Lesson 2: Copilot Chat vs the Paid Copilot Licence

Why this matters

Two colleagues can both open "Copilot" at work and get very different results. One asks it to summarise last week's project emails and gets a useful answer. The other gets a general reply from the web, because their Copilot cannot see their mailbox or files. The difference usually comes down to one thing: whether you have a paid Microsoft 365 Copilot licence.

This lesson covers:

1. The two main experiences: Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat (included) and Microsoft 365 Copilot (paid add-on licence).
2. How to check which one your account has.
3. When to ask your IT administrator.

Microsoft changes Copilot licensing and features often. Everything below was correct when this lesson was written. Check Microsoft's current licensing pages before you rely on any detail.

The two experiences at a glance

Think of it like a building pass. Everyone with a work account gets a visitor pass (Copilot Chat): you can use the lobby and the public areas. The paid licence is a staff pass. It opens the rooms where your own work is kept.

Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat (included with eligible Microsoft 365 work or school subscriptions)

• Secure AI chat grounded in the web, meaning its answers draw on public web information.
• Enterprise data protection when you sign in with your work account.
• Aware of the content you have open in some apps. For example, it can work with the email or document in front of you.
• Features such as Copilot Pages, file upload and image generation, which may run at standard rather than priority access.
• Agents your organisation enables on a pay-as-you-go (metered) basis.
• In Outlook, it can answer questions about your inbox, calendar and meetings, using limited data.

Microsoft 365 Copilot (paid add-on licence)

• Everything in Copilot Chat, plus chat grounded in your work data: files, emails, meetings and chats you already have permission to see.
• Copilot built into the Microsoft 365 apps, with more advanced skills and in-app editing.
• Priority access to features and to more advanced reasoning models.

Example. A sales manager types: "Summarise what the customer said about pricing in our last three meetings."

• With the licence, Copilot can search their meetings and emails for the answer.
• With Copilot Chat only, it cannot reach those meetings. It might give general advice on pricing conversations instead.

How much the licence costs, and why it varies

The paid licence is an add-on. It sits on top of a qualifying Microsoft 365 plan and does not replace it. At the time of writing, Microsoft lists it at about US$30 per user per month for enterprise plans. Microsoft 365 Copilot Business, for organisations of up to 300 users, is listed at about US$21. Prices, promotions and terms change and differ by country and contract, so treat these figures as a guide only.

Copilot inside Word, Excel and PowerPoint depends on your organisation

In 2026 Microsoft changed what unlicensed users see inside the apps, and the result depends on the size of the organisation:

• Organisations with 2,000 or more seats: unlicensed users no longer have Copilot inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.
• Organisations with fewer than 2,000 seats: unlicensed users may still see Copilot in Word, Excel and PowerPoint, at "standard" access. This means it is available but its performance is not guaranteed.
• Licensed users keep the full in-app experience either way.

So two people without a licence, at two different companies, may see different things. Your organisation's settings also matter: administrators can turn features and agents on or off.

Task: Find out which Copilot you have

Do this now, signed in with your work account:

1. Go to the Microsoft 365 home page (for example, m365.cloud.microsoft) and sign in.
2. Scroll to the bottom of the home page.
3. Find the label under your name. It will show one of these:
   • Copilot Chat (Basic): no add-on licence. Copilot is not available in Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote.
   • M365 Copilot (Basic): no add-on licence, but you have standard access to Copilot in the apps.
   • M365 Copilot (Premium): you have the add-on licence, with priority access and advanced reasoning.
4. Write down your label. Later lessons refer to it.

Check your result: open Copilot Chat and ask: "What were the main topics in my emails yesterday?"

• If it answers using your real emails, your account has work-data access.
• If it says it cannot see your mailbox, or gives a general answer, you are most likely on Copilot Chat only.

Task: Decide when to ask IT

Contact your IT administrator or service desk if:

• You do not see a Copilot label, or the label does not match what you are able to do.
• Your role needs Copilot to work with your files, meetings or emails and you only have Copilot Chat.
• A feature a colleague uses is missing for you. It may be switched off for your group.
• You are unsure whether your company's policy allows Copilot for a particular kind of work.

What to include in your request: your label from the steps above, the task you want to do, and the app you want to do it in. This lets IT decide quickly whether you need a licence or a settings change.

Key takeaways

• Copilot Chat is included with eligible work subscriptions. It is web-grounded, aware of content you have open, and secure under your work account.
• The Microsoft 365 Copilot licence is a paid add-on. It adds grounding in your work data, deeper in-app features and priority access.
• To check your experience, look at the label under your name at the bottom of the Microsoft 365 home page.
• What you can use depends on your licence, your organisation's size and your administrator's settings.
• Prices and features change often, so check Microsoft's current licensing pages and ask IT when you are unsure.