Microsoft brings free Copilot Chat to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more, but there’s a catch

Microsoft is now offering a free version of Copilot Chat in its Core Office apps, which include Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote, to Microsoft 365 business subscribers. The new sidebar tool is intended to function as a contextual assistant, assisting users in drafting documents, summarising lengthy text, analysing spreadsheets, and even creating presentations without the need for a separate Copilot license.

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The feature operates within the document or file that has been opened, tailoring responses and suggestions to the content in real time. This makes it ideal for quick edits, rewrites, and insights while working within Office apps. Importantly, Microsoft is not raising subscription prices for businesses, unlike its previous move with consumer plans, which linked AI-powered features to higher fees.

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For the unversed, the Microsoft 365 Copilot license costs $30 per user each month and offers advanced features. The subscribers can work across entire organizational data rather than being restricted to single files, and also gain access to additional features such as file uploads, image generation, and priority use of Microsoft’s latest AI technology, including the GPT-5 model. The plan also promises faster responses and more reliable availability during peak demand.

With this, Microsoft appears to be steadily embedding AI throughout the productivity ecosystem, with the goal of making Copilot a standard tool for businesses of all sizes. Beginning in October, the company will integrate its sales, service, and finance Copilots into the larger Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, streamlining access and potentially lowering costs for enterprises that already use these vertical-specific AI tools.

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Ashish Singh

Ashish Singh is the Chief Copy Editor at Digit. He's been wrangling tech jargon since 2020 (Times Internet, Jagran English '22). When not policing commas, he's likely fueling his gadget habit with coffee, strategising his next virtual race, or plotting a road trip to test the latest in-car tech. He speaks fluent Geek. View Full Profile