Microsoft 365 Introduces New AI & Security Capabilities & Pricing Update
Microsoft has announced a wave of AI-driven innovation for Microsoft 365 from July 2026, designed to help organizations stay more productive, secure, and futureready in an increasingly complex digital landscape. Alongside these enhancements, Microsoft introduced a commercial ⁄pricing update effective July 1, 2026 (following the currency related decreases in February 2026), which gave customers time to plan ahead.
New capabilities coming to Microsoft Bundles:
| New capability | Business Basic / Standard | Business Premium | Office 365 E1 | Office 365 E3 | Microsoft 365 E3 | Microsoft 365 E5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Copilot Chat enhancements | ||||||
| Security & analytics for Copilot | ||||||
| URL checks (Outlook / Office) | ||||||
| +50 GB email storage | ||||||
| Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 | ||||||
| Intune Remote Help | ||||||
| Intune Advanced Analytics | ||||||
| Intune Plan 2 | ||||||
| Intune Endpoint Privilege Mgmt | ||||||
| Intune Enterprise App Mgmt | ||||||
| Microsoft Cloud PKI | ||||||
| Microsoft Security Copilot |
Major Changes:
Microsoft expands enterprise device management by integrating more Intune Suite capabilities directly into Microsoft 365 E3/E5:
- Intune Remote Help
- Intune Advanced Analytics
- Microsoft Cloud PKI (E5)
Defender for Office 365 P1 added to Office 365 E3, M365 E3 Bundles - detect and protect against phishing, malware, and malicious links across their email and collaboration platforms
+ 50 GB email Storage for Business plans (Adding up to 100GB in total per User)
Copilot Chat integrated into Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote bringing a unified chat experience right into the flow of work
Pricing Update: Effective July 1st 2026.
| Plan | Current list price | List price · Jul 1, 2026 | Increase (USD) | Increase (%) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Business Basic | USD 6.00 | USD 7.00 | +USD 1.00 | 16.7% |
| Business Standard | USD 12.50 | USD 14.00 | +USD 1.50 | 12.0% |
| Business Premium | USD 22.00 | USD 22.00 | USD 0.00 | 0% |
| Office 365 E1 | USD 10.00 | USD 10.00 | USD 0.00 | 0% |
| Office 365 E3 | USD 23.00 | USD 26.00 | +USD 3.00 | 13.0% |
| Microsoft 365 E3 | USD 36.00 | USD 39.00 | +USD 3.00 | 8.3% |
| Microsoft 365 E5 | USD 57.00 | USD 60.00 | +USD 3.00 | 5.3% |
| Microsoft 365 F1 | USD 2.25 | USD 3.00 | +USD 0.75 | 33.3% |
| Microsoft 365 F3 | USD 8.00 | USD 10.00 | +USD 2.00 | 25.0% |
Impact:
Expect 5 to 33% cost increases, depending on the suite.
If your renewal falls after July 1st 2026, check whether any preventive action is still possible. (We can support)
Since July 1, 2026, the new prices apply automatically without any action.
How can Zation help you?
Prepare for the Price changes NOW:
- Assess your current licensing footprint
- Remove redundant solutions providing the same benefits
- Check current user assignments (Sizing / Anomalies/ Duplicates etc…)
- Identify new usage scenarios
- Benchmark your current costs
- Assess consolidation of thirdparty security and device management products
- Consider multiyear agreements to stabilize costs before the pricing change