Copilot

Best Known For:

Deep integration with Microsoft 365 applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams) and Windows 11. Copilot is built into the Microsoft ecosystem, working directly inside the programs millions of people already use every day.

Particularly Good At:

Working with your actual work documents and data within Office applications

Drafting and editing emails in Outlook with the right tone

Creating presentations in PowerPoint and analyzing data in Excel

Summarizing meetings in Teams and catching up on long email threads

Enterprise features like using your company's internal knowledge

Built-in Windows search and productivity features on Copilot+ PCs

How It Compares:

Unlike ChatGPT or Claude which are standalone chat interfaces, Copilot lives inside your existing Microsoft tools. This makes it uniquely powerful for people already in the Microsoft ecosystem, but it's also more expensive than consumer AI tools. The free version is more limited than competitors, offering basic AI chat without Office integration. For business users who spend their days in Word, Excel, and Outlook, Copilot's ability to work directly with your documents and emails can be transformative.

Pricing:

Plan	What You Get
Free	• Basic AI-powered chat interface • Limited features and daily usage caps • NO integration with Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) • Image creation with Designer • Web search capabilities ⚠️ Note: The free version does not work inside Microsoft Office applications
Copilot Pro $20/month	For individuals with Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscriptions: • Works inside Office desktop apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook) • Priority access to GPT-4o during peak times • Faster performance and response times • Create and customize your own GPTs (coming soon) • Designer (AI image creation) integration ⚠️ Requires Microsoft 365 Personal ($69.99/year) or Family ($99.99/year) subscription
Microsoft 365 Copilot Business $30/user/month (billed annually)	For businesses with up to 300 users: • Full Copilot integration across all Microsoft 365 apps • Works with your company's data and documents • Enterprise-grade security and compliance • Priority access to new features • Copilot Studio to create custom AI agents • Meeting summaries and insights in Teams ⚠️ Requires separate Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Standard, or Premium subscription (starting at $6/user/month) 🎉 Promotional pricing: $18/user/month through March 2026 for new customers
Microsoft 365 Copilot Enterprise $30/user/month (billed annually)	For larger organizations (300+ users): • Everything in Business tier • Advanced data governance and compliance • Organizational insights and analytics • Custom agent development with Copilot Studio • Integration with enterprise knowledge bases • Advanced security features ⚠️ Requires separate Microsoft 365 E3 or E5 subscription (starting at $36/user/month)

Important Notes About Copilot Pricing:

Unlike other AI tools that are standalone products, Microsoft Copilot requires a Microsoft 365 subscription to access most of its valuable features. This means the true cost is Copilot PLUS your Microsoft 365 subscription. For example, a small business user would pay approximately $36-52 per user per month ($6-22 for Microsoft 365 + $30 for Copilot) during the promotional period.

For individuals who only want basic AI chat without Office integration, other tools like ChatGPT or Claude or Gemini may offer better value. Copilot's strength is its deep integration with Microsoft products you already use for work.