What Is Included in Microsoft 365 Business Premium in 2026?
Microsoft 365 Business Premium is one of Microsoft's most comprehensive packages for small and medium-sized businesses.
It combines the productivity tools many organisations already know — Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Exchange Online, OneDrive and SharePoint — with considerably more advanced identity security, endpoint protection, email protection and device management.
That distinction matters.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium should not simply be viewed as:
“Office apps plus email.”
Its real value is that it brings productivity and security together in one subscription designed for organisations of up to 300 users.
For many SMEs, it can provide an excellent foundation for managing Microsoft 365 securely without immediately moving into Microsoft's larger enterprise licensing tiers.
So what exactly do you get in 2026?
Microsoft 365 Desktop, Web and Mobile Apps
Business Premium includes the familiar Microsoft productivity applications, including:
Word
Excel
PowerPoint
Outlook
OneNote
Microsoft Access on PC
The subscription provides installable desktop applications alongside web and mobile versions where supported. Microsoft currently allows Microsoft 365 apps to be installed on up to five computers, five tablets and five mobile devices per licensed user.
This makes Business Premium suitable for employees who move between desktop PCs, laptops, tablets and smartphones.
One important 2026 change concerns Microsoft Publisher.
Publisher may still appear on older feature lists, but Microsoft has announced its retirement. Microsoft 365 subscribers will no longer be able to access Publisher after 1 October 2026. Businesses still relying on .pub documents should therefore begin reviewing how those files will be handled before retirement.
Exchange Online Business Email
Business Premium includes Exchange Online for professional business email, calendars, contacts and shared-mailbox functionality.
It allows organisations to use their own domain — such as:
name@yourcompany.co.uk
rather than relying on consumer email services.
Microsoft also announced an additional 50GB of email storage for Microsoft 365 Business Premium as part of its summer 2026 packaging changes. The rollout was scheduled to be completed by 1 August 2026.
Email security still needs configuring correctly, however.
Having Microsoft 365 does not automatically mean every possible security feature has been optimally configured.
Businesses should still consider settings such as:
SPF.
DKIM.
DMARC.
Anti-phishing policies.
External sender protection.
Safe Links.
Safe Attachments.
And sensible rules around automatic forwarding and suspicious messages.
Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 1
This is one of the important differences between Business Premium and less security-focused Microsoft 365 business plans.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 1.
Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 adds protection against more sophisticated email and collaboration threats, including:
Safe Links
Safe Attachments
Anti-phishing protection
Real-time detections
Microsoft describes Plan 1 as protection against threats such as zero-day malware, phishing and business email compromise.
That can make Business Premium particularly attractive to SMEs because email remains one of the main routes criminals use to attack businesses.
It is worth understanding that Plan 1 is not Defender for Office 365 Plan 2.
Plan 2 adds more advanced capabilities such as investigation, threat hunting, attack simulation and additional response tooling. Microsoft makes those capabilities available through higher-level plans or add-ons, including the newer Defender Suite for Business Premium.
Microsoft Defender for Business
Business Premium also includes Microsoft Defender for Business, Microsoft's endpoint security platform aimed specifically at organisations with up to 300 users.
This goes significantly beyond basic antivirus.
Capabilities include areas such as:
Endpoint Detection and Response — EDR
Next-generation antivirus
Attack-surface reduction
Threat and vulnerability management
Automated investigation and remediation
Security recommendations
Microsoft positions Defender for Business as providing enterprise-grade endpoint security capabilities in a package designed for smaller organisations.
For a business running Windows laptops and desktops, this can become an important part of the wider cyber-security strategy.
But again, buying the licence is not the same as configuring it.
Policies, exclusions, alerts, onboarding and response processes need to be designed properly.
Microsoft Intune Plan 1
Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes Microsoft Intune Plan 1 for device and application management.
This allows businesses to manage devices such as:
Windows PCs.
Laptops.
Android devices.
iPhones and iPads.
Depending on the device and configuration, businesses can use Intune to enforce requirements around:
Encryption.
Passwords.
Compliance.
Applications.
Security configuration.
Access to company data.
Lost or stolen devices.
For example, a company can require a Windows laptop to meet security requirements before it is allowed to access company services.
It can also use mobile-application management to protect business information on smartphones without necessarily managing every aspect of the employee's personal device.
This is particularly useful for organisations with hybrid workers, home workers or employees using mobile devices.
Microsoft Entra ID Plan 1
Business Premium includes Microsoft Entra ID Plan 1, formerly known as Azure Active Directory Premium P1.
This is one of the most valuable components of the licence because modern security increasingly revolves around identity.
Entra ID P1 includes Conditional Access, allowing organisations to make more intelligent decisions about who should be allowed into company systems and under what circumstances.
For example, a policy might:
Require MFA.
Require a compliant device.
Block particular access scenarios.
Apply additional controls to administrators.
Restrict access under specific conditions.
Microsoft describes Conditional Access as part of its Zero Trust approach to identity and access management.
This is much more powerful than simply saying:
“Everybody has a password and Microsoft Authenticator.”
MFA, Passkeys and Windows Hello for Business
Multi-factor authentication remains an important layer of Microsoft 365 security.
But businesses in 2026 should increasingly think beyond traditional push notifications and SMS codes.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium can support stronger authentication strategies using technologies such as Windows Hello for Business and FIDO2/passkeys, depending on configuration.
Microsoft's current Business Premium offering specifically includes Windows Hello for Business for secure Windows sign-in using mechanisms such as facial recognition, fingerprint or PIN.
Combined with Conditional Access, businesses can move towards authentication that is significantly more resistant to phishing than password-only access.
OneDrive
Business Premium includes OneDrive, with Microsoft's current UK product page listing 1TB of cloud storage per user.
OneDrive is primarily designed for an individual's business files.
It provides:
Cloud synchronisation.
File sharing.
Versioning.
Access across devices.
Offline access where configured.
OneDrive can reduce dependence on local files stored only on one laptop.
But company-wide documents generally need a more structured home.
That is where SharePoint comes in.
SharePoint Online
SharePoint provides shared sites, document libraries and organisational information storage.
It is often used for:
Departmental files.
Policies.
Company documents.
Project information.
Internal portals.
Shared business resources.
A useful rule of thumb is:
OneDrive = my working files.
SharePoint = our organisational files.
When configured properly, SharePoint can replace many traditional file-server workflows while providing better collaboration, version history and access control.
Simply dumping an entire old shared drive into SharePoint without planning permissions and structure, however, usually creates a cloud-based version of the old mess.
Microsoft Teams — Check Which Licence You Buy
This needs clearer wording in 2026 because Microsoft sells Business Premium in the UK in versions with and without Microsoft Teams.
Microsoft's UK site currently lists both:
Microsoft 365 Business Premium
and
Microsoft 365 Business Premium (no Teams).
Where Teams is included, employees can use it for:
Chat.
Meetings.
Video calls.
Channels.
File collaboration.
Internal communication.
Microsoft says Business plans with the appropriate Teams licence can host meetings and video calls for up to 300 people.
So when comparing Microsoft 365 quotes, do not simply look at the words Business Premium.
Check which exact SKU you are purchasing.
Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat Is Now Part of the Picture
One of the most important updates since the original article was written is Microsoft's continued expansion of AI throughout Microsoft 365.
Business Premium now includes access to Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat and AI agents, while Microsoft's summer 2026 packaging update introduced further Copilot Chat enhancements and analytics.
However, there is an important distinction:
Copilot Chat is not the same as full Microsoft 365 Copilot
The full work-grounded Copilot experience inside applications such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook is available through separate Business Premium with Copilot offerings rather than standard Business Premium alone. Microsoft's UK pricing page explicitly shows Business Premium with Copilot as an upgraded package.
This distinction is important when businesses are comparing licences.
Do not assume:
“Business Premium includes Copilot, therefore everyone gets the complete Microsoft 365 Copilot experience.”
They are different offerings.
Microsoft Purview Data Protection
Business Premium also provides Microsoft Purview capabilities for protecting business information.
Microsoft currently lists features including:
Data Loss Prevention
and
Information Protection
as part of Business Premium.
These can help organisations classify sensitive information and reduce inappropriate sharing.
That might include:
Customer data.
Contracts.
Financial information.
HR documents.
Personal information.
The effectiveness of these tools depends heavily on configuration and governance.
A sensitivity label nobody understands is unlikely to transform information security by itself.
Windows Capabilities
Microsoft's current Business Premium offering also includes Windows-related business features, including Windows Hello for Business and Windows 11 business capabilities.
This can be particularly useful when Business Premium is combined with Intune and Entra ID because the organisation can manage:
Identity.
Device compliance.
Configuration.
Encryption.
Applications.
Endpoint security.
from a much more integrated environment.
That combination is one of the biggest reasons Business Premium is often more compelling than simply licensing the Office desktop applications.
Is Microsoft 365 Business Premium Worth It?
For many SMEs, yes.
Particularly where the organisation wants to manage:
Microsoft 365
Windows devices
Cyber security
Email protection
Identity
MFA
Conditional Access
Endpoint security
Mobile devices
through an integrated Microsoft ecosystem.
Business Premium is designed for organisations with up to 300 users.
Larger businesses — or organisations needing more advanced identity protection, security operations, compliance or threat-hunting capabilities — may need Microsoft 365 Enterprise licensing or additional Defender/Purview products.
Business Premium Still Needs Proper Configuration
This is probably the most important point in the entire article.
Buying Business Premium does not automatically give you a perfectly secure Microsoft 365 environment.
The licence gives you the tools.
Somebody still needs to configure them.
For example:
Conditional Access policies need designing.
Devices need enrolling into Intune.
Defender needs configuring and monitoring.
Email protection policies need reviewing.
MFA and passkeys need deploying properly.
Administrator accounts need securing.
External sharing needs managing.
Security alerts need investigating.
Microsoft's own Business Premium deployment guidance walks organisations through configuring security, protecting devices, improving email security and maintaining the environment after deployment.
That is why simply upgrading licences without changing the configuration may deliver far less value than expected.
Microsoft 365 Business Premium With Hamilton Group
Hamilton Group can help businesses understand whether Microsoft 365 Business Premium is the right licence for their users and, more importantly, configure the security features they are paying for.
We can help with Microsoft 365 migrations, Exchange Online, Microsoft Entra ID, Conditional Access, Intune, Microsoft Defender for Business, Defender for Office 365, MFA, passkeys, SharePoint, OneDrive and wider Microsoft 365 security.
We can also review existing Microsoft licensing to identify situations where businesses are paying for Business Premium but barely using the security and management capabilities included within it.
Because paying for advanced security while leaving it switched off is not getting much value from the licence.
And when your employees need IT support, our aim is to make first contact within 15 minutes.
Call Hamilton Group on 0330 043 0069 or visit hgmssp.com to speak with one of our Microsoft 365 experts.