What Microsoft 365 Copilot Is (and Isn't)
If your company uses Microsoft 365 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams), there's a real chance an AI assistant is already sitting inside those apps — free, before you ever pay for anything.
One important disambiguation first, since it trips people up constantly: this course is about Microsoft 365 Copilot — the AI assistant inside Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, and the rest of the Office suite. It is a completely different product from GitHub Copilot, the AI coding assistant used inside code editors. Same company, same brand name, unrelated products, unrelated audiences. If a coworker says "Copilot," always confirm which one they mean.
Two tiers most people don't realize exist
- Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat — free with an eligible Microsoft 365 subscription. A web-grounded AI assistant, built into Outlook, with access to the Copilot app and metered use of custom agents. This is a real, usable tool most Microsoft 365 users already have and have never opened.
- The full Microsoft 365 Copilot license — the paid add-on. Adds Copilot directly inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Teams; "Work IQ" (understanding of your actual work context via Microsoft Graph); pre-built agents (Researcher, Analyst, Facilitator); and a choice of underlying AI model.
Pricing, verified directly against Microsoft's own pricing page
- Microsoft 365 Copilot Business — $18/user/month (promotional, through Sept 30, 2026; $21/month after) — an add-on requiring a separate qualifying Microsoft 365 plan.
- Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot — $23.50/user/month, bundled.
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium with Copilot — $32/user/month, bundled.
- Enterprise (E3/E5): Copilot is a $30/user/month add-on to a qualifying enterprise plan.
Why this matters for you: before assuming your company needs to buy anything, check whether you already have Copilot Chat for free through your existing Microsoft 365 subscription — a real number of people pay attention to the paid version and never notice the free one already sitting in Outlook.
What it is not
- It's not GitHub Copilot — say this twice if you need to.
- It's not a separate app you have to go find — its whole value is being embedded in tools you already use.
- It's not automatically "smart about your company" just by existing — it's grounded through Microsoft Graph, which only works well when your organization's data is reasonably organized in the first place.
▶️ Before the next lesson
Check whether Copilot Chat is already available to you in Outlook (look for a Copilot icon) before assuming you need to buy the paid tier.