What does the new Microsoft 365 Premium plan mean for all subscribers? It’s all good news with no major changes or price rises to worry about.
Microsoft 365 Premium: Copilot AI, new Features & Pricing is the the second major change in Microsoft 365 consumer plans in less than a year.
The changes come with a more than usual dose of Microsoft marketing speak and Copilot hype while downplaying the advantages of the new plan.
Microsoft isn’t pushing the major benefit of the new Premium plan – it’s cheaper. There are small references to ‘better price’ but nothing about the significant savings that Microsoft 365 Premium offers to those who want a lot of Copilot and AI.
In short: for US$200 you can get what currently costs $340 or more.
Microsoft 365 Premium is not to be confused with the real and existing Microsoft 365 Business Premium plan or the fake plans with the word “Premium” and other ads that have been circulating for the last few years.
Nothing to do
For most people, there’s nothing to do. The prices and most features of the Microsoft 365 Personal and Family plans remain unchanged.
Only those with the Copilot Pro add-on face some changes, for the better.
Plans with some Copilot (Personal and Family owner) have changed AI limitations and some new features. See Microsoft 365 Copilot Expands for Personal & Family Plans — But Limits Remain
Classic (no Copilot) plans remain unchanged (for now) but Watch Out for Hidden Full-Price Auto-Renewals
Copilot Pro is ending
The Copilot Pro add-on is ending but that’s a good thing because the new Premium plan is cheaper.
A Personal plan with Copilot Pro cost $340 a year, it’ll now be $140 cheaper with the Premium plan
Family plan owners save even more, about $170 a year (was $370, now $200 a year).
Even anyone sharing a Microsoft 365 Family plan and paying for Copilot Pro will save money. Currently they are paying US$240 (12 months of Copilot Pro @ $20) will have to buy a Premium plan for $40 less.
Copilot Pro is ending, though it’s not clear yet exactly when and how that will automatically happen. In the meantime, Copilot Pro users can cancel that add-on and choose the Microsoft 365 Premium plan instead, see How to Upgrade to Microsoft 365 Premium: Step-by-Step Guide
Cheaper than ChatGPT Pro
For comparison, the new Premium plan’s Copilot extra cost is about $5.83 of $8.83 or a month ($70 a year more for Family plan $100 a year for Personal)
That’s makes Microsoft’s AI cheaper than Copilot biggest rival, ChatGPT’s Pro plan at $20 a month.
Quoting Monthly Prices
Microsoft is pulling their old trick of quoting monthly prices only, to make their subscriptions appear cheaper. The new Premium plan costs US$199.99 plus tax.
We’ve added the ‘real’ annual price, which is what Microsoft usually charges and is cheaper that paying each month.
Plan | Personal | Family | Premium |
Pricing (US, before tax) monthly as quoted by Microsoft | $9.99 per month | $12.99 per month | $19.99 per month |
Annual Pricing (US before tax) cheaper than 12 X monthly rate | $99.99 | $129.99 | $199.99 |
Yearly price with Copilot Pro for comparison(regular plan plus $20 x 12) | $340 | $370 | N/A |
Available for | 1 person | Up to 6 people (only owner gets Copilot) |
Pedantic note: we’ve added one cent to Microsoft’s retail prices for neater calculations.
Microsoft 365 Classic plans (Personal and Family) are not affected because those plans have no Copilot AI inclusions.
Microsoft 365 Premium: Copilot AI, new Features & Pricing Explained
Microsoft 365 Copilot Expands for Personal & Family Plans — But Limits Remain