I think a potential way to do this is to offer lifetime plans that do not get new features, etc. that other plans often do, unless the user wants to 'top up' their lifetime plan. Effectively, they pay a large sum for a lifetime of whatever it is they want, which they can add to (so if they start with only ProtonMail but then want ProtonVPN, they can add that lifetime for another amount after the fact - but also if they already have all of the current Proton services but Proton increases the storage space for ProtonDrive subscriptions for other users, then lifetime users can pay an additional fee to be upgraded to that amount of storage as well.

Either that, or something like 5-Year Plans would be fine too, I guess.

Honestly this would be a negative and would lock proton into servicing a user base paying below market for too long - essentially this is a time value of money issue. I'm more concerned with proton being around for me to pay them for fifty years at least so I want them to have the ability to adjust the premium for the service over time.

I find Proton’s pricing absolutely reasonable, especially considering the range of services and the entire ecosystem (Mail, Drive, VPN, Calendar, etc.). A lifetime subscription may sound tempting, but for providers like Proton, it’s hardly sustainable from a business perspective—there are ongoing costs to cover, especially for a privacy-focused service. If you want to save money, you can flexibly choose individual services or wait for discounts. The competitor Tuta is cheaper, but also offers fewer features. For me, the added value of Proton is absolutely worth the higher price.

This is a stupid idea just like the people suggesting 5 year long subscriptions. Proton doesn't operate for free, they buy their own servers, maintain them, add new updates etc. and this all costs money. If you have a lifetime plan then that allows Proton no flexibility, if people pay let's say $500 and the cost of operating their servers doubles, they start losing money while with yearly plans they could at least balance out that lost revenue but not with lifetime or 5 year long plans.

if it's free (or too cheap) YOU are the product !
and this is exactely what we are trying to escape from with Proton !

Never do a lifetime plan

Everyone is bringing up that proton needs to thrive and survive, which would therefore require some sort of subscription, but I would like to respectfully propose a different solution. There is this company that I paid a single time purchase for and they switched or were about to switch to a subscription but then their users gave a lot of backlash, but in respectful way saying that the ones that owned the service would be happy to donate money to help those that can’t afford it or only pay a little. This app is called Voicedream. And also when people bring up a company needs to survive and that is why they need a subscription, I would like to respectfully point to the whole industry as a whole for the past thousands of years. Subscriptions have not always been a thing. Companies learned to diversify and innovate. When you can innovate in different areas, you can have reoccurring revenue. It’s all about being smart with the money you do get. People are sick in 2024 of subscriptions for everything (like how printers will get bricked if you top paying monthly or get cheaper ink etc). Honestly, I think consumers are not as angry with companies for switching to subscriptions as they are for many other companies, switching to subscriptions when they don’t need to. While proton has a valid point and reason to stay a subscription, there should be an option for users that can pay an expensive price like $1000 because it shows their level of investment and the companies mission, but it also shows how, they are willing to donate even more in the future to help essentially “pay” for other people’s low cost subscriptions or the free plan. These are my respectful and kind thoughts. If you reply, please be respectful and kind.

Honestly, the only thing hindering myself, alongside numerous others is that I want to be able to pay one time for all the different services even if it is pricey. I want to be able to have proton.meandprotonmail.com available to me for free. I’m willing to pay for it originally, but the main issue is that is a subscription nowadays so even if subscriptions are relatively cheap, they all add up, therefore making people have subscription fatigue, as Some may know it. Still love Proton but cannot make that switch until a one-time purchase. And the thing is, the one time purchase does not even need to be as good as the visionary. Honestly, if I knew about proton in 2014, then I definitely would have bought it because I believe a lot in privacy just like they do. They actually believe it and follow through with it whereas most companies like Nord IPVanish etc don’t care it seems (obviously people in companies can care, I am referring generally). Definitely believe in Proton’s mission! I find that while, having a lifetime purchase raffle is decent, it seems a little unethical that this is the only way. Obviously, this idea is not inherently bad but the issue is that people cannot purchase some thing like they would have been able to 10 or 15 years ago. As this world progresses, everything is a subscription. The issue is also that since everything is a subscription, it all adds up and honestly just annoy people like myself and many others when we see companies switch over. I find the best course of action to be when companies have subscriptions available, alongside lifetime purchases available, and finally abilities for lifetime owners to donate and helps others afford it. These are my friendly and respectful thoughts.

Have you ever heard of the concept of currency rate? In Japan, it is 170 yen to the dollar.

That means that if you subscribe to the lowest plan of Proton VPN, it will cost you 800 yen per month. Because of the large impact of the rate gap, we should make it possible for people outside of your country to sign up for the same amount of money as you do in your own country.

hey peoples Stop being poor this life long plan gonna make proton company died after years
i'm not support life long plan AT ALL we should subscribe to let proton team develop for better.

I honestly don't think 4 euros a month is too expensive.

If you have to consider the cost that Proton spends on setting up their own servers and infrastructure across the world, 4 euros a month is very reasonable.

And as long as we are using it, there will be maintenence costs, so it doesn't seem feasible from a business standpoint to have any sort of single payment lifetime benefit.

Please, there's so many good ideas. I'm disabled and can save up a chunk of change for a lifetime pass, but I really can't afford to add another another another another subscription service. Please.

I am paying for a Visionary plan (including six users, but we are only two people).

1. It seems "necessary" (not to say "imperative") to find a balance for cases where families or users don't need six accounts but one or two, and also those requiring more than only six.

2. The "main" reasons to upgrade to Family or Visionary are the extra storage space and the ability to manage subscriptions from a single account. I prefer much more adjusted pricing (per user) with the option to buy extra space if needed (which might not be the case for everyone, and they want to stay within the default limits).

Beware of undesired changes: making pricing adjustments doesn't mean dropping features. We are paying for higher plans and only suggesting a pricing review.

I want to keep supporting Proton and my Visionary Plan, but requiring 360€/year for two users seems completely out of place.

If Proton can come up with a good balance for this, they can surely keep Lifetime plan supporters happy.

My recommendations for features are as follows:

50 EURO for: 5GB lifetime storage (no annual Bonus Storage), 1 email address, 50 messsges per day, 1 calendar, 1 drive (sync across 2 devices), 0 VPN (no Proton VPN), 0 Pass (no Proton Pass), 0 hide-my-email alias

100 EURO for: 10GB lifetime storage (no annual Bonus Storage), 1 email address, 150 messsges per day, 1 calendar, 1 drive (sync across 5 devices), 1 medium-speed Proton VPN, 1 Proton Pass, 2 hide-my-email aliases

Lifetime plan supporters may not be happy with the limitations I set, but please hear me out, we have to take Proton's sustainability into consideration when we draw our plans for these Lifetime plans.

Lifetime plan supporters should be playing fair by making some sacrifice. Proton is 9 years old now, but they are not a "10 year company". They have long term plans, and they have visions to protect the community that value their privacy and security.

A longer term SUBSCRIPTION PLAN is needed. Calls for a 'one-off' payment are just daft, Proton is a quality product and best in class for what it offers and all those brilliant minds at Proton need to heat their homes and fill their eversoclever bellies too, just like you an me.
I have no reservations with paying for a good product (compared to all the s**t out there is there really any comparison anyway?) but feeling like I have made a long term commitment to the Proton ecosystem in my mind I would like Proton to recognise the value in locking in long-term subscribers with a reduction in price, something like a 10 or 20% reduction for signing up to long term plans, e.g. a five year plan that is paid over the first two years. A lifetime plan for a reduction makes no sense as some may enjoy the discount but then still leave affecting Proton margins and making it more expensive for the rest of us. A five year plan paid over two years would mitigate the risk for Proton of applying a discount but then not getting the trade if someone leaves after three years for example (although with the competition that is out there I don't know why anyone would leave although lets be fair and individual financial circumstances can change)
4EUR a month really does not feel like a lot, not in this day and age, you'll pay that for a pint of beer and if you compare what you get from Proton (zero access encrypted Email, Calendar, Drive, Pass, VPN) with a pint of beer each month then it will put it into perspective. I pay for the plus subscription every two years which makes it about £8.30 a month which I think is almost reasonable but would welcome a five year plan with a discount.

Folders and Labels are limited in Free not because of technical reasons (it doesn't cost anything to have them) but just to try and force people into a paid plan.

I understand a company has to make money, but they aren't making any money from free accounts and people are not moving into paid ones just to have a few more folders/labels that would be nice to haves.

If there would be an option for Lifetime plan (i.e. one off payments), people would probably pay for some features, if not too much.

Lifetime plans!

I'd opt for an affordable plan starting from 1-2€ for Email Plus and gradually increasing to 4€ based on how much storage+folders+emails-per-day I use.

INCREASE length of paid plans AND of course REDUCE pricing.

Currently the longest plan is an expensive 24 months plan. I like Proton, and I am fine to commit for the long term, but I also want PROTON to commit for the long-term with a 5 or 10 year plan, or why not with a lifetime plan, which should of course be much lower cost.

With this approach we users get protected from random price changes, and Proton get a loyal and captive user base, to which it can overtime sell more services.

VOTE for the LONG TERM PLANS Folks!!!

i too would like some sort of Retail/Lifetime Plan. i really don't like Subscriptions, they're a slippery slope to having a Charge bounce and be fined for it.

what i'm thinking is:

5-6GB Storage space total
2 E-Mail Addresses
20 Folders
20 Labels
10 Filters
E-Mail Client support

2 Calendars, 1 Calendar from Friends/Orgs
share Calendar via Link

for like say, $50?
i'm trying to be fair to everyone with this - a high enough / inefficient enough charge to make the Subscriptions a much better choice generally and to keep the cost of the Transaction minimal, but still offering the permanent upgrade for those that would like to support with increased limits.

this would make it easier for Proton to be a Service that one can rely on using into the future. without some sort of affordable Retail/Lifetime Plan option, those that are wary towards Subscriptions are left without any purchasing option.