Guides/Buy once
One-time-purchase encryption software (and why it still exists)
One-time-purchase encryption software is a small but stubborn category — the tools that treat you as an owner, not a tenant. Elba is one of them: pay once in a given year and the file is yours to keep, back up, and pass on.
Why one-time still makes sense
Encryption changes very slowly. AES-256-GCM has been standard for two decades. A tool that does it well does not need continuous new features — it needs to stay small and stay working.
What ‘forever’ actually means here
The HTML file works whether or not the maker still exists. There is no license server to check in with. On 1 January 2030 the license becomes MIT, guaranteeing the tool a life beyond the company.
Questions people actually ask
- Do updates cost extra?
- No. Updates until 2030 are included with any purchase.
- Can I use it on more than one machine?
- Yes. Copy the file to as many of your own machines as you like.
Take the island
Elba is one HTML file. It runs locally in a Chromium browser, seals a folder with AES-256-GCM, never phones home, and becomes open source on 1 January 2030.
- €49MMXXVI· now ·
- €39MMXXVII2027
- €29MMXXVIII2028
- €19MMXXIX2029
- FreeMMXXX2030
the price falls each year · free to all 1 jan 2030
pay once · no account · nothing leavesRelated guides
- What is mortalware? Software that dies into the commons
Mortalware is software with a release date — a scheduled transition from paid to free-and-open. Elba's mortalware plan explained.
- The best file encryption without a subscription (2026)
Pay once, keep forever. A short shortlist of file encryption tools without subscriptions — VeraCrypt, age, GPG, and Elba.
- Software that becomes free over time (and why that's the point)
A short case for software with a scheduled, declining price that reaches zero. Elba's price falls every year until it's free in 2030.