Pricing is flipping across Mac and iOS apps in 2025. The Affinity trio for iPad—Affinity Publisher, Affinity Photo, and Affinity Designer—are temporarily free, with references to lifetime licenses for the V1 versions. A seven‑day free trial shows zero cost to purchase [1].
In desktop publishing, the pricing mix is heating up. InDesign is subscription only, Quark Xpress is a one‑time buy, and the Affinity stance remains under scrutiny. A public pledge from Canva says perpetual licenses will continue alongside any subscription option [2].
Indie pricing experiments aren’t rare either. FitWoody is in open beta ahead of its October 23 launch, offering a $10 discount on the annual plan and, for this rebuild, no lifetime license planned for the moment [3].
On developer tools, JetBrains DataGrip is now free for non‑commercial use. The move includes data sharing by default and notes that anonymized data may be used to improve the product, with AI model training mentioned in discussions [4].
Finally, Banktivity is pushing a 50% off annual subscription for Reddit readers, plus a 30‑day free trial. The deal runs through October 12, 2025 for new customers joining the Mac/iPhone/iPad budgeting suite [5].
These moves show pricing experiments continuing to blur lines between free access, perpetual licenses, and subscriptions across the Mac/iOS ecosystem.
References
Affinity iPad apps for free
Affinity iPad apps offered free; debate about future pricing and subscriptions; Mac store removal; Canva tie; alternatives suggested.
View sourceWhat desktop publishing apps are available for Mac?
Discusses Mac desktop publishing apps (InDesign, QuarkXPress, Affinity, Scribus, Pages) and subscription worries; references Swift Publisher, iCalamus, perpetual license.
View sourceFitWoody — a kinder fitness app, rebuilt from scratch
Indie FitWoody rebuilds for iOS/watchOS; open beta with pricing, lifetime license questions, and tester feedback guiding launch.
View sourceJetbrains DataGrip (the best SQL Client, IMO) is now free for non-commercial Use
DataGrip becomes free for non-commercial use on Mac; privacy concerns raised; users compare Navicat and other IDEs with mixed opinions.
View sourceHey Reddit! We’re giving you 50% off our award-winning budgeting app
Banktivity offers 50% off annual subscription and 30-day free trial for Mac, iPhone, iPad budgeting and personal finance today worldwide.
View source