Update: October 29, 2010 There is one more difference – More information about Family Tree Maker 2010 for Mac.
The $99.95 version at Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, etc. has the “Family History Toolkit” which is a collection of ebooks on a DVD. There is no difference in the software between the Ancestry.com and Amazon.com versions!
I’ve gotten several questions about just what is the difference between the retail version of Family Tree Maker for Mac and the version you can buy at Ancestry.com (which is 20% off).
The short (and long) answer is it’s simply a matter of an Ancestry.com subscription.
The retail version, such as what we see at Amazon.com which normally runs $99.55, as well as the retail version in the UK such as Amazon.co.uk (United Kingdom) which is normally £59.99 (on sale for £46.99) includes a 6-month subscription to Ancestry.com. The Ancestry.com version linked above does not have this subscription and sells for $69.95. It makes perfect sense from that perspective.
I do have more questions submitted to the folks behind FTM and will post the responses as I get them. I am slowly but surely working through the back-log of questions I’ve received from people who follow this site, and will get them answered and posted either in a new article, or through the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) as time permits. If you’ve asked me a question through the contact form or directly through email, rest assured you will get a response soon. I’ve answered probably 50 emails in the past week alone.
If you have a question, please send me a note through the contact form and I’ll get you a response.