What Microsoft 365 Business Premium Costs a Small Office
Microsoft 365 Business Premium has two kinds of cost: the license, which Microsoft publishes, and the time it takes to set up and run, which depends on your office. This guide keeps them apart. The license numbers come only from Microsoft's own pages. For the setup work, you get a list of the tasks and how big each one is, not a made-up hourly figure.
The short answer
- The license is $22.00 per user per month, paid yearly. Microsoft didn't change that price in its July 1, 2026 update. The version without Teams is $18.79.
- For 10 people that's 10 × $22.00 × 12 = $2,640 a year in licenses. More examples are in the table below.
- Setup is mostly your time. Microsoft's guided setup covers the domain, users and apps. The security setup is the bigger job, and you can do it yourself or pay a Microsoft partner.
The license price
| Plan (with Teams) | Before July 1, 2026 | From July 1, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | $6.00 | $7.00 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Standard | $12.50 | $14.00 |
| Microsoft 365 Business Premium | $22.00 | $22.00 (no change) |
Per user per month, U.S. list prices, from Microsoft's pricing and packaging updates page (prices checked Oct 2026). The same page lists Business Premium without Teams at $18.79. Microsoft says existing customers stay on their current price until renewal. The Business Premium product page showed $22.00 user/month, paid yearly.
A few things on Microsoft's product page that affect what you pay:
- Free trial: there's a one-month free trial. A credit card is required, and the trial converts to a paid subscription automatically unless you cancel.
- Cancellation: after a paid subscription starts, Microsoft gives a seven-day window to cancel for a prorated refund.
- The 300-user cap: Business Basic, Standard and Premium support a maximum of 300 users.
Worked examples: license cost by office size
Arithmetic: users × $22.00 × 12 months, at the list price above (prices checked Oct 2026). These are license costs only.
| Users | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | 5 × $22.00 = $110.00 | $110.00 × 12 = $1,320.00 |
| 10 | 10 × $22.00 = $220.00 | $220.00 × 12 = $2,640.00 |
| 25 | 25 × $22.00 = $550.00 | $550.00 × 12 = $6,600.00 |
| 50 | 50 × $22.00 = $1,100.00 | $1,100.00 × 12 = $13,200.00 |
Without Teams, 10 users would be 10 × $18.79 × 12 = $2,254.80 a year. That only makes sense if you already pay for Teams some other way.
What the extra $8 over Business Standard buys
Business Premium is $22.00 and Business Standard is $14.00, so the difference is $8.00 per user per month. For 10 users that's 10 × $8.00 × 12 = $960 a year (prices checked Oct 2026).
Microsoft says Business Premium includes everything in Business Standard plus Microsoft Defender for Business and Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 (Business Premium FAQ). The product page also lists Intune Plan 1 for device management and Purview data loss prevention and information protection. Microsoft also says Entra ID P1, which includes Conditional Access, is part of Business Premium (Microsoft Entra licensing). My Business Premium vs E3 comparison has the full list with sources.
My view: if you'll actually use Conditional Access and Intune, the $8 is the cheapest way to get them. If you won't set them up, you're paying for features you don't use, and Business Standard with security defaults turned on is the honest choice.
Setup: the work, not a price
I'm not giving an hour count or a labor rate here, because I don't have a published source for one that would fit your office. These are the jobs, in the order I'd do them, with the guide for each. Your time depends mostly on how many PCs you have and how messy your current setup is.
| Job | What's involved | Guide |
|---|---|---|
| Basic setup | Microsoft's guided setup in the admin center: install the apps, add your domain, add users and assign licenses, connect the domain (Microsoft Learn). Microsoft says you still need to set up security afterward. | If you're moving off GoDaddy |
| Sign-in protection | Two emergency access accounts, then MFA for everyone through Conditional Access | Conditional Access starter policies |
| Email authentication | SPF, DKIM and DMARC records at your DNS host | SPF, DKIM and DMARC |
| Company PCs | Intune enrollment, a compliance policy, BitLocker, updates, apps. This is usually the biggest job, because each PC has to be enrolled. | Intune setup for a 10-person office |
| Personal phones | App protection policies, so work data in Outlook and Teams stays protected without enrolling the phone | App protection for BYOD phones |
| Ongoing | Adding and removing people, checking device compliance, reviewing alerts | Offboarding checklist |
You can do this yourself or work with a Microsoft partner. Microsoft points to its partner directory for that (Set up Microsoft 365 Business Premium). If you hire someone, ask for a fixed-price quote that lists the jobs above, so you can compare quotes on the same work.
Other costs to budget for
These are separate from the Business Premium license. Each one is optional, and the price is on the linked page.
- PC hardware: Microsoft's product page says to check the Windows 11 system requirements to make sure your devices are eligible for the upgrade.
- Backup: Microsoft 365 Backup is $0.15 per GB per month (Microsoft Learn, prices checked Oct 2026). Third-party options charge per user. See Microsoft 365 backup compared.
- Password manager: plans with Entra ID sign-in start at about $6 per user per month at list price. See password managers compared.
- Phone system: Teams Phone is an add-on. See Teams Phone licensing.
A one-line budget
For a 10-person office, the license line is $2,640 a year at list price. Add backup and a password manager from the comparison guides if you want them. Then budget your own time, or a partner's quote, separately for the setup jobs above. Keep the two apart when you compare quotes. A low license price from a reseller doesn't tell you whether anyone will set up the security.
Sources
- Microsoft 365 pricing and packaging updates (Microsoft)
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium product page (Microsoft)
- Microsoft 365 Business Premium FAQ (Microsoft Learn)
- Microsoft Entra licensing (Microsoft Learn)
- Sign in and set up Microsoft 365 Business Premium (Microsoft Learn)
- Overview of Microsoft 365 Backup (Microsoft Learn)