Licence and trial¶
No subscription. No account. One purchase, and the app is yours.
The trial¶
Seven days, everything unlocked, no card required.
The trial doesn't start on its own — you start it deliberately. Open SimpleDiagrams ▸ Get SimpleDiagrams…, or click the status button at the bottom of the window, and press Start Trial.
Until you start it you can open and look at diagrams but not create them, which is an odd place to be. Just start it.
The status bar shows where you are: Trial · N days left, then Trial · Less than a day left, then Trial ended · View only.
When the trial ends¶
The app becomes view only. You can still open, view, copy, save, export and print everything. You can't create a new diagram or edit an existing one.
You will never be locked out of your own work. That's a promise, not a setting.
Two ways to buy¶
SimpleDiagrams comes in two builds. They're the same app; only how you pay differs.
You get a licence key by email. Open Get SimpleDiagrams…, click Enter Licence Key…, paste the key, and click Unlock.
The key is verified on your Mac using cryptography built into the app. There's no activation server to call, no account to log into, and it works offline forever.
This build also has SimpleDiagrams ▸ Check for Updates…, which opens the updates page in your browser and tells you whether you're on the newest build. It's not an auto-updater — it just checks and points you at the download.
Purchases go through your Apple Account like any other App Store app.
Buy in the purchase window, and Restore Purchases if you've bought already and are setting up another Mac. There's a Redeem Offer Code… button too.
This build has no Check for Updates… — the App Store handles that.
The price is shown in the purchase window and on simplediagrams.com. It's a one-time purchase.
What a licence covers¶
One licence is for one person, on every Mac they use. Desktop, laptop, the machine at the office — all of them, as long as it's you using them.
It's the same model Panic, Bare Bones and Rogue Amoeba use, and it's built on trust rather than enforcement. An organisation should buy one per person, and can reassign a licence when someone leaves.
Licences are permanent. There's nothing to renew and nothing that expires.
The licence agreement¶
The direct build shows the agreement on first launch — you'll need to tick the box and click Continue before the app opens. The App Store build uses Apple's standard terms instead.
You can read it any time under Help ▸ Licenses…, which also has the shape licence, the privacy policy and third-party notices.
Checking your licence¶
Help ▸ Licence Information… tells you exactly what state you're in.
In the direct build it also offers Remove Licence…, which takes the key off this Mac. Useful when you're selling a machine. It's entirely local — there's no server that knows which Macs hold your key, because the app has no network access at all.
Keep your key safe; it's the same key you'd re-enter later.
Refunds¶
Direct purchases have a 30-day refund policy — see simplediagrams.com. App Store purchases are refunded through Apple.
System requirements¶
- macOS 15.0 or later
- Apple silicon or Intel
- English only, for now
The app is signed with a Developer ID, uses the hardened runtime, and is notarized by Apple.
Upgrading from version 3 or 4¶
Version 5 is a separate product, not an update, so an older licence doesn't unlock it. The purchase window has an Upgrading from an earlier version? section — and if you've been with SimpleDiagrams a long time, email me and we'll sort something out.