Microsoft Copilot
Microsoft's AI assistant inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel, as a free app or with Microsoft 365.
From $9.99/mo Free tier 30-day free trial
Bottom line
Microsoft's AI assistant inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel. Free app; Microsoft 365 Personal $9.99/mo; Microsoft 365 Copilot Business $21/user/mo billed annually ($18 first-year offer).
Stands out for: With a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, Copilot draws on your work email, calendar, files and Teams meetings, so it can answer a question such as what a hiring manager said in last week's meeting without you pasting anything in.
Watch out for: Several products are called Copilot. The free app and Copilot Chat do not see your mailbox and files the way a Microsoft 365 Copilot license does, and the business add-on requires an existing Microsoft 365 business plan.
Overview
Microsoft Copilot is Microsoft's AI assistant. The free Copilot app answers questions, searches the web and drafts text, and Microsoft 365 Personal, Family and Premium subscriptions add Copilot inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. For recruiters at companies on Microsoft 365, the business version is the one that matters: Microsoft 365 Copilot works inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel with your work data, so it can summarise a candidate email thread, recap a Teams interview or draft an offer letter from a template.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Business is an add-on for existing Microsoft 365 business plans, listed at $21/user/mo billed annually and offered at $18 for the first year through December 31, 2026 ($25.20 billed monthly). It includes the Researcher and Analyst agents, model choice and agent building in Copilot Studio. Bundles with the Microsoft 365 apps start at $23.50/user/mo billed annually, and Copilot Chat is included at no extra cost with eligible Microsoft 365 plans.
Who it's for
Best for
- Recruiting teams whose company runs on Outlook, Teams and Excel
- Summarising Teams interviews and long email threads
- HR and TA teams that need IT-approved AI with enterprise data protection
Not ideal for
- Teams on Google Workspace
- Solo recruiters who only want a chat assistant
Key features
Copilot in your Microsoft apps. Summarise a candidate email thread in Outlook, recap a Teams interview, draft an offer letter in Word or clean up a pipeline sheet in Excel.
Grounded in your work data. With a Microsoft 365 Copilot license, Work IQ draws on your mail, calendar, files and meetings, and the Researcher and Analyst agents handle longer research and data tasks.
AI features
| What the AI does | Plan |
|---|---|
| Chat with web search | Copilot app |
| Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook | Microsoft 365 Personal |
| Copilot in Teams meetings | Copilot Business Add-on |
| Researcher and Analyst agents | Copilot Business Add-on |
| Custom agents in Copilot Studio | Copilot Business Add-on |
Only features named in the vendor's own documentation. Anything sold separately is marked as an add-on.
Pricing
| Plan | Price | What you get |
|---|---|---|
| Copilot app | $0 | Free chat with web search |
| Microsoft 365 Personal | $9.99/mo | Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook |
| Microsoft 365 Copilot Business | $18/user/mo | Add-on, first-year offer billed annually, $21 list |
| M365 Business Standard with Copilot | $23.50/user/mo | Apps plus Copilot, billed annually |
| M365 Business Premium with Copilot | $32/user/mo | Adds advanced security, billed annually |
The Copilot app is free, and Microsoft 365 Personal ($9.99/mo), Family ($12.99/mo) and Premium ($19.99/mo) add Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. For businesses, Microsoft 365 Copilot Business is an add-on for an existing Microsoft 365 business plan at $21/user/mo billed annually, discounted to $18 for the first year on offers made through December 31, 2026, or $25.20 billed monthly. Bundles start at $23.50/user/mo billed annually for Microsoft 365 Business Standard with Copilot. Business plans come with a one-month free trial. Confirm current terms on the vendor site.
Checked 7 Oct 2026. Vendors change prices without notice.
See current pricing on Microsoft Copilot (opens in a new tab)
Is Microsoft Copilot expensive?
Microsoft Copilot starts at $9.99/mo. We list 6 AI assistants tools in total. 6 have a free tier, and those with a public price typically start around $17 a month.
- 0 quote-based
- 6 free tier
- 6 public price
Worked out automatically from every AI assistants listing, so it updates as the directory changes.
Pros and cons
Pros
- Free Copilot app, plus Copilot Chat included with eligible Microsoft 365 plans
- Works inside Outlook, Teams, Word and Excel with your work data
- One-month free trial on business plans
Cons
- The business add-on needs a qualifying Microsoft 365 plan
- The discounted price needs an annual commitment
- Several products share the Copilot name, which makes buying confusing
Integrations
Outlook Microsoft Teams Word Excel PowerPoint OneNote SharePoint Edge
How Microsoft Copilot compares
See all Microsoft Copilot alternatives, with what each one does differently and a head to head for every pairing.
| Tool | Free tier | From | MCP | API | Compare |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | ✓ | $9.99/mo | – | – | |
| | ✓ | $4.99/mo | – | ✓ | Compare |
| | ✓ | $8/mo | – | ✓ | Compare |
| | ✓ | $17/mo | – | ✓ | Compare |
$4.99/mo Free tier API
The same in-app approach for teams on Gmail, Docs and Drive.
$8/mo Free tier API
A standalone assistant with Office extensions, simpler to buy for one recruiter.
$17/mo Free tier API
Claude for Microsoft 365 and Outlook on paid plans, plus MCP links to recruiting tools.
Your next step
Shortlisting Microsoft Copilot?
Still deciding? Ask an AI assistant about Microsoft Copilot.
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