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Comparing Microsoft Office 365 Pricing and Plans for Business

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As a modern business owner or manager, you and your employees need access to the right tools and technologies if you want to remain competitive in our highly saturated and digitally-driven business landscape.

Microsoft Office products were designed to help. Office 365 is one of those tools that can help modern businesses develop a competitive advantage. It’s a powerful software subscription service with features that can enhance enterprise mobility, collaboration (between both coworkers and clients), and data security.

Once you look at the benefits of Office 365 for Business, choosing to leverage this valuable tool is a no-brainer—but with so many options to choose from, deciding which specific Office 365 for Business plan is right for you may not be such a simple decision. But don’t worry—you don’t have to make this decision alone.

Check out our Office 365 license comparison to determine which plan has the features and pricing structure you’re looking for!

What is Office 365 for Business?

Office 365 for Business is a Microsoft subscription service that provides access to the Microsoft Office products and applications you already know and love (like Word and Excel)—plus online productivity services, robust security features, and valuable business services like web conferencing, hosted email, and online storage.

Office 365 Enterprise vs Office 365 Business Plans

Office 365 Business is available as a monthly or yearly subscription, and depending on the specific subscription plan you choose, you’ll get access to different features and capabilities. Microsoft offers its Office 365 Business plans at two different levels:

  1. Small business/SME. This plan is designed for businesses with less than 300 users.
  2. Enterprise. This plan is designed for businesses with more than 300 users.
    1. If you currently have less than 300 users but anticipate exceeding this headcount within the first year of using your Office 365 plan, you should consider going Enterprise now.

Offering more than just a one-size-fits-all Office 356 plan gives businesses the flexibility to choose the plan that is specifically tailored to their exact needs, size, and budget. Keep in mind that Microsoft also offers business plans for non-profit organizations, as well as businesses operating in education and government-related fields.

Note: If you’re not a business owner, Microsoft has Office 365 plans available for households, individual users, and more.

Office 365 Business Plan Details

Office 365 for Business is available in three tiers: Business Essentials, Business, and Business Premium. Depending on the tier you choose, you will have access to different features and capabilities.

For example, all three plans offer access to web and mobile versions of Office apps, but only Office 365 Business Essentials and Office 365 Business Premium provide access to email and calendaring.

However, no matter which tier you use, there are many benefits of leveraging Office 365 for Business. This includes, but is not limited to:

  • The ability to work remotely with ease
  • Streamlined collaboration
  • Simplified virtual collaboration
  • Reduced long-term software expenses
  • Advanced security features
  • File storage and sharing capabilities
  • Valuable data insights

Office 365 Business Pricing

Office 365 Business plan pricing for the three different tiers is as follows:

Office 365 Business Essentials

At $5.00 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this is Office 365’s most basic business plan.

  • Office apps included: None
  • Services included: Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams
  • Best for: Businesses that need access to business email and other business services like calendar management, host online meetings, secure and share files, support, and more.

Office 365 Business

At $8.25 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this is Office 365’s middle-ground business plan.

  • Office apps included: Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access (PC only)
  • Services included: OneDrive
  • Best for: Businesses that only need access to Office apps plus cloud file storage and sharing, since business email and communication tools are not included in this tier.

Office 365 Business Premium

At $12.50 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this is Office 365’s most robust business plan.

  • Office apps included: Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access (PC only)
  • Services included: Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams
  • Plus the ability to manage your business better with: Bookings and MileIQ
  • Best for: Businesses that need it all, plus advanced threat protection and mobile device management.

Office 365 Enterprise Plan Details

Microsoft 365 Enterprise brings together Office 365, Windows 10, and Enterprise Mobility + Security. It is designed to deliver a complete, intelligent solution for larger companies with more employees and more complex business processes that need additional security.

Office 365 Enterprise is available in four different tiers: ProPlus, E1, E3, and E5.

Office 365 Enterprise Pricing

Office 365 Enterprise plan pricing for the four different tiers is as follows:

Office 365 ProPlus

At $12.00 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this plan includes:

  • Desktop versions of all Office applications (web versions of some), OneDrive and OneNote
  • One license covers 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user
  • File storage and sharing with 1 TB OneDrive storage
  • Unlimited number of users
  • FastTrack deployment support with purchase of 150+ seats at no extra cost
  • 24/7 phone and web support

Office 365 E1

At $8.00 per month per user (with an annual commitment) this plan includes:

  • Web versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (desktop versions of applications not included)
  • Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Yammer, Stream
  • Email hosting with 50 GB mailbox and custom email domain address
  • Web versions of Office apps on iOS, Android, and Windows devices with screen sizes of 10.1” or less. Each user can install Office mobile apps on 5 tablets and 5 phones. 
  • File storage and sharing with 1 TB OneDrive storage 
  • The ability to:
    • inform and engage with communication sites and team sites throughout your intranet using SharePoint
    • host unlimited HD video conferencing meetings with up to 250 people
    • host meetings for up to 10,000 people with Microsoft Teams live eventsThe ability to
    • create a hub for teamwork with Microsoft Teams
    • collaborate across departments and locations with Yammer
    • use intelligent video to create, manage and share live and on-demand content across your organization
    • plan schedules and daily tasks with Microsoft Teams
    • manage tasks and teamwork with Microsoft Planner
  • Search and discovery with Delve
  • Advanced personal analytics with MyAnalytics
  • Unlimited number of users 
  • FastTrack deployment support with purchase of 150+ seats at no extra cost
  • 24/7 phone and web support

Office 365 E3

At $20.00 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this plan includes everything in E1 and then some:

  • All of the Office applications and services included in E1 plus security and compliance tools, such as legal hold, data loss prevention, and more.
  • Email hosting with 100 GB mailbox and custom email domain address (50GB more than E1)
  • One license covers 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user
  • Unlimited personal cloud storage
  • eDiscovery with in-place search, hold, and export
  • Plan schedules and daily tasks with Microsoft Teams
  • Manual retention and deletion policies and manual classifications

Office 365 E5

At $35.00 per month per user (with an annual commitment), this plan includes it all:

  • Desktop versions of Office applications: Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, plus Access and Publisher for PC only
  • Exchange, OneDrive, SharePoint, Microsoft Teams, Yammer, Stream, Power BI
  • Email hosting with 100 GB mailbox and custom email domain address
  • OneNote, plus access to additional OneNote features (features may vary)
  • Web versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint 
  • One license covers 5 phones, 5 tablets, and 5 PCs or Macs per user
  • Unlimited personal cloud storage
  • The ability to inform and engage with communication sites and team sites throughout your intranet using SharePoint
  • The ability to host online and video conferencing meetings for up to 250 people
  • The ability to host meetings for up to 10,000 people with Microsoft Teams live events
  • The ability to create a hub for teamwork with Microsoft Teams
  • The ability to collaborate across departments and locations with Yammer
  • The ability to use intelligent video to create, manage and share live and on-demand content across your organization
  • Advanced eDiscovery with in-place search, hold, export, and analytics
  • The ability to plan schedules and daily tasks with Microsoft Teams
  • The ability to manage tasks and teamwork with Microsoft Planner
  • Manual retention and deletion policies and manual classifications
  • The ability to protect against sophisticated threats like phishing and zero-day malware with Office 365 Advanced Threat Protection
  • The ability to control how support accesses your mailbox with Customer Lockbox
  • Auto classification, smart import, and more with Advanced Data Governance
  • The ability to assess risk and gain insight into potential threats with Office 365 Cloud App Security
  • Advanced personal and organizational analytics with MyAnalytics and Power BI Pro
  • The ability to make, receive, and transfer calls across a wide range of devices with Phone System
  • The ability to make domestic or international calls from current or new phone numbers with add-on Calling Plans
  • The ability to create meetings with a dial-in number that attendees can join by telephone with Audio Conferencing
  • Unlimited number of users
  • FastTrack deployment support with purchase of 150+ seats at no extra cost
  • 24/7 phone and web support

Ready to Choose Your Own Office 365 for Business Plan?

Now that you know the many benefits of the various Office 365 for Business plans, you may be thinking: “Wow, it’s time to implement this software in my own organization!”

However, with so many Office 365 plans, before you can get to implementation, you’ll need to determine which one is right for your specific business. How can you do it?

No two organizations (or even two departments within one organization) will have the exact same needs, goals, budget, and preferences. So, when choosing which Office 365 for Business plan is the best fit for your company, you’ll want to balance the needs of your overall organization against the needs of your employees in each department who will actually be using the software.

Need some guidance throughout this process? We’re here to help! 

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