1. Program : The use and need of computers is widespread in today’s world. The computer system is however incapable of working on its own and needs certain instructions to do anything.These instructions are provided to the computer system by a computer programmer. A collection of instructions meant to perform a specific task, written by a computer programmer is called a program. 2. Product : It is made only on the request of an enterprise. The team of developers undertakes the making of the product (called project). A software product is the finished project which was made after performing the various software development life cycle stages. After the completion of these stages the product comes into existence. It is then made in more numbers, for distribution. The software product is made to solve a specific problem. 
Difference between Program and Product :
| S.No. | Program | Product |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Program contains a set of instructions designed to complete a specific task. | Product is the final manufacture and production of the project. |
| 2. | It is a passive entity as it resides in the secondary memory. | It is an active entity as it is made again and again for the purpose of distribution to users. |
| 3. | It exists at a single place and continues to exist until it is deleted. | A product can exist for a long period of time as long as it is tested for better performance and durability. A specific software product would stop existing if it is destroyed or uninstalled. |
| 4. | It can be made in relatively shorter period of time. | It needs a lot of time to be made. There are several stages (design, coding, testing, maintenance etc.) to form a product. |
| 5. | It is handled by the program managers. | It is handled by product managers. |
| 6. | It does not have any resource requirement, it only requires memory space for storing the instructions. | It needs human, technology and time resources to be functional. |
| 7. | The main focus of the program is whether it is giving a specific desired output or not. | The main focus of a product is its capability to solve the problem that it was made for. |
| 8. | There are no concrete guidelines in writing a program. | In case of product, the firm guidelines are followed. |
| 9. | It may or may not focus on efficiency and cost. | It needs to worry about the cost and efficiency as it would affect the profitability of the enterprise launching the product. |
