CLARITY BEFORE COMMITMENT
Good decisions start here.
Practical guidance for the technology choices that matter to your business.
With Teams or without Teams?
What the Teams unbundling means when you choose a Microsoft 365 plan.
Read the guide →AI & COPILOTReady for Microsoft 365 Copilot?
Prerequisites, pricing structure, and the readiness work to do before rollout.
Read the guide →RENEWALSThe license renewal checklist.
What to review in the 60 days before your Microsoft renewal date.
Read the guide →MIGRATIONEmail migration without downtime.
The assessment, pilot and cutover structure behind a calm move to Microsoft 365.
Read the guide →PLAN COMPARISONMicrosoft 365 Basic, Standard, or Premium?
A practical starting point for choosing the right Microsoft 365 business plan.
Read the guide →LICENSING EXPLAINEDCommitment and billing are different.
Understand the licensing questions to ask before your next renewal.
Read the guide →CLOUD STRATEGYYour cloud journey starts with a plan.
Connect your business priorities to the right migration and management services.
Read the guide →Latest licensing briefs
Short, dated notes on Microsoft licensing and cloud pricing — updated most weekdays.
Business Basic and Standard cost more at your next renewal
Microsoft raised list prices for several Microsoft 365 plans on July 1, 2026, and existing subscriptions keep their old price only until renewal — so annual terms renewing this winter pick up the new rates. Business Basic moved from $6 to $7 per user per month and Business Standard from $12.50 to $14 (with Teams); Business Premium stayed at $22. The increases came alongside added features, including 50GB mailboxes and Copilot Chat enhancements across the Business plans. With Standard now at $14 and Premium unchanged, the step up to Premium’s included Intune and Defender for Business is smaller than it used to be — worth a fresh comparison at renewal, and confirm the rates in your quote.
Microsoft 365 Pricing and Packaging Updates ↗Power Apps Premium rises to $22 per user on January 1
Microsoft announced on September 9, 2026 that Power Apps Premium will go from $20 to $22 per user per month on January 1, 2027 — its first list price increase in more than five years. The 2,000-seat-minimum tier rises from $12 to $14, while other Power Platform products and the Power Apps capabilities included in Microsoft 365 plans keep their current prices. Existing subscriptions keep their price through the end of their term; the new rates apply to new purchases, renewals, and co-terminations with terms starting on or after January 1, 2027. If your renewal lands early in 2027, ask your partner whether renewing or co-terming before January 1 would lock the current rate for another term — confirm in your quote.
Microsoft licensing news — Power Apps Premium price update ↗Microsoft 365 E3 at 30% off: new CSP promo for 300-seat orders
Microsoft opened a new promotion on October 27, 2026: eligible CSP customers buying at least 300 new Microsoft 365 E3 licenses — with or without Teams — can get 30% off the net partner price, on an annual commitment with annual or monthly billing, through June 30, 2027. The offer targets organizations with a low existing Office 365 and Microsoft 365 footprint, and customers whose Office 365 seats renewed in 2026 aren’t eligible. As with other CSP promotions, the discount lands on the partner’s side rather than applying automatically — if you’re near the 300-seat mark and weighing a move to E3, ask your partner whether the promotion applies and confirm in your quote.
Microsoft Partner Center — October 2026 announcements ↗Business Premium security add-ons: a 7.5% CSP promo just started
As of October 1, 2026, Microsoft is offering 7.5% promotional CSP pricing on the Defender Suite for Business Premium and the Purview Suite for Business Premium, for customers with fewer than 300 seats buying through eligible direct bill partners and distributors. The discount lands on the partner’s side as promotional pricing they can build into quotes, so it isn’t automatic for you. If you’re adding either security suite to Business Premium, or renewing one, ask your partner whether the promotion is reflected and confirm in your quote. Microsoft hasn’t published an end date, so eligibility and terms can change.
Microsoft Partner Center — October 2026 announcements ↗Copilot Business goes standalone in CSP on December 1
Microsoft is repackaging how Copilot Business is sold through CSP partners. Offers that require a Microsoft 365 base subscription were renamed with an "(add-on)" label on October 16 and reach end of sale in CSP on December 1, 2026, when new standalone Copilot Business offers — with no base-subscription prerequisite — become available. That makes Copilot easier to buy for teams whose base licenses sit elsewhere, but the product and SKU IDs change, so if you buy or renew Copilot seats through a partner after that date, confirm in your quote which offer you’re getting and how any existing add-on subscription maps to the new one.
Microsoft Partner Center — October 2026 announcements ↗Windows Server 2012/R2 security updates have ended
The third and final year of Extended Security Updates for Windows Server 2012 and 2012 R2 ended on October 13, 2026 — Microsoft caps ESU at three years after end of support, so no further on-premises security patches are available at any price. Any 2012-era server still in production is now exposed to new vulnerabilities, and each on-premises ESU year had cost 100% of the full license price, so continuing to defer has been the expensive path. Microsoft’s recommended routes are upgrading to a current Windows Server version or moving the workload to Azure, where ESU for the three-year period carried no charge beyond the cost of running the VM. If you still have one of these servers, price a Windows Server upgrade against an Azure migration now and confirm licensing details in your quote.
Microsoft Learn — Extended Security Updates FAQ ↗Exchange 2016 and 2019 security updates end this month
Microsoft has reminded customers that the Exchange Server 2016 and 2019 Extended Security Update program ends in October 2026, and the October Exchange security update release is labeled as ESU-only for those versions. After that, any on-premises Exchange 2016 or 2019 servers you still run stop receiving security patches. The paths Microsoft points to are Exchange Server Subscription Edition (an in-place upgrade for 2019, a move to new servers for 2016) or Exchange Online through Microsoft 365. If email is still on-premises, price a Microsoft 365 migration against the cost of upgrading and licensing Exchange SE, and confirm the details in your quote.
Microsoft Tech Community — Exchange 2016 and 2019 ESU Program Ends in October 2026 ↗Office 2021 support ended October 13 — plan your exit
Office 2021 and Office LTSC 2021 — including the 2021 versions of Project and Visio — reached end of support on October 13, 2026. Microsoft no longer ships security updates, non-security fixes, or assisted support for these versions, though the apps continue to run. If your business still has Office 2021 seats, the practical paths are a Microsoft 365 subscription, which is updated continuously, or the perpetual Office LTSC 2024 for devices that must stay off the cloud. Review what’s actually installed across your PCs before renewal season, and confirm in your quote which route is priced in.
Microsoft Learn — Ending Support in 2026 ↗CSP software subscriptions: 5% uplift when billed monthly
As of October 1, 2026, Microsoft applies a 5% cost-of-capital uplift to Cloud Solution Provider software subscriptions — such as SQL Server, Windows Server, Client Access Licenses, and System Center — that carry an annual-term commitment but are billed monthly. Annual billing and month-to-month subscriptions aren’t affected, and existing subscriptions pick up the uplift at their first renewal on or after that date. If you buy server licenses or CALs through a partner, paying annually instead of monthly at renewal avoids the surcharge; confirm in your quote which billing plan your renewal is priced on.
Microsoft Partner Center announcements — August 2026 ↗Copilot Business: usage-based billing on by default December 1
Microsoft says new Microsoft 365 Copilot Business licenses purchased through the Cloud Solution Provider channel will have usage-based billing enabled by default starting December 1, 2026, a date pushed back from November 2. The default spending limit is 4,000 Copilot Credits per user per month, with charges based on actual consumption of eligible pay-as-you-go features; admins can adjust the limit. If you’re adding Copilot Business seats through a partner, set credit limits before the seats go live and confirm in your quote how usage-based charges will be billed.
Microsoft Partner Center announcements — October 2026 ↗Windows 10 ESU Year Two: the price doubles and back years stack
Commercial Windows 10 Extended Security Updates started at $61 per device for Year One, and Microsoft’s published terms double the price every consecutive year, for a maximum of three years. ESU is also cumulative, so an organization enrolling in Year Two pays for Year One as well — each year of delay compounds the cost. If you still run Windows 10 PCs, weigh a Windows 11 refresh or Windows 365 against two more years of ESU; Windows 10 virtual machines in Windows 365, Azure Virtual Desktop, and Azure VMs get ESU at no additional cost. Confirm current per-device ESU pricing in your quote, as it varies by channel.
Microsoft Learn — Windows 10 Extended Security Updates ↗Business Premium is the security line in the pricing table.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium lists at $22 per user/month with Teams ($18.79 without) and is the only Business plan that includes Intune device management and Defender for Business. If you pay separately for endpoint management or EDR alongside Basic or Standard seats, consolidating on Premium at renewal is usually the cheaper path.
Microsoft 365 business plan comparison ↗
For the latest product terms and licensing programs, consult Microsoft’s official directories.
Microsoft Product Terms directory ↗Full Azure product catalog ↗