Adobe Creative Cloud / FAQ

Adobe Creative Cloud is a digital hub where you can explore, create, share, and deliver your work using any of the Adobe Creative Suite® desktop tools, Adobe Photoshop® Lightroom® 4*, and new applications like Adobe Muse™ and Adobe Edge preview. Creative Cloud also includes new Internet-based services† and enables the delivery of high-impact content experiences such as interactive websites and stunning digital magazines. By offering connectivity with Adobe Touch Apps‡, headlined by Adobe Photoshop Touch, Creative Cloud enables a mobile workflow, from ideation to publishing, to bring the power of Adobe innovation to iPads and Android™ tablets. Creative Cloud gives you freedom to create, offering immediate and ongoing access to industry-­defining tools and technologies, to serve a vibrant worldwide community of creative talent.

Creative Cloud is being offered as a membership to provide maximum flexibility, lower upfront costs, and most importantly the ability for Adobe to deliver cutting-edge innovation on an immediate and ongoing basis to keep you ahead of the changing technology and device landscape. You will have ongoing access to the latest versions of all of the Creative Cloud components as long as your membership is active.

No. With Creative Cloud membership, you can select your favorite products, or try new ones, and install them directly on your desktop. The CS applications, including Photoshop, Illustrator, and Adobe InDesign®, as well as other creative desktop tools like Lightroom*, Adobe Edge preview, and Adobe Muse, will continue to be installed on your computer, taking advantage of all of the performance you get from your desktop or laptop system.

Because your Creative Suite applications are installed directly on your computer, you will not need an ongoing Internet connection to use them on a daily basis. However, you will need to be online when you install and license your software, and at least once every 30 days thereafter. The software will alert you when you need to connect to the Internet for a license status check.

No. Creative Cloud enables you to install each application individually whenever it works best for you. Mix and match and install whatever you want — you have the freedom to choose which applications you want to install.

Yes, as a member of Creative Cloud, you get many benefits that you do not get when you purchase a traditional shrinkwrapped product:

• An ever-expanding membership that provides access to Adobe's latest products, services, features, and workflows as soon as they are available. You no longer have to wait 12, 18, or 24 months for the latest innovations.
• Access to both the Mac OS and Windows® versions of the desktop applications and the ability to install them on your primary computer and one backup computer. So, if you have a Mac at home and a PC at work, you can install your applications on both as long as they are not running at the same time. See the product license agreements page for more information.
• Access to any language version in which the CS6 and other desktop applications are available. Unlike owning the traditional licensed version of a Creative Suite product, Creative Cloud membership gives you the freedom and flexibility to choose whichever language works best for you in any given application.
• 20GB of cloud storage space on www.creativecloud.com and device syncing to be able to access your work on both desktop and tablet
• Access to online services that are not available through the desktop products alone

Adobe believes that Creative Cloud is a better way to get your desktop tools because you get access to the latest updates and features as soon as they're available, plus services that tie the new publishing workflows together. Adobe will continue to develop and sell individual CS products, and customers can purchase them through the Adobe online stores and select retail and online stores.

When you cancel a month-to-month or annual membership purchased directly from Adobe or let a 3- or 12-month prepaid membership purchased from a retailer expire, you will no longer have access to the CS applications, other desktop software, and services that are components of Creative Cloud. However, if you saved your work to your computer, you will continue to have access to those files. You will also have access to the same benefits as a free Creative Cloud member, which include 2GB of storage space (reduced from 20GB), the ability to sync and store your files, access to a free 30-day trial of the desktop software that has not already been installed and provisioned as part of your paid membership, and access to the free level of services included with Creative Cloud.

No, if you have downloaded and installed the CS6 versions of the applications, you will continue to have access to them without interruption as long as your membership remains active. When the CS7 versions become available, you will have up to a year to download and install them and they will run on your machine along with CS6 versions.

Yes, you can run the traditional licensed versions of your Creative Suite applications at the same time you run the Creative Cloud applications.

As of now, there are no differences in the functionality or in the system requirements between the two. However, as we add more to Creative Cloud, like entirely new applications or software features that we deliver to Creative Cloud members first, it is possible that the functionality of Creative Cloud will be different from the software you buy in a box.  

Creative Cloud membership includes cloud-based services that allow you to create and access files from any Internet-connected computer or device. Every paid member of Creative Cloud receives 20GB of space that allows you to:

• Sync your creative files between the Adobe Touch Apps‡ on your tablet (purchased separately) and your desktop computer, or between two of your desktop computers
• Share your files with colleagues and clients
• Access your files via a web browser

Learn more about the cloud storage and device syncing capabilities.

No — just sync what you want. You can save every file to your desktop and choose which ones you sync to Creative Cloud.

Becoming a member is a great option to consider if:

• You need a complete solution that takes you from a creative idea through publishing across screens and devices
• You want to explore different applications and services beyond what you currently use
• You want to stay current on the latest versions of your favorite Creative Suite applications
• You want access to Adobe’s latest innovations as soon as they are available
• You need a cost-effective way to access a complete set of solutions

When you join Creative Cloud directly from Adobe, you can choose from an annual or month-to-month plan. The annual plan has lower monthly payments and requires that you remain a member for the entire year; you can cancel within that year, but you will need to pay a fee to do so. The annual plan will automatically renew for the next 12-month period after the initial term has been met.

A month-to-month plan provides the flexibility of a short-term commitment that allows you to end your membership at any time. If you decide to restart, simply purchase a new membership without having to reinstall your apps. You will be charged more per month for this flexibility.

When you purchase a Creative Cloud membership at a retailer or online store, you can choose a 3- or 12-month prepaid membership. When either of these memberships expire, you can renew directly on www.creativecloud.com or purchase another prepaid card at a retailer or online store.

Customers who are eligible for the Creative Cloud Student and Teacher Edition will be offered the annual plan only.

Existing customers who have a qualified registered CS3, CS4, CS5, CS5.5, or CS6 individual product or suite edition and who sign up for the Creative Cloud annual plan directly from Adobe by August 31, 2012, will receive special introductory pricing of US$29.99 per month for the first year of membership. This offer is not available for education, OEM, or volume licensing customers.

Customers who purchase a 12-month prepaid membership at a participating retail or online store may have access to a mail-in rebate program. Check with a participating retailer or online store for more information.

Commercial or education customers who sign up for an annual membership to Creative Cloud or who buy a 12-month prepaid card at a retailer or online store will be eligible for a free month of Creative Cloud when they sign into Creative Cloud from three qualifying Adobe Touch Apps from the Android Market or Apple App Store. Qualifying apps include Adobe Collage, Adobe Debut, Adobe Ideas, Adobe Kuler®, Adobe Photoshop Touch, and Adobe Proto.

Customers who purchase an annual membership directly from Adobe and qualify for this offer will not be charged for the month of service after sign-in from their third Touch App. Qualifying members will be notified of their free month within 60 days.

Customers who purchase a 12-month prepaid card from a retailer or online store and qualify for this offer will have one month added to the duration of their membership, and thus receive a total of 13 months of access. Qualifying members will be notified of their free month within 60 days.

Memberships are available in the following countries:

• Australia
• Austria
• Belgium
• Brazil
• Bulgaria
• Canada
• Cyprus
• Czech Republic
• Denmark
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Hungary
• Ireland
• Italy
• Japan
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• Mexico
• Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Norway
• Poland
• Portugal
• Romania
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
• Sweden
• Switzerland
• United Kingdom
• United States

The Creative Cloud experience includes the Creative Cloud website, Creative Suite and other desktop applications, and several online services. When using the individual CS6 applications, members can select from any language in which each is available. Unlike owning the traditional licensed version of a CS product, Creative Cloud membership gives you the flexibility to choose whichever language works best for you in any given application.

The Creative Cloud website itself is available in Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish, and Swedish. Visit the tech specs page for information on language availability for other components and services.

Individual memberships to Creative Cloud are available through Adobe.com and at Amazon.com and Staples.com in North America. More retailers will be offering Creative Cloud soon. When you buy at a retail or online store, you will have the choice of a prepaid 3-month or 12-month membership.Customers eligible for the Creative Cloud Student and Teacher Edition will have the choice of buying an annual membership directly from Adobe. Select retailers will soon be offering a 12-month prepaid membership.

Creative Cloud Team memberships will become available later in 2012 through Adobe's network of corporate resellers. Exact details on Creative Cloud Team are still being defined but will include greater online storage capacities, collaboration tools, and license management and deployment capabilities. Volume licensing customers who are interested in Creative Cloud Team but would like to access some of the benefits of Creative Cloud today, including CS6, may consider our Creative Cloud Team Ready offer. This offering through Adobe's Transactional Licensing Program (TLP) is based on a one-year term agreement and is available for purchase through any Adobe corporate resellers. Customers who choose this option will automatically be transitioned into Creative Cloud Team membership as soon as it becomes available later in 2012.

Creative Cloud Team memberships will become available later in 2012 through Adobe's network of corporate resellers. Exact details on Creative Cloud Team are still being defined but will include greater online storage capacity, collaboration tools, and license management and deployment capabilities. Creative Cloud Team is expected to cost US$840 per seat based on a 12-month term membership (equates to US$69.99 a month).

Volume licensing customers who are interested in Creative Cloud Team but would like to access some of the benefits of Creative Cloud today, including CS6, may consider our Creative Cloud Team Ready offer. This offering through Adobe's Transactional Licensing Program (TLP) is based on a one-year term agreement and is available for purchase through any Adobe corporate resellers. Creative Cloud Team Ready gives you immediate access to Creative Suite 6 Master Collection via electronic download and ongoing value over time, including access to new Adobe tools, services, and applications as they become available. Customers who choose this option will automatically be transitioned to Creative Cloud Team membership when it is available.

We intend to make Creative Cloud as widely available as possible. Adobe will share more details about country availability over time.

Yes. Just like with our traditional software, the features are the same but the licensing terms and pricing are different. Find out more about the Creative Cloud Student and Teacher Edition.

Adobe academic discounted software is available for students, teachers, staff, and institutions. You can purchase software for your personally owned computer or those owned by your school. See if you or your school is eligible for low education prices. The following requirements apply to the United States and Canada:

• University or college — accredited public or private university or college (including community, junior, or vocational college) that grants degrees requiring not less than the equivalent of two years of full-time study
  
• Primary or secondary school — accredited public or private primary or secondary school providing full-time instruction
• Homeschool — defined by state homeschooling regulations
• Faculty or staff — employed by an accredited primary or secondary school, public or private university or college, school district, or board of education (including emeritus status professors)

Find out about more about eligibility for this offering.

Customers who purchased the Student and Teacher Edition of Creative Cloud directly from Adobe will receive an email regarding revalidation 60, 30, and 7 days before their renewal date. The message will direct the customer to a validation page on Adobe.com.

If you are no longer eligible for education pricing, you can easily move to the standard membership. The revalidation email that is sent 60, 30, and 7 days before your renewal date will also include the option to elevate your membership. If you choose to do so, you will be directed to the Account page on www.creativecloud.com to sign up for the annual plan at US$49.99/month.

Individual memberships to Creative Cloud are available through Adobe.com and at Amazon.com and Staples.com in North America. More retailers will be offering Creative Cloud soon. When you buy at a retail or online store, you will have the choice of a prepaid 3-month or 12-month membership.Customers eligible for the Creative Cloud Student and Teacher Edition will have the choice of buying an annual membership directly from Adobe. Select retailers will soon be offering a 12-month prepaid membership.

Creative Cloud Team memberships will become available later in 2012 through Adobe's network of corporate resellers. Exact details on Creative Cloud Team are still being defined but will include greater online storage capacities, collaboration tools, and license management and deployment capabilities. Volume licensing customers who are interested in Creative Cloud Team but would like to access some of the benefits of Creative Cloud today, including CS6, may consider our Creative Cloud Team Ready offer. This offering through Adobe's Transactional Licensing Program (TLP) is based on a one-year term agreement and is available for purchase through any Adobe corporate resellers. Customers who choose this option will automatically be transitioned into Creative Cloud Team membership as soon as it becomes available later in 2012.

Creative Cloud Team memberships will become available later in 2012 through Adobe's network of corporate resellers. Exact details on Creative Cloud Team are still being defined but will include greater online storage capacity, collaboration tools, and license management and deployment capabilities. Creative Cloud Team is expected to cost US$840 per seat based on a 12-month term membership (equates to US$69.99 a month).

Volume licensing customers who are interested in Creative Cloud Team but would like to access some of the benefits of Creative Cloud today, including CS6, may consider our Creative Cloud Team Ready offer. This offering through Adobe's Transactional Licensing Program (TLP) is based on a one-year term agreement and is available for purchase through any Adobe corporate resellers. Creative Cloud Team Ready gives you immediate access to Creative Suite 6 Master Collection via electronic download and ongoing value over time, including access to new Adobe tools, services, and applications as they become available. Customers who choose this option will automatically be transitioned to Creative Cloud Team membership when it is available.

When you purchase a Creative Cloud membership on the Adobe website, you will be required to provide your credit card number and billing information in order to be set up for recurring payments. Your credit card will be billed each month for both the one-year and the month-to-month plan.

If you purchase a 3- or 12-month Creative Cloud membership at a retailer or online store, an upfront payment for the full duration of the membership will be required in whatever form of payment the retailer accepts.

If you live in a region where you purchase a membership from the Adobe Store with a price quoted in U.S. dollars or euros — but you receive credit card statements with charges stated in your local currency — you may see different amounts charged from month to month because of changes in the currency exchange rates from one billing date to the next.

When you purchase directly from Adobe, the cost of an annual membership will not go up during the 12 months for which you are subscribed. It is possible that the cost of the month-to-month membership will increase, but if it does, you will be notified and given the opportunity to cancel.

When you purchase a prepaid card from a retailer, there will be no increase to your membership cost during the 3- or 12-month term for which you have already paid.

Getting started with a Creative Cloud membership is fast and easy.

To purchase and get started with a membership directly from Adobe.com:

• Go to the Adobe website, choose your plan, and then complete the purchase.
• Follow the instructions to access and download your applications and services.

To purchase and get started with a membership from a participating retail store:

• Purchase either the 3- or 12-month prepaid membership.
• Go to www.creativecloud.com/redeem.
• Log in with your Adobe ID or create one if you don’t have one.
• Follow the steps to redeem your membership, including entering your redemption code from the Creative Cloud packaging.
• Click Get Started to go to the Apps and Services page to download and install your software and access all of your services.

If you purchase your membership directly from the Adobe website, it begins as soon as the order is fulfilled by the Adobe Store.

If you purchase your membership at a participating retailer or online store, it begins as soon as you enter your redemption code on www.creativecloud.com and click Get Started.

Downloading and installing applications from Creative Cloud is a seamless, one-click experience. Download times will vary based on the file size of the product you select and the speed of your Internet connection. In all cases, a high-speed connection of some type is required. Here is examples of estimated download times:

Visit the Adobe Store download forum, where you can find information about typical software download issues.

Creative Cloud allows you to share files with people who don't own the latest version of Creative Suite by allowing them to view the files in a browser. Viewers can turn layers on and off, view relevant metadata, and comment on them – and download them if you do expect them to edit them. As a Creative Cloud member, if I send a file to a non CS6 customer, can they view the file?   Creative Cloud allows you to share files with people who don't own the latest version of Creative Suite by allowing them to view the files in a browser. Viewers can turn layers on and off, view relevant metadata, and comment on them – and download them if you do expect them to edit them.

During the course of your purchase and installation, you will be asked to create or enter an Adobe ID. An Adobe ID can simply be your current email address with a password you create. Learn more about the benefits of an Adobe ID.

No, Adobe has moved to identity-based licensing with a technology that will not support multiple same-product subscriptions, so you can only buy one membership per Adobe ID.  If you need two subscriptions to Creative Cloud, you will need to purchase each subscription with a unique Adobe ID.

When you install your software, you will be required to enter the same Adobe ID that you used when purchasing your membership, for the following reasons:

• To help ensure that the person who subscribed is the same person who is installing the software
• To enable Adobe to send you important account information in the event your subscription is about to expire or cannot be charged to your credit card

Please ensure that your Adobe ID is your current active email address; if it is not, please update it.

See the Creative Cloud terms of use.

You can install the desktop applications available in Creative Cloud on your primary computer and one backup computer, as long as they are not running at the same time. You will have access to both the Mac OS and Windows versions, so if you have a Mac at home and a PC at work, for instance, you can install your applications on both. See the product license agreements page for more information.

Activation is the process by which Adobe validates that your software is genuine and being used as allowed by your product license agreement. It is intended to protect both your rights as a consumer and Adobe's rights as a software developer. Activation helps confirm that the software you bought is not counterfeit; you will not be able to use your software if it is not activated.

Yes. Activation will take place once every 30 days for a subscription license check. If you are not online for 30 days, your software will inform you to connect to the Internet.

If we cannot activate the product, we will warn you when you launch the application. Note that blocking access to the activation server will prevent the product from launching.

During the activation process, information about the following is sent to Adobe via an Internet connection: your computer, your computer's operating system, the Adobe software in use on your computer, the Adobe serial number associated with that software, your Adobe ID, and current time stamp. In addition, Adobe receives the Internet Protocol address of your Internet connection. All this information is collectively referred to as the "Received Information" and is stored by Adobe. Adobe may use the Received Information, alone or in conjunction with other information you or third parties have provided to Adobe, to detect and prevent fraud and abuse of Adobe products and services, such as the use of Adobe software that is not validly licensed or that is not being used in accordance with a valid license.

To manage your membership account, visit the Account page at www.creativecloud.com.

If you purchase a Creative Cloud membership directly from Adobe, you can return it within the first 30 days of purchase and get a full refund by calling your regional Adobe customer service center. The return process can differ for various countries or regions. Learn more about returning products in North America or Europe and Asia/Pacific. If you purchase a Creative Cloud membership from a retailer or online store and have not redeemed your membership within the first 30 days of purchase, you can return it to the retailer or online store for a full refund. If you have redeemed your membership within the first 30 days, you must call Adobe Customer Service for your refund.

If your month-to-month or annual membership is stopped due to an issue with billing your credit card, you will be notified by email and your software will display an alert that your membership has been suspended. If it has been less than six months since your membership ended, simply navigate to the Account page on www.creativecloud.com and make any required updates to your billing information to restart it. If it has been more than six months, you will need to buy a new membership.

If you canceled your month-to-month membership and would like to restart it, you will need to either restart your membership on the Account page, call Adobe Customer Service, or buy a new membership. A one-year membership cannot be restarted. Instead, you will need to purchase a new membership.

If you purchased a 3- or 12-month prepaid Creative Cloud membership at a retailer or online store and would like to renew it, you can renew directly on www.creativecloud.com or purchase another prepaid card at a retailer or online store. In either case, you will not need to reinstall your software.

If you would like to renew your annual membership for another year, you do not need to do anything. Your account is set to auto-renew so that you will not experience any interruption in access to your Creative Cloud products and services.

To cancel a one-year membership, you can either go online to the Account page on www.creativecloud.com or contact Adobe Customer Service. If you cancel your membership before meeting the 12-month commitment date, you will be charged 50% of the remaining amount left on your contract.


If you decide to cancel a 3- or 12-month prepaid membership purchased at a retailer or online store, you will receive a refund of 50% of the value of the time left on your membership. To cancel your membership, contact Adobe Customer Service.

If you buy the same products that you used during your Creative Cloud membership, you do not need to download and reinstall them. You can deactivate each product by choosing Help > Deactivate in the menu bar of that product. Then, the next time you launch the product, simply enter the serial number that came with your new purchase. If your membership has already expired, when you launch the application, simply enter the new serial number to begin using the software again.

In the event that Adobe decides to discontinue any of the products in Creative Cloud, we will make the most recent version of the product available for download free of charge to active Creative Cloud members for a period no less than 90 days. Such downloads will not require a subscription and will be licensed on an as-is, no warranty basis, and no support or updates of any kind will be provided.

Adobe plans to add new applications, features, and updates to Creative Cloud on an ongoing basis. As these features become available, we will inform members of their availability and provide instructions on how to get them.

You will receive some exciting updates to your membership later in 2012. We will be adding Lightroom 4; Adobe Digital Publishing Suite, Single Edition; and Adobe Edge.

You will be eligible to receive updates and upgrades to the components of Creative Cloud as long as your membership remains active. Adobe will notify you as they become available with instructions on how to access them.

Any ongoing bug fixes, security patches, and other update releases that do not require full upgrades will be made available through the Adobe Application Manager just as in the regular versions of Adobe software.

No. You are not required to install any new version of the desktop software available in your membership. You also have flexibility on when you install an upgrade, if you choose to do so. You can continue using your current version of the product for one full year after the subsequent version is released.

If you have questions relating to managing your membership, contact Adobe Customer Service.

If you have questions about using Creative Suite software, visit the support page.

You get the same service and support with your membership that you would get under the regular purchasing model for the same product.

Creative Cloud is hosted on Amazon Web Services (AWS) in the United States, Europe, and Asia. AWS offers a reliable platform for software services used by thousands of businesses worldwide. AWS provides services in accordance with security best practices and undergoes industry-recognized certifications and audits: PCI DSS Level 1, ISO 27001, FISMA Moderate, HIPAA, and SAS 70 Type II. This means that Adobe Creative Cloud members benefit from the latest in security practices for stored assets.

For more information, visit Amazon Web Services.

Adobe uses industry-leading security engineering processes in building its products. With Creative Cloud, security is considered at every level, from applications to networks to physical facilities. In addition to the latest technologies, Adobe adheres to the latest best-practice policies regarding online security.

Adobe Creative Cloud uses industry-leading encryption technology to secure the transfer and storage of our members' data. When you use the service and transfer files, 256-bit AES Secure Socket Layer (SSL) encryption is used for both user authentication and data transfer encryption, helping to ensure that your data and documents are available only to you and the users you authorize.  This is the same industry-leading technology used by the world's financial institutions and governments. The service issues a session cookie only to record authentication information for the duration of a specific session. The session cookie does not include the username (Adobe ID) or password of the user. For stored Creative Cloud assets, users benefit from the industry leading security and certifications provided by Amazon Web Services.

Creative Cloud leverages firewall protection, intrusion detection systems, SSL encryption, and proprietary protocols to protect your important information. The services are hosted in a protected server environment that uses a firewall and other advanced technology to help prevent interference or access from outside intruders.

Services hosting facilities are protected by multiple layers of physical security, and only authorized personnel may access the facilities and servers. In addition, all facility access is logged, and logs are regularly reviewed and protected from outside access. All data center equipment has physical protections in place against data theft and environmental hazards in order to prevent assets from being lost, damaged, or compromised and to prevent interruption in business activities.

Everyone who signs up for a Creative Cloud membership gets access to online storage space. With free membership you get 2GB of storage space and with paid membership you get 20GB. By storing your files in Creative Cloud, you can access them from your Adobe Touch Apps‡ (purchased separately) and your desktop computer and synchronize them to Creative Cloud. Finally, you can open files created with the Adobe Touch Apps directly within certain Adobe Creative Suite applications.

In addition to file storage features, Creative Cloud has unique capabilities designed to support creative work that make it a very different solution than Dropbox. These capabilities include the ability to:

• View thumbnails and larger previews of creative files in the browser to make them easier to find visually
• Change layer states of PSD files and step through Illustrator art boards and InDesign and PDF pages in the browser
• Easily share files for review via the web browser
• Convert creative files to PDF to share them with clients and colleagues
• Sync directly with Adobe Touch Apps‡ and desktop applications to enable a seamless workflow between tablet and desktop

There are no restrictions on the file types you can store in Creative Cloud.

Additional storage will be available for purchase later in 2012. If you have reached your storage limit, contact Adobe Customer Service.

Adobe has an operations team that actively monitors usage and traffic, to anticipate issues and make adjustments as needed.

If you cancel your paid membership you will still have access to the free level of membership, which provides 2GB of storage. You will have a 90-day grace period to delete files to get your cloud storage down to 2GB (or to purchase additional storage separately if you choose). If you leave more than 2GB of files in your cloud storage for more than 90 days, you may lose access to some or all of your files.

Additional storage will be available for purchase later in 2012. If you have reached your storage limit, contact Adobe Customer Service.

Yes, there is a free level of membership for anyone who wants to explore Creative Cloud before committing to a paid membership. To sign up for a free membership, go to www.creativecloud.com and follow the instructions to get started.

The free membership will provide you with access to powerful file syncing and sharing features, 2GB of storage space, free levels of Adobe services, and access to 30-day free trials of all CS6 applications and other Adobe desktop applications, such as Adobe Edge preview and Adobe Muse.