How to get the best deals on Microsoft Copilot — pricing breakdown, savings tips, and alternatives
Microsoft Copilot offers a free tier — you might not need to pay at all!
Perfect for trying out Microsoft Copilot without spending anything
💡 Pro tip: Start with the free tier to test if Microsoft Copilot fits your workflow before upgrading to a paid plan.
per month
Don't overpay for features you won't use. Here's our recommendation based on your use case:
Most AI tools, including many in the ai agent builders category, offer special pricing for students, teachers, and educational institutions. These discounts typically range from 20-50% off regular pricing.
• Students: Verify your student status with a .edu email or Student ID
• Teachers: Faculty and staff often qualify for education pricing
• Institutions: Schools can request volume discounts for classroom use
Most SaaS and AI tools tend to offer their best deals around these windows. While we can't guarantee Microsoft Copilot runs promotions during all of these, they're worth watching:
The biggest discount window across the SaaS industry — many tools offer their best annual deals here
Holiday promotions and year-end deals are common as companies push to close out Q4
Tools targeting students and educators often run promotions during this window
Signing up for Microsoft Copilot's email list is the best way to catch promotions as they happen
💡 Pro tip: If you're not in a rush, Black Friday and end-of-year tend to be the safest bets for SaaS discounts across the board.
Test features before committing to paid plans
Save 10-30% compared to monthly payments
Many companies reimburse productivity tools
Some providers offer multi-tool packages
Wait for Black Friday or year-end sales
Some tools offer "win-back" discounts to returning users
If Microsoft Copilot's pricing doesn't fit your budget, consider these ai agent builders alternatives:
ChatGPT is the broadest default AI assistant for many builders because it covers more than chat. In one workspace, a user can draft a memo, rewrite a sales email, inspect a CSV, summarize a PDF, generate code, debug an error, brainstorm pro
Starting at $0 (verify live limits)
✓ Free plan available
Claude is Anthropic’s general AI assistant, but its best fit is more specific: careful work with language, code, and long context. Many teams choose Claude when they need a model that can read a large document, preserve nuance, write in a r
Free tier available
✓ Free plan available
Google Gemini is a ai assistant tool for teams evaluating real workflows, pricing limits, strengths, drawbacks, and alternatives before committing.
Free tier available
✓ Free plan available
Microsoft Copilot's core chat experience is genuinely free with no trial expiration — you get GPT-4 access, real-time Bing web search, and DALL-E 3 image generation at no cost with just a Microsoft account. The paid Copilot Pro tier at $20/month adds priority access during peak demand, faster image generation (100 boosts/day vs. 15 for free users), and integration inside Microsoft 365 desktop apps like Word and Excel. There are no ads inside the chat interface, though Bing search results shown alongside answers include standard sponsored links. For most casual users, the free tier is fully functional and competitive with ChatGPT Plus.
Both tools run on GPT-4, but Copilot's free tier offers live web access and image generation that ChatGPT reserves for its $20/month Plus subscription. ChatGPT generally receives new OpenAI features first (like custom GPTs, advanced voice mode, and memory) and has more permissive content policies for creative writing. Copilot wins on Windows and Microsoft 365 integration — it can read your Edge tabs, reference OneDrive files (with Pro), and operate directly from the taskbar. For students, Windows users, and anyone who wants GPT-4 without paying, Copilot is the stronger choice; for power users, developers, and those needing the newest features, ChatGPT Plus remains ahead.
Microsoft caps each Copilot conversation at approximately 30 back-and-forth turns before prompting you to start a new chat. The limit was introduced in early 2023 after widely-reported incidents where long conversations caused the AI to behave erratically or break from its intended persona. While this safeguard keeps responses more reliable, it can interrupt extended research sessions or iterative creative work. You can restart a fresh conversation at any time without losing access to prior chat history, which is saved in your account. Power users who frequently hit the limit often prefer ChatGPT or Claude, which offer significantly longer context windows.
Yes, Copilot includes DALL-E 3 image generation at no cost, accessible by simply describing the image you want in chat. Free users receive approximately 15 'boosts' per day for faster generation, with slower queued generation available beyond that. Copilot Pro subscribers get 100 boosts daily and priority access to the image model during peak times. Generated images are watermarked with Content Credentials (C2PA) metadata for transparency, and Microsoft's content policies block violent, sexual, or copyrighted-character prompts. For creators who need higher volume or commercial licensing certainty, dedicated tools like Midjourney remain more flexible.
Copilot is available on virtually every major platform: a web app at copilot.microsoft.com, native iOS and Android apps, a Mac version through the Microsoft 365 Copilot app, and deep integration on Windows 11 via the taskbar. Linux users can access Copilot through any modern browser, though without the native OS integrations Windows users enjoy. The Edge browser on any platform exposes the Copilot sidebar, which can summarize and answer questions about the current webpage. Feature parity is strongest on Windows 11 and in Microsoft 365 apps, while the mobile apps focus on chat, voice conversations, and image generation.
Start with the free tier and upgrade when you need more features
Get Started with Microsoft Copilot →Pricing and discounts last verified March 2026