Microsoft Copilot
The AI Microsoft has quietly wired into Windows, Office and Teams — less a chatbot you visit, more one that's already sitting in your toolbar.
What is Microsoft Copilot?
Copilot started life as a rebrand of Bing Chat, but calling it "Microsoft's chatbot" undersells what it's become. Rather than one product, it's now a name Microsoft attaches to AI wherever it shows up across its stack: a free assistant in the browser and Windows taskbar, a paid layer inside Word, Excel and Outlook, and a separate enterprise product wired into a company's own emails, files and Teams conversations. The result is genuinely useful once it's set up correctly, and genuinely confusing before that point — which plan you need depends entirely on where you want the AI to show up.
The other thing worth knowing is that "Copilot" no longer means a single model quietly working behind the scenes. Microsoft has spent 2026 building out its own in-house MAI model family — for reasoning, coding, voice and image generation — and is routing an increasing share of Word and Excel requests through them instead of OpenAI. GPT-5.6 remains the officially "preferred" model as of its July 2026 launch, but Microsoft's own models already handle a meaningful and growing slice of everyday traffic, particularly in Excel and Outlook.
Figures reflect Microsoft's own announcements and pricing pages as of July 2026. Microsoft's licensing terms change frequently — confirm current details before purchasing.
Key features
Office app integration
Drafts and edits directly inside Word, builds formulas in Excel, and designs decks in PowerPoint.
Windows integration
Built into the taskbar, so it's one click away regardless of what app you're actually working in.
Enterprise data grounding
On business plans, answers questions using your organization's own emails, files and Teams chats.
Copilot Notebooks
A deep-research and long-form reasoning workspace, rolling out through 2026 for licensed users.
Reasoning agents
Researcher, Analyst and Facilitator agents that take on multi-step work rather than single replies.
Third-party app integrations
Tools like Adobe, Monday.com and Figma can now surface directly inside Copilot Chat.
Pricing
Copilot Chat
- Basic chat, web & Windows
- No access to your personal files or email
- Uses public web data only
Microsoft 365 Premium
- AI in Word, Excel, PowerPoint & Outlook
- Priority access to the latest models
- Full Microsoft 365 apps + 6TB storage
Microsoft 365 Copilot
- Add-on to a qualifying business M365 plan
- Enterprise data grounding & Teams integration
- Reasoning agents & admin controls
Microsoft's consumer Copilot Pro plan ($20/month) was retired in late 2025 in favor of Microsoft 365 Premium; existing subscribers can keep it until August 2026. Smaller businesses (under 300 seats) get separate, often lower, bundled pricing. Prices reflect Microsoft's published pricing as of July 2026 and change often — cards link to Microsoft's official pages.
Available models
Integrations & platforms
Pros, cons & best for
Pros
- Deep integration across Office, Windows and Teams
- Enterprise data grounding is genuinely useful for business work
- Free tier is available with no subscription at all
Cons
- Pricing and plan names have changed repeatedly and are easy to get wrong
- Best features require an existing Microsoft 365 subscription
- Which model answers a given question isn't always transparent
Best for
- Organizations already standardized on Microsoft 365
- Teams that need AI grounded in internal emails and documents
- Windows users who want an assistant built into the OS
Take a look inside
Alternatives
If you're not locked into Microsoft 365, or want a more focused chat experience:
Our verdict
Copilot's value depends almost entirely on how much of your work already happens inside Microsoft's apps. For an organization running Microsoft 365, the ability to ground answers in a company's own emails and documents is a genuine advantage the standalone chatbots can't match. For an individual just looking for a chat assistant, though, Copilot rarely feels like the first choice — the pricing takes real effort to untangle, and much of what makes it worthwhile sits behind a subscription you may already be paying for anyway. Strong pick for Microsoft-centric teams; a harder sell for everyone else.
FAQ
Is Microsoft Copilot free?
A basic version is free to use in the browser and Windows, without access to your personal files or email. Office integration and higher usage limits require a paid Microsoft 365 plan.
What happened to Copilot Pro?
Microsoft retired the standalone $20/month Copilot Pro plan in late 2025. Existing subscribers can continue until support ends on August 1, 2026; new users get equivalent features through Microsoft 365 Premium.
Does Copilot use ChatGPT?
It uses OpenAI's GPT-5.6 as its officially "preferred" model, but Microsoft is increasingly routing some requests, especially in Excel and Outlook, through its own in-house MAI models instead.
What's the difference between Copilot Chat and Microsoft 365 Copilot?
Copilot Chat is the free, general-purpose assistant with no access to your organization's data. Microsoft 365 Copilot is a paid add-on that grounds answers in your company's own emails, files and Teams conversations.
Can small businesses get a cheaper Copilot plan?
Yes. Organizations under 300 seats can access bundled Microsoft 365 Business plans with Copilot included, typically at a lower per-seat price than the standard $30 enterprise add-on.
Is Copilot the same as GitHub Copilot?
No. GitHub Copilot is a separate, developer-focused coding assistant. It shares the Copilot name and some underlying models but is a distinct product built for writing code in an IDE.