Lesson 2: The Suite Map: Which App Does Which Job

Why a Suite Map Matters

Microsoft 365 is a set of apps, and each one is built for a particular kind of job. A typical toolbox makes a good comparison: there's a hammer, a saw and a tape measure. You can knock a nail in with a tape measure, but it goes badly. People often find Microsoft 365 hard because they pick the wrong app, for example keeping a budget in a Word table or planning a project through long email threads.

In this level you will:

1. Learn the main job each core app does.
2. Pick the right app for 10 common tasks.
3. Learn the difference between storing a file and working on it together.
4. Map your own week onto the apps.

This level only shows where Copilot appears in each app. Whether you can actually use it depends on your plan. Level 4 covers plans and Level 5 covers which Copilot you have.

Step 1: Learn the Core Apps and Their Jobs

Read each line and note the one job the app does best.

• Word: documents meant to be read, such as letters, reports, CVs and contracts.
• Excel: numbers and lists you calculate, sort or filter, such as budgets, invoices and trackers.
• PowerPoint: slides you present, such as pitch decks, training sessions and status updates.
• Outlook: email, your calendar and contacts.
• OneNote: freeform notes in notebooks, such as meeting notes, research and ideas.
• OneDrive: your personal cloud storage. It keeps your files safe and in sync across your devices.
• Teams: chat, video meetings and shared team spaces called channels.
• Others you will meet: Forms (surveys and quizzes), Designer (quick graphics), Clipchamp (video editing) and Loop (shared live pages). Which of these you get depends on your plan.
• The hub: the Microsoft 365 Copilot app (renamed from the "Microsoft 365" app in January 2025) is the start page where you open all of the above. On the web it is at m365.cloud.microsoft, and office.com redirects there.

Note (checked November 2026): Microsoft Publisher was removed from Microsoft 365 on 1 October 2026. For flyers and newsletters, use Word or Designer. Convert any old .pub files to PDF or Word.

Step 2: Match 10 Common Tasks to an App

Cover the right-hand column and answer each task yourself before you check.

Rule of thumb: if the content mostly needs reading, use Word. If it needs calculating, use Excel. If it needs showing, use PowerPoint. If it needs sending, use Outlook. If it needs talking through, use Teams.

Step 3: Understand Storing vs Sharing (OneDrive vs Teams)

The difference between these two causes more confusion than anything else on this map.

• OneDrive is your own locker. Files there belong to you. Nobody else sees them until you share them.
• A Teams channel is the team's shared filing cabinet. A file uploaded to a channel's Files area is stored in the team's SharePoint site, and everyone in the team can reach it.
• A file sent in a Teams chat (one-to-one or group) goes into a "Microsoft Teams Chat Files" folder in the sender's OneDrive. It is shared only with the people in that chat.

To decide where a file belongs, follow these steps:

1. Ask whether the file is mainly yours, such as a draft, a personal record or a backup. If it is, save it in OneDrive.
2. Ask whether the whole team needs to keep and edit it, such as a shared plan or a client folder. If they do, put it in the Teams channel.
3. If you only need a few people to look at it quickly, share it from OneDrive or send it in a chat.
4. When the file is in place, everyone with access can open it in Word, Excel or PowerPoint and edit it at the same time.

Important: Teams with channels and shared SharePoint storage come with work and school accounts. Consumer plans work differently, as Level 4 explains.

Step 4: See Where Copilot Appears

Copilot shows up as a Copilot button or pane inside each app. Typical uses:

• Word: draft a first version or summarise a long document.
• Excel: explain a formula or suggest a chart.
• PowerPoint: turn an outline into slides.
• Outlook: summarise a long email thread or draft a reply.
• OneNote: summarise your notes into action items.
• Teams: summarise a meeting or chat. This is mainly available on work plans.

Plan dependency (checked November 2026): consumer Personal and Family plans include a monthly allowance of AI credits for Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote. Business and corporate access varies, and IT may switch Copilot off. Treat these scenes as a preview. Level 5 explains exactly what you have. Whichever plan you are on, read Copilot's output before you use it.

Step 5: Map Your Own Week

Do this now. It takes about 10 minutes.

1. List 8 to 10 tasks you did last week, such as "sent invoices" or "weekly team call".
2. Next to each task, write the app from Step 1 that fits it best.
3. Mark each file-based task Mine (OneDrive) or Team (Teams channel).
4. Circle one task where Copilot might save you time, such as summarising a long thread.
5. Keep this list. You will use it when you install and set up your apps in later levels.

The matching app courses go into each app in depth. For Copilot across the whole suite, see Microsoft 365 Copilot at Work.

Key Takeaways

• Each app has one main job: Word for reading, Excel for calculating, PowerPoint for showing, Outlook for sending and scheduling, OneNote for capturing and Teams for talking.
• OneDrive is your personal storage. Teams channel files live in the team's shared SharePoint storage.
• Files sent in a Teams chat are stored in the sender's OneDrive and shared only with that chat.
• The Microsoft 365 Copilot app is the hub that opens all the others.
• Publisher was removed from Microsoft 365 in October 2026. Use Word or Designer instead.
• Copilot appears in most apps, but what you can use depends on your plan.