Microsoft 365 Business Standard versus Premium for SMB
Standard is your Office and collaboration stack. Premium adds security (Intune, Defender, Entra ID P1, Information Protection). For most SMBs with customer data or remote work, Premium becomes the obvious upgrade within a year.
Try this first
- 1Standard runs you a fixed per-user monthly amount (ask your CSP for the current list price in your currency). Premium adds roughly a tenner per user per month per recent price lists.
- 2Price the alternatives separately: Defender for Business, Intune, Entra ID P1, AIP P1, Autopilot. Stacked separately you almost certainly overshoot Premium.
- 3Standard suffices when: under 10 people, no external customer data, no remote work, no MDM need, no anti-phishing concerns.
- 4Premium is required when: customer data or NDA work, BYOD or more than a few laptops, Conditional Access (MFA via Security Defaults is free on every tenant), an insurer or customer asking for EDR.
When to bring us in
Migration from Standard to Premium is a 5-minute admin click, then nothing is configured. We usually phase activation: MFA first, then Intune, then Defender. Ask for the runbook.
See also
- New hire has an account but cannot reach Outlook or TeamsAn M365 account without a license is an empty shell. Assigning takes a few clicks, but picking the right plan pays off long-term.
- Employee left, but their email must be retainedPulling the license straight away starts a 30-day timer on the mailbox. The right route keeps access to the mail without paying for the license.
- We pay for licenses nobody usesBetween leavers, duplicate plans, and test accounts there is often 10-20% wasted license spend. A usage report exposes it fast.
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