Lesson 1: What You Have: Plans, Licences and IT Settings

Learners find out which Microsoft 365 plan they are on (consumer, small business or corporate). They see which task, note and automation features that plan includes, and they learn that this course is independent of Microsoft and that IT may turn features off.

Before You Start: About This Course

This course is independent. It is not made, endorsed or reviewed by Microsoft, and it does not copy Microsoft's documentation. Microsoft changes plans, prices, AI features and screens often, sometimes monthly. Every plan detail below was checked on 2 November 2026. If a screen looks different on your device, your account page is the authority, not this lesson.

Your goal in this level is a one-page "What I Have" record. Open a blank note or document now and title it with today's date. You will fill it in as you go.

Task 1: Work Out Which Kind of Account You Use

Microsoft 365 comes in three broad families. Which one you are on decides almost everything else in this course.

Consumer (home): a personal Microsoft account (often @outlook.com, @hotmail.com or your own email). Plans include Microsoft 365 Personal, Family, Premium and Pro, or no subscription at all.
Small business: a work account on a plan such as Business Basic, Business Standard or Business Premium. These are usually run by a founder or an outside IT provider.
Corporate: a work or school account on an enterprise plan (for example E3 or E5) that an IT department manages.

DO: Write down the email address you sign in with and which family you think it belongs to. If you have both a personal and a work account, give each one its own column.

Task 2: Find Your Plan on Your Account Page

Consumer account

In a browser, go to account.microsoft.com/services.
Sign in with your personal Microsoft account.
Find your Microsoft 365 subscription and note its exact name (for example, "Microsoft 365 Family").
If nothing is listed, you are using the free apps without a subscription. If you bought the plan through Apple, Google or Amazon, it is managed there instead.

Work or school account (small business or corporate)

Sign in at microsoft365.com with your work account.
Open My Account (choose your profile picture, then view your account).
Look for Subscriptions and note the plan names listed.
Microsoft has redesigned this page more than once, so the Subscriptions section may be missing. If it is, ask your administrator or IT help desk which licence you are assigned.

Desktop shortcut: In Word or Excel on Windows or Mac, go to File > Account. The product name appears under Product Information. This tells you which apps you have, though not always which services.

DO: Record the exact plan name and the date you checked.

Task 3: Tick Off the Six Tools

Copy this checklist into your record and mark each tool Yes, No or Not sure. These are the general rules as of November 2026:

To Do: available with personal and work accounts.
OneNote: available with personal and work accounts.
Planner: comes with work plans such as Business Basic, Business Standard and Office 365 E1/E3/E5. Basic plans are included. Premium plans need a separate Planner licence.
Loop: the Loop app works with personal accounts on web and mobile, but Loop components are not supported in Teams or Outlook with a personal account. Work accounts get Loop workspaces and components.
Lists: available to work accounts and, with lower limits, to personal accounts.
Power Automate: cloud flows now need a work or school account, because personal accounts lost access in 2025. Most business and enterprise plans include flows that use standard connectors such as Outlook, Teams and Planner. Premium connectors need a paid Power Automate Premium licence.

DO: Open each tool once (web is easiest) to confirm. Mark anything you cannot open as "Not sure" for Task 4.

Task 4: Missing by Plan, or Turned Off by IT?

A missing feature has one of two causes, and each needs a different person.

Missing because of the plan. Your licence simply doesn't include it.

Signs: the tool isn't listed for your plan, or you're asked to buy or upgrade.
Example: a personal account has no Planner.
Who to ask: consumer users decide for themselves (or ask the Family plan owner). Small-business users ask whoever buys the licences.

Turned off by IT. Your plan includes it, but an administrator has disabled it or hasn't assigned it.

Signs: a message mentioning your administrator or organisation, a colleague on the same plan who has the feature, or an app icon that is missing from the app launcher.
Example: your company plan includes Power Automate, but IT has blocked it.
Who to ask: your IT help desk or Microsoft 365 administrator. Do not try to work around the block.

Think of it like a hotel key card. Your plan is the room you booked, and IT controls which doors the card actually opens.

DO: For every "No" or "Not sure", write the likely cause and the name or contact of the person to ask.

Task 5: Record Your Copilot Features

Copilot depends on your plan more than any other feature. Label each item you can see as Included, Add-on licence, Preview or Unconfirmed.

Consumer: Personal, Family, Premium and Pro include Copilot in apps such as Word and Excel. Use is metered by AI credits and feature limits. On Family, AI benefits belong to the subscription owner only. You can check your usage under Services & subscriptions in your Microsoft account. Personal, Family and Premium plans do not turn on Copilot in Loop.
Work accounts: Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is included at no extra cost with eligible plans. The full Microsoft 365 Copilot, which works with your work data inside the apps, is a paid add-on. In November 2026 the Business version is listed at US$21 per user per month, with a promotional US$18 until 31 December 2026.
Preview or unconfirmed: label anything marked "preview" or "new" that you cannot find on your plan's page as Preview or Unconfirmed until you can check it.

DO: Open Word, Outlook and OneNote, look for the Copilot button, and record what you find and how you labelled it.

Key Takeaways

This course is independent of Microsoft. Your own account page is the final authority, and every check should be dated.
Find your plan at account.microsoft.com/services (consumer) or My Account at microsoft365.com (work), or ask IT.
Planner and Power Automate cloud flows need a work or school account. To Do and OneNote work with both kinds.
If a feature is missing because of the plan, ask whoever buys the licences. If IT turned it off, ask the help desk.
Copilot Chat comes with eligible work plans, but full Microsoft 365 Copilot is a paid add-on. Consumer Copilot is limited by AI credits and belongs to the plan owner.

A 6-question knowledge check follows this lesson in the app, free and without an account.

By the end of this level you'll be able to