Microsoft Copilot Review 2026: Pricing, Features and Verdict
Microsoft's assistant in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams, judged on Microsoft 365 plans, usage wording, data protection and verified ratings.
By , research by the BestBots team ยท Updated Oct 18, 2026
Fact checked against each company's published pricing, documentation and verified user ratings. How we score
Microsoft Copilot is the best AI assistant for people whose work runs on Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams in October 2026. The app is free, and Microsoft 365 Premium at $19.99 per month bundles extensive Copilot use with Office and 2 TB of storage. The tradeoff: you pay for the Office bundle too, family members do not get the AI, and limits are words, not numbers.
Copilot makes the most sense if your work already runs on Microsoft 365: the AI comes bundled with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, cloud storage and Teams. The tradeoff is that you pay for the Office bundle too, AI features on family plans are for the owner only, and usage limits are described as higher, extensive or highest rather than as numbers.
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- Starting price
- $9.99 per month
- Pricing model
- per seat
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- 1 month (Microsoft 365 Personal and Premium)
- Free plan
- Yes, the Copilot app
- Paid from
- $9.99 per month (Microsoft 365 Personal)
- Top model on paid plan
- Latest OpenAI models (GPT-5.X) listed on business plans
- Image generation
- Yes, higher usage on Personal, extensive on Premium
- Voice mode
- Yes, voice on mobile, desktop and web
- Office apps
- Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams
What it is
Copilot is Microsoft's AI assistant. There are two ways to meet it. The Copilot app, on the web, Windows and mobile, is a free chat assistant with voice, image creation and web answers. Copilot in Microsoft 365 is the same assistant inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote and Teams, where it drafts, rewrites, analyzes spreadsheets, builds slides and summarizes email.
Microsoft sells consumer Copilot through Microsoft 365 subscriptions. There is no standalone Copilot Pro anymore; Premium and the new Pro tier fill that role. Business customers buy Microsoft 365 Copilot Business as an add-on or bundled with Business Standard or Business Premium.
Pricing explained
| Plan | Monthly | Yearly | People and storage | Copilot usage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copilot app | $0 | $0 | 1 person | Base usage |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $9.99 | $99.99 | 1 person, 1 TB | Higher than free |
| Microsoft 365 Family | $12.99 | $129.99 | Up to 6, 2 TB shared | Higher than free, owner only |
| Microsoft 365 Premium | $19.99 | $199.99 | Up to 6, 2 TB shared | Extensive, owner only |
| Microsoft 365 Pro | $99.99 | Not offered | Up to 6, 5 TB shared | Highest, owner only |
Business plans, priced per user:
| Business plan | Paid yearly | Paid monthly |
|---|---|---|
| Copilot Business add-on | $21 ($18 promo through December 31, 2026) | $25.20 |
| Business Standard with Copilot | $23.50 | $28.20 |
| Business Premium with Copilot | $32 | $38.40 |
The pricing logic is different from rivals. You are buying Office, storage and AI together. Personal at $9.99 is the cheapest way to get AI inside Word and Excel, and on yearly billing it drops to about $8.33 per month. Premium at $19.99 sits at the market price for AI alone and throws in Office for six people and 2 TB of storage.
The catch is in the fine print. On Family, Premium and Pro, Copilot AI features are available only to the subscription owner, per Microsoft's plan page. Five other people get Office and storage, not Copilot. Usage is described as "higher than free", "extensive" and "highest" rather than as counts, so you cannot plan around a number.
For business, the add-on requires an existing eligible Microsoft 365 Business plan, and the $18 promo ends December 31, 2026. Full math is in Microsoft Copilot pricing.
Key features
Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
This is the core reason to choose Copilot. In Word it drafts and rewrites from your files. In Excel it explains formulas, builds analysis and suggests charts. In PowerPoint it turns a document into slides. In Outlook it summarizes threads and drafts replies. Every paid personal plan includes these apps.
Researcher and Analyst
Premium and Pro add Researcher, which synthesizes information across sources into a report, and Analyst, which works through data step by step. Copilot Business includes Researcher, Analyst and Facilitator, an agent for meetings.
Cowork and agentic AI
Cowork is Microsoft's AI collaborator for planning and completing multi step tasks. Premium lists limited agentic AI usage; Pro lists the highest.
Image creation and photo editing
All Microsoft 365 plans include image creation with higher usage than free, and Premium lists extensive image creation. AI Restyle edits photos on Premium and Pro.
Work IQ and model choice for business
Copilot Business adds Work IQ, which grounds answers in your organization's email, files and meetings, plus model choice and adoption analytics. Microsoft lists the latest OpenAI models (GPT-5.X) with priority access.
Free Copilot Chat for business
Copilot Chat is available at no cost with eligible Microsoft 365 business plans, with web grounded answers and Copilot in Outlook. For many small businesses, that free tier is enough to start.
What users say
| Source | Rating | Reviews |
|---|---|---|
| App Store | 4.7 | 1.4 million |
| G2 | 4.4 | 441 |
| Trustpilot | 1.5 | 495 |
The App Store rating is solid. G2 business reviewers give it 4.4, level with Gemini and below ChatGPT and Claude. Trustpilot shows 79% one star reviews, with recurring complaints about forgotten instructions, a redesign many long time users disliked, new rate limits, image generation failures, upload problems and lost chat history after updates. Positive reviews mention brainstorming and everyday tasks.
The rate limit complaints fit the plan design: free users get base usage, and Microsoft does not publish the numbers.
Privacy and security
Microsoft's Copilot privacy FAQ says signed in consumer users' conversations, including voice and uploaded files, may be used to train Microsoft's generative AI models unless they opt out. The exclusions are wide: enterprise users with Entra ID accounts, Microsoft 365 consumer app users, signed out users, users under 18 and users in Brazil, mainland China, Israel, Nigeria, South Korea and Vietnam. Conversation activity is stored for 18 months by default. Personalization is a separate setting from training.
For business, Microsoft lists Enterprise Data Protection on its premium business plans, and Business Premium adds advanced identity management and threat protection. If your company already runs on Microsoft 365 with Entra ID, Copilot inherits those controls, which is a real advantage over bringing in a new vendor.
Who it is for
- Microsoft 365 households and solo workers: Personal at $9.99 adds AI to apps you already pay for.
- Excel and PowerPoint heavy roles: the in app features are the strongest in the category for Office files.
- Small businesses on Microsoft 365: free Copilot Chat to start, the add-on when you need Work IQ.
- IT teams: Entra ID, Enterprise Data Protection and admin analytics.
Who should skip it
- Google Workspace users: Gemini does the same job in Gmail and Docs. See Gemini review.
- Families who want AI for everyone: Copilot is owner only on shared plans.
- People who want the widest standalone assistant: see ChatGPT review.
- Developers: Claude and ChatGPT bundle coding agents. See Claude review.
Alternatives
- ChatGPT: the widest tool set, $20 Plus. Compare in ChatGPT vs Microsoft Copilot.
- Claude: long documents and coding, with Claude for Microsoft 365 on Pro.
- Gemini: the Google equivalent, $19.99 with 5 TB.
- Perplexity: cited research.
Verdict
Copilot is the right assistant when your documents, spreadsheets and email already live in Microsoft 365. Personal at $9.99 is the cheapest way to get AI inside Office, and Premium at $19.99 bundles extensive AI, Researcher and Analyst with Office for six people and 2 TB of storage.
It falls short outside that world. The AI is owner only on family plans, limits are not published as numbers, and the free app's rate limits are a common complaint. If you do not open Word or Excel every week, a standalone assistant gives you more for the money.
How Microsoft Copilot scores
- Value
- 4.2
- Features
- 4.3
- Ease of setup
- 4.3
- Integrations
- 4.7
- Trust
- 4.5
Pros and cons
Pros
- Copilot works inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams
- Premium at $19.99 includes Office apps for up to 6 people and 2 TB shared storage, so the AI cost is partly offset
- Business plans include Enterprise Data Protection and admin analytics
- One month free trial on Personal and Premium
Cons
- Usage limits are described in words, not numbers
- Business add-on requires an existing qualifying Microsoft 365 license
- Promo pricing on the business add-on applies to the first year only
- On Family and Premium, Copilot features are for the subscription owner only
Microsoft Copilot plans and pricing
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Copilot app | $0 | Free Copilot chat with base usage |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $9.99 per month or $99.99 per year | 1 person, Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook with higher usage than free, 1 TB storage |
| Microsoft 365 Family | $12.99 per month or $129.99 per year | 1 to 6 people, 2 TB shared storage; Copilot features for the owner only, same usage as Personal |
| Microsoft 365 Premium | $19.99 per month or $199.99 per year | 1 to 6 people, 2 TB shared storage; extensive Copilot usage, Researcher, Analyst, Cowork, limited agentic AI, extensive image creation (owner only) |
| Microsoft 365 Pro | $99.99 per month | 1 to 6 people, highest Copilot and agent usage, 5 TB shared storage; monthly billing only |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot Business | $21 per user per month paid yearly ($18 promo through December 31, 2026), $25.20 paid monthly | Add-on for existing Microsoft 365 Business plans, up to 300 users; Researcher, Analyst and Facilitator agents, Work IQ, model choice |
| Business Standard with Copilot | $23.50 per user per month paid yearly, $28.20 monthly | Office apps, Teams, 1 TB per user, Copilot in apps |
| Business Premium with Copilot | $32 per user per month paid yearly, $38.40 monthly | Adds advanced identity management and threat protection |
What users say
Microsoft Copilot reviews from users
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Is Microsoft Copilot worth it?
If you already pay for Microsoft 365, yes. Personal at $9.99 puts Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, and Premium at $19.99 adds extensive usage, Researcher, Analyst and Cowork. If you do not use Office, ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini give you more AI per dollar.
Is Microsoft Copilot free?
Yes. The Copilot app on web, Windows and mobile is free with base usage. Copilot inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook needs a Microsoft 365 plan from $9.99 per month.
What happened to Copilot Pro?
Microsoft now sells consumer Copilot through Microsoft 365 plans. Premium at $19.99 per month is the closest equivalent to the old Copilot Pro, and the new Microsoft 365 Pro at $99.99 per month offers the highest usage.
Can my family use Copilot on Microsoft 365 Family or Premium?
Microsoft's plan page says Copilot AI features are only for the subscription owner and are not included for other family members, even though up to 6 people share the Office apps and storage.
Does Microsoft train AI on my Copilot chats?
For signed in consumer Copilot users, Microsoft may use conversations to train its models unless you opt out in settings. Microsoft excludes enterprise accounts, Microsoft 365 consumer app users, signed out users, under 18s and several countries. Conversations are stored 18 months by default.
How much is Microsoft 365 Copilot for business?
The Copilot Business add-on is $21 per user per month paid yearly, discounted to $18 through December 31, 2026, or $25.20 paid monthly. Bundles are $23.50 with Business Standard and $32 with Business Premium, paid yearly.
What model does Copilot use?
Microsoft's business pricing page lists the latest OpenAI models (GPT-5.X) with priority access, and Copilot Business adds model choice. Microsoft does not name a model per consumer plan.
What are the best Copilot alternatives?
ChatGPT for the widest feature set, Claude for long documents and coding (with its own Microsoft 365 add-in), and Gemini for Google Workspace users.