A few years have passed since “generative AI” transitioned from relative obscurity to becoming a widely recognized term.  The potential of generative AI technology to revolutionize companies, industries, and societies is prompting tech giants and others to invest an estimated ~$1 trillion in capital expenditures over the coming years. But this spending has little to show for it so far, which is why a large portion of SMB’s are seemingly hesitant to go all in.

If you tuned into the Olympics, chances are you encountered Microsoft Copilot commercials highlighting some of the extraordinary features of Microsoft Copilot. For skeptical consumers like yours truly, we found ourselves thinking, “What’s the catch?” Truth be told, we’ve been test driving Copilot products for the past few months and to our surprise, there isn’t one.

Microsoft Copilot can be used for free and is an accessible AI tool for anyone who has a Microsoft account. As is usually the case with free products, it lacks features that are included in paid subscriptions like Microsoft Copilot for 365 or Pro. In this blog, we’ll dive into the cost and pricing of these subscriptions as well as give my opinion on whether they are worth it or not.

Copilot for 365: What’s the Price?

The short answer is $30/user/month with an annual subscription (or $360/year if you pay upfront). However, to be eligible, customers must have a license for Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise, Apps for business, Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Premium, E3, E5, F1, F3, Office 365 E1, E3, E5, F3, Exchange Online Kiosk, Plan 1, Plan 2, OneDrive for Business Plan 1, Plan 2, SharePoint Online Plan 1, Plan 2, Teams Essentials, or Teams Enterprise, or versions of these plans that don’t include Teams. Click here to read frequently asked questions about licensing for Copilot for Microsoft 365.

Copilot for 365: What are the Benefits?

Copilot for 365 integrates seamlessly with the Microsoft 365 applications you use daily, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams, and others. It also interacts with your data in the Microsoft Graph, encompassing your calendar, emails, chats, documents, meetings, and contacts. By providing natural language prompts, you can receive generated content, suggestions, summaries, and additional assistance.

Click here to view a full list of the key benefits of Copilot for 365.

Is the price point worth it?

Since Copilot for 365 is still in its early stages, figuring out the exact ROI can be challenging. However, one of the most significant returns you gain with Copilot for 365 is time. For instance, let’s say you have a 5-page Word document on Marketing strategies for the upcoming year. Copilot could transform this 5-page Word document into a PowerPoint presentation in under a minute.

This efficiency alone allows employees to focus on other critical business activities instead of spending an entire day on a single presentation. To put it in perspective, saving your employees 15-30 minutes daily adds up to 5-10 hours a month which can be used to focus on other business needs.

This time-saving feature goes beyond PowerPoint. Copilot can also analyze Excel spreadsheets, summarize email threads, generate content in Word, and more. Imagine how much time is saved when Copilot handles these mundane, time-consuming tasks in seconds. Copilot boosts productivity, fosters creativity, and enhances decision-making allowing your business to operate more efficiently, deliver better customer experiences, and potentially reduce costs.

For small businesses, we would encourage assigning licenses to a handful of employees to explore the capabilities and how Copilot for 365 could benefit the business before investing in additional licenses. For example, assign a license to someone in the marketing department and gauge how much time it saves them when putting together a presentation or brainstorming for upcoming social media posts. Or assign a license to someone in the accounting deparment and let them explore all of the ways Copilot in Excel can expedite mundane processes. Regardless of who you assign Copilot licenses to, we encourage small businesses to dip their toes in the water because the AI ship is departing sooner than later and you don’t want your business to be left behind.

If you’d like to explore Copilot for 365, give us a shout. A member of our sales team can provide a free consultation and help you determine how to get the most bang for your buck with your licensure spend.