Office 365 vs. Microsoft 365: What Suits Your Business Best?

If you own a business, you’ve probably thought about a Microsoft membership to fulfill all your technical leads. Microsoft offers many products that can help you complete your daily tasks more efficiently.

One of the most useful Microsoft products is Microsoft 365. It may at first appear to be equivalent to Office 365, however it has some unique benefits. In this guide, we’ll help you understand the differences between the two so you can decide which is ideal for your business’ needs.

What is Office 365?

Office 365 is membership-based set of productivity applications. It includes a software bundle (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and more) at a local OneDrive cloud storage with a facilitated Exchange mail server. Essentially, it takes all of the Microsoft applications you know and love and puts them online. There are multiple plans available with Office 365, and we will explain their differences below.

Office 365 Business Essentials:

Office 365 Business Essentials has a limit of up to 300 clients. Office 365 Business Essentials works best with the most recent rendition of Office. You do not need a desktop version of Office installed on your device to utilize Office 365 Business Essentials, however with the desktop variant of Office 365 Business Essentials, you have the added benefit of working offline.

Office 365 Enterprise:

Office 365 Enterprise 1: Works best for businesses that do not require working offline on desktop applications. Offers only online versions of Office 365 applications. Also offers online version of collaboration tools like Yammer, Teams, Sharepoint, Onedrive, etc.

Office 365 E ProPlus: This is for businesses that only need access to desktop applications and Onedrive without email and collaboration tools.

Office 365 Enterprise 3: Offers all the online and desktop features of Office 365 E1 and Proplus. It also provides security tools such as data loss prevention.

Office 365 Enterprise 5: This package offers all the features of E3 along with voice capabilities and advanced security.

What is Microsoft 365?

Microsoft 365 is a newer product from Microsoft. Basically, it is a bundle of existing Microsoft business profitability products (including Office 365) bundled together under one license for total user experience. It incorporates three essential services: Office 365, Windows 10 Enterprise, and Security & Mobility. There are multiple plans available with Microsoft 365, and we will explain them below.

Microsoft 365 F1:

Microsoft 365 F1 provides secure business email & effective collaboration. You can share messages as well as archives, recordings, and announcements with unlimited team members.

Microsoft 365 E3:

It provides flexibility, a generic toolkit for teamwork, and prevents data loss. It helps enhance workplace productivity and improved data security.

Microsoft 365 E5:

Automated and integrated security helps to prevent data damage and threats. The audio calling and conferencing in the cloud provides a more secure and stable medium of collaboration. The analytic features make it one of the best business tools.

If you are unsure of which plan to choose, contact us at any time and we are more than happy to help you decide!