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Comparison
ChatGPT vs Microsoft 365 Copilot
A general AI assistant for drafting emails, quotes, policies and posts, summarising documents and answering questions. AI built into Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams for businesses on Microsoft 365.
| ChatGPT | Microsoft 365 Copilot | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free plan available. Paid plans (Go, Plus, Business, Enterprise) are priced per user per month; see the pricing page for current amounts. | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business: from £13.80 per user a month (offer; normally from £16.10), paid yearly. Business Standard with Copilot: £18.10. Business Premium with Copilot: £24.60. Prices exclude VAT. |
| Free plan | Yes. Unlimited everyday text chats, subject to abuse safeguards. Web search, file and image uploads, data analysis, image creation and 500 MB Library storage, each with its own usage limits. Ads may appear on the free plan in some countries. | No. No free business plan; a free trial is offered. |
| Best for | Day-to-day drafting: customer replies, quotes, job adverts, social posts and summaries. | Businesses that already live in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams. |
| Watch out for | Check everything before it goes to a customer; it can state wrong facts confidently. Keep customer personal data out. | Annual subscriptions auto-renew. The lower Copilot Business price was shown as an offer when we checked. |
| UK notes | Works in the UK. Ask for British English and UK context (VAT, HMRC) in your prompt. | UK prices in pounds, excluding VAT. |
| Made by | OpenAI | Microsoft |
| Checked | 2026-10-14 | 2026-10-14 |
Our verdict
For most small UK businesses starting out, ChatGPT is the easier first pick because it has a free plan. Pick Microsoft 365 Copilot instead if this sounds like you: businesses that already live in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams.
UK price difference
Microsoft 365 Copilot's cheapest paid plan is £13.80 (Copilot Business, per user a month, paid yearly, excl. VAT (offer)). ChatGPT doesn't publish a comparable entry price, so ask for a quote or check its pricing page. Check on the provider page whether VAT is included before you buy.
Who should pick which?
- Choose ChatGPT for: day-to-day drafting: customer replies, quotes, job adverts, social posts and summaries.
- Choose Microsoft 365 Copilot for: businesses that already live in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams.
Only ChatGPT has a free plan, so you can try it first at no cost. Prices change, so check the provider's page before buying.
Other ai assistants to consider
Claude
An AI assistant that is good with long documents, careful writing and summaries.
Gemini (Google AI plans)
Google's AI assistant, in its own app and built into Gmail, Docs and other Google apps on paid plans.
Perplexity
An AI search tool that answers questions with links to the sources it used.
Full details
ChatGPT tool page · Microsoft 365 Copilot tool page · How we check prices
Sources
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