy as I need for it to be. Working with many students who have executive function challenges, I need a smooth simplistic access method. We are not quite there yet for writing on PDFs. Overall the toolbar on Read&Write is super easy to access and I love that the suite includes several tools on the toolbar providing a solution to many accessibility challenges.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Microsoft 365 is the gold standard for performing project tasks in a professional environment, enabling the quick transfer and exchange of files and ideas for team members who work locally and remotely. Its suite of tools is familiar and has evolved to being cloud based, allowing for files to be updated in real time from near and far.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    It's fairly easy to use, but the automatic formatting or capturing of formatting when pasting is wonky - especially when there are outlines or other bullets/numbered lists. Fixing and sizing up tables can be annoying, and there are sometimes formatting issues that we just absolutely cannot fix for some reason
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Reliability and Availability
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    Seems to be available when Internet is working.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Performance
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    there are issues with the dictation not running smoothly.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Support Rating
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    The support team at Texthelp is excellent. They're all super helpful and open to feedback and new ideas. Still, more importantly, they are ultimately fully committed to aligning with us and ensuring they help us provide the best education possible. Furthermore, they're open to new features and always communicate this incredibly well.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Over the past 8 years of using Microsoft 365, I have noticed that they change vendors often. This always leads to a poor experience in the beginning, then levels out after some time for the company to get things worked out. As a customer, it is really frustrating because I don't have time when something isn't working to have them "look into my issue" and get back with me. They have even closed a ticket I specifically told them to keep open. Your applications are only as good as the support.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    I am an MS feedback hub participant and they certainly don't pay enough attention to several bugs several people raise it in the portal. For the enterprise, it seems to me based on my prior experience that yes, they have a dedicated team to support operations. For mid to small companies or single users, it has been a struggle. So, you are pretty much with MS Blogs and others.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Online Training
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    It was easy to learn to use
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Implementation Rating
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    It took a solid 2 weeks for R&W to work on our students chromebooks even after reaching out to tech support. The toolbar was greyed out and not accessible to students. Took a long time before tech support helped us solve this problem.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Everything works and I use it all the time.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Alternatives Considered
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    We are still learning how to use Equatio. I am not a mathematician and therefore I am finding understanding it a bit more difficult. Once I understand how to use it I will be able to cascade it down. My hope is that it will be as useful as Read & Write
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    Its very user-friendly, collaborative and efficient that boosts productivity using cloud tools. their security is strong and it provides data protection. There are regular updates that shields us from attackers too. It offers a wealth of learning resources, including tutorials, help articles and video guide to help users make the most of the application and personally upgrade their skills.
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    We use Microsoft Office 2016 because at the time it was the best tool for us, but now with full attention to cloud products, we may be thinking of migrating our solution to a cloud service.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Contract Terms and Pricing Model
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    The pricing is reasonable. A lower tier with just screen reading and basic functions would be nice, but not a deal-breaker.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Scalability
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    The product can be used on as many devices at once as needed
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    No answers on this topic
    Discontinued Products
    No answers on this topic
    Return on Investment
    Everway (formerly Texthelp and n2y)
    • We are early to deploying Read&Write but hope to see increased test scores
    • We are early to deploying Read&Write but hope to see decreases in student behaviors triggered by challenging ELA assignments
    • We are early to deploying Read&Write but hope to see improvements in student self perception as a result of increased ELA success
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    Microsoft
    • We have a lot of nonprofit users, so they have a good ROI.
    • I like the constant updates without having to purchase the software repeatedly.
    • I used to purchase each Office (insert year here) often, so the software was up to date and had the newest options and connectors. I think my return on investment would have been much better if Microsoft had updated those versions to keep them current; after all, we did pay for them.
    • Microsoft 365's offering a monthly fee or a discount for a year helps, and you can look at it as a free backup if you have everything set to back up to One Drive. (Cloud-based document filing you can access anywhere ( with an internet connection)—you Can't beat that!)
    Read full review
    Discontinued Products
    • Microsoft Office 2016 saves me a lot of time daily. I have functions and macros set up that calculate and show me a lot of things just from a couple of my inputs. This would take full days sometimes if not for that.
    • Apart from time, it saves me money, I manage data in Excel, I don't have to buy software specifically for that.
    • Sooner or later my company will have to switch to new edition, which will hurt revenues because of a subscription model.
    Incentivized
    Read full review
    ScreenShots

    Read&Write Screenshots

    Screenshot of the translatorScreenshot of the text-to-speech functionalityScreenshot of the Similar Word CheckerScreenshot of Screen MaskingScreenshot of a scanScreenshot of the PDF Reader