What is Microsoft 365 used for?

Microsoft 365 subscription suite bundling Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and OneDrive with Copilot AI. It is a good fit for equipping a company with email and office apps, giving a family shared Office access and storage, and collaborating on documents through Teams and OneDrive.

Is Microsoft 365 free?

Yes. Microsoft 365 has a free plan. Subscription plans for individuals, businesses and enterprises, such as Personal, Family, Business Standard and E3; see Microsoft's pricing pages.

Is Microsoft 365 open source?

No. Microsoft 365 is proprietary (closed-source) software. Open-source alternatives to Microsoft 365 include Collabora Online, CryptPad and LibreOffice.

What are some alternatives to Microsoft 365?

Microsoft 365 competes with Google Workspace, Zoho Workplace and WPS Office. For open-source options, see Enlisted's ranked list of open-source Microsoft 365 alternatives.

Microsoft 365: features, pricing and alternatives

About Microsoft 365

Microsoft 365, formerly Office 365, is a subscription suite that bundles the Microsoft Office applications with cloud services. It includes Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and OneDrive, and Microsoft Copilot is built in to help users create content, communicate and summarize information.

Plans are organized for individuals, businesses, enterprises, small businesses, schools, government, frontline workers and nonprofits. Individual options include Personal, Family, Premium and Pro, with student discount pricing. Business plans include Business Standard and Business Premium with Copilot, and enterprise plans include E3, E5 and E7. The wider catalog covers SharePoint, Planner, Viva, Windows 365 and Copilot Chat.

Microsoft 365 is proprietary software sold by subscription, with desktop, web and mobile apps. Plan prices are listed on Microsoft's pricing pages.

Key features

Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook apps
Teams chat and meetings
OneDrive cloud storage
Copilot AI built into the apps
SharePoint and Planner for teamwork
Plans for individuals, businesses and enterprises

Good fit for

→Equipping a company with email and office apps
→Giving a family shared Office access and storage
→Collaborating on documents through Teams and OneDrive

Tags: office-suite; microsoft-365; word; excel; powerpoint; teams; copilot; productivity

Microsoft 365: questions and answers

What is Microsoft 365 used for?: Microsoft 365 subscription suite bundling Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Teams and OneDrive with Copilot AI. It is a good fit for equipping a company with email and office apps, giving a family shared Office access and storage, and collaborating on documents through Teams and OneDrive.
Is Microsoft 365 free?: Yes. Microsoft 365 has a free plan. Subscription plans for individuals, businesses and enterprises, such as Personal, Family, Business Standard and E3; see Microsoft's pricing pages.
Is Microsoft 365 open source?: No. Microsoft 365 is proprietary (closed-source) software. Open-source alternatives to Microsoft 365 include Collabora Online, CryptPad and LibreOffice.
What are some alternatives to Microsoft 365?: Microsoft 365 competes with Google Workspace, Zoho Workplace and WPS Office. For open-source options, see Enlisted's ranked list of open-source Microsoft 365 alternatives.