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Comparison
Microsoft 365 Copilot vs Perplexity
AI built into Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams for businesses on Microsoft 365. An AI search tool that answers questions with links to the sources it used.
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | Perplexity | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | 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 to sign up. Pro: US$17 a month billed annually. Max: US$167 a month billed annually. |
| Free plan | No. No free business plan; a free trial is offered. | Yes. A free account is available; paid plans add more advanced answers and top AI models. |
| Best for | Businesses that already live in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams. | Quick research with sources, such as supplier comparisons, regulations to look up, or local market questions. |
| Watch out for | Annual subscriptions auto-renew. The lower Copilot Business price was shown as an offer when we checked. | Always open the cited sources before relying on an answer. |
| UK notes | UK prices in pounds, excluding VAT. | Prices are shown in US dollars. |
| Made by | Microsoft | Perplexity AI |
| Checked | 2026-10-14 | 2026-10-14 |
Our verdict
For most small UK businesses starting out, Perplexity 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
Cheapest paid plans: Microsoft 365 Copilot £13.80 (Copilot Business, per user a month, paid yearly, excl. VAT (offer)); Perplexity $17 (Pro, per month, billed annually). Microsoft 365 Copilot prices in pounds, so a UK business knows exactly what it will pay. Perplexity prices in US dollars, so the cost in pounds moves with the exchange rate and your card may add a foreign transaction fee. Check on the provider page whether VAT is included before you buy.
Who should pick which?
- Choose Microsoft 365 Copilot for: businesses that already live in Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams.
- Choose Perplexity for: quick research with sources, such as supplier comparisons, regulations to look up, or local market questions.
Only Perplexity 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
ChatGPT
A general AI assistant for drafting emails, quotes, policies and posts, summarising documents and answering questions.
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.
Full details
Microsoft 365 Copilot tool page · Perplexity tool page · How we check prices
Sources
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