Microsoft 365 Business Basic vs Standard vs Premium — Which One
- Sam Williams
- Mar 29
- 2 min read
Microsoft's licensing page makes this way harder than it needs to be. Here's the plain-English version for Australian small businesses — what each plan includes, what it doesn't, and which one is probably right for you.
Business Basic
Email, Teams, and online-only versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint. SharePoint and OneDrive with 1TB of storage per user.
This plan does NOT include desktop Office apps. Everyone works in the browser. If your team is used to the desktop apps and you switch to Basic, they'll notice.
Good for: businesses where everyone works in a browser anyway, or where you're already providing desktop apps another way.
Business Standard
Everything in Basic, plus desktop Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), plus Bookings, Forms, and some Power Platform tools.
This is where most small businesses land. Your team gets the familiar desktop apps they're used to, plus all the cloud collaboration tools.
Good for: most small businesses. If you're not sure, start here.
Business Premium
Everything in Standard, plus security. Intune for device management. Defender for email protection. Conditional Access for controlling sign-ins. Azure Information Protection for labelling sensitive documents.
This is the plan that includes the tools you need to actually secure your environment properly. Without Premium, you're relying on basic security defaults.
Good for: businesses that handle sensitive data, need device management, or want proper security. Also required if you want to meet the Essential Eight at any reasonable maturity level.
The real difference
Basic to Standard is about productivity — desktop apps vs browser only.
Standard to Premium is about security — basic protection vs proper security controls.
The price difference between Standard and Premium is a few dollars per user per month. For what you get in security tools, it's hard to justify not going with Premium if you have any kind of compliance requirement or handle client data.
Can you mix plans?
Yes. You don't have to put everyone on the same plan. Your admin and finance team might need Premium for security. Your casual reception staff might only need Basic.
Just make sure your Conditional Access and security policies account for the different licence levels — some security features only work for Premium users.
Not sure which plan your team needs? We can review your current setup and recommend the right mix. Use our M365 Features Calculator to see what's included in each plan, or reach out for a free licensing review.
