Which Office 365 edition is right for you?

Which version of Office 365 fits your business?

Office 365 has a large and expanding range of packages available and each contains different software and benefits. Roughly speaking these are split into two groups – Business and Enterprise – and each group has been subdivided into different options.

One of the most important parts of Office 365 is the ability to install the desktop applications like Word and Excel. Not all packages have this as an option and some have either online versions or no consideration to install this at all.

The most common packages that are put in place are listed below and has a breakdown of what options they give you:

Business Packages

Exchange Online (Plan 1 or 2)

Hosted e-mail only and no online or installable applications. Max users unlimited.

Microsoft 365 Business Basic

This give you online versions of Word, Excel and Powerpoint as well as the hosted e-mail option. It also allows collaboration via Share Point, One Drive and Teams as part of the licence. Max users 300.

Microsoft 365 Business Standard

This includes full use of either installed or online versions of Office plus hosted e-mail. It also includes online services such as Share Point and One Drive for file storage and sharing, plus Teams for collaboration and audio/video conferencing. Max users 300.

Microsoft 365 Business Premium

As Business Standard, this package gives a range of options and features for installation of Office software. In addition it also gives the ability to use the software on a terminal server, additional security features for e-mail and also a ‘free’ upgrade to Windows 10 Professional. Max users 300.

Enterprise Packages

Microsoft 365 Apps for Enterprise

This includes the full use of either installed or online versions of Office and One Drive but does not include either hosted e-mail, Share Point or the use of Teams. It does, however, give the use of the software on a terminal server for those with this sort of environment. Max users unlimited.

Office 365 Enterprise E3

One of the top-level packages provided by Microsoft with full accessibility to all installed and online applications, hosted e-mail, Share Point, One Drive, Teams and a number of additional security and data management features. Max users unlimited.

Feel free to contact us if you have any further questions or need any clarity on your available options.