Farewell, Old Friend: Microsoft to Shut Down Skype in May 2025

Well, it finally happened. After years of speculation, Microsoft is officially pulling the plug on Skype. Come May 2025, the once-beloved video calling app will fade into tech history, replaced by Microsoft Teams. If you've been hanging onto Skype for dear life, don't worry—Microsoft is making the transition fairly painless.


Users won't have to start from scratch. Your message history, group chats, and contacts will seamlessly transfer over to Microsoft Teams. No need to create a new account, and if you're not thrilled about making the switch, you can export your data and take it elsewhere. That said, one major feature isn't making the jump: calling actual phone numbers. Microsoft is phasing out support for domestic and international calls, signaling the end of Skype's era as a VoIP pioneer.

Jeff Teper, president of Microsoft 365 collaborative apps, assures users they have a choice. Whether you migrate to Teams or take your data and move on, Microsoft is giving users a 60-day window before Skype officially signs off on May 5th. During that time, messages sent between Skype and Teams will still be delivered, keeping things functional while everyone figures out their next move.

If you decide to export your data, you won't be left with a mess of unreadable files. Microsoft has built a tool to help users view their old Skype chat history without forcing them into Teams. But let's be real—Microsoft would prefer if you just made the switch.

One of the biggest losses in this transition is Skype's ability to call phone numbers. Microsoft sees it as an outdated feature, pointing out that cheap data plans and widespread VoIP adoption have made phone calls from Skype pretty much obsolete. They'll still honor existing Skype credits, but they won't be offering new ones. If you have a Skype Number, you'll need to port it elsewhere before the shutdown.

This move has been a long time coming. Microsoft acquired Skype for $8.5 billion back in 2011, but the app struggled to keep up with competitors like WhatsApp, FaceTime, and Zoom. The pandemic could have been Skype's moment to shine, but instead, users flocked to Zoom, leaving Skype in the dust. Even Microsoft saw the writing on the wall, launching the personal version of Teams in 2020 and quietly shifting focus away from Skype.

The good news? No layoffs—at least for now. The Skype and Teams teams (say that five times fast) have already merged, and those engineers will now be working exclusively on Teams. Microsoft is betting big on its all-in-one platform, and while it may sting to say goodbye to Skype, the company is confident that Teams is the future.

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