The cheapest legit way to get Microsoft 365 is free. Students and teachers with an eligible school email can get Office 365 A1 at no cost, and anyone can use Word, Excel and PowerPoint free on the web at microsoft365.com.
If you need the desktop apps, the best Microsoft 365 discount is sharing: Microsoft 365 Family costs $129.99 a year (US price, October 2026) and covers up to six people. College students can also get 50% off Microsoft 365 Personal.
Microsoft doesn’t run many coupon-style sales on Microsoft 365, but it has several official ways to pay less or nothing. Below is each one, who qualifies and what you give up. Prices are US prices as of October 2026, so check Microsoft’s site before you buy.
Microsoft 365 prices in the US (October 2026)
| Plan | Yearly | Monthly | People | Cloud storage | Desktop apps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | $19.99 | $1.99 | 1 | 100 GB | No (web and mobile only) |
| Personal | $99.99 | $9.99 | 1 | 1 TB | Yes |
| Family | $129.99 | $12.99 | Up to 6 | 1 TB each | Yes |
| Premium | $199.99 | $19.99 | Up to 6 | 1 TB each | Yes |
Personal, Family and Premium include Copilot. Microsoft says Family’s Copilot features are for the subscription owner only, and Premium adds much higher Copilot usage. Basic doesn’t include Microsoft’s AI features.
1. Free for students and teachers: Office 365 A1
Microsoft says students and educators with an eligible education email address can get Office 365 A1 for free. It includes the web versions of Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote.
- Go to Microsoft’s Office 365 Education page (link in the sources below).
- Enter your school email address and select Get started.
- Follow the steps to sign in or create your school account.
You keep it while you work at, or are enrolled in, a qualified school. When you leave, the apps switch to reduced functionality, so you can view documents but not edit them. Save copies of anything important before you graduate.
Some schools pay for plans that include the full desktop apps. Ask your school’s IT help desk what your account includes before you pay for anything.
2. Free for everyone: Word, Excel and PowerPoint on the web
Sign in at microsoft365.com with a free Microsoft account and you can use Word, Excel and PowerPoint in your browser at no cost. Microsoft gives free users 5 GB of OneDrive storage. Your files are saved there.
- Good for: letters, school assignments, simple spreadsheets and presentations.
- Limits: the web apps have fewer features than the desktop apps, and Microsoft says free users get basic editing only on phones and tablets under 10.1 inches.
- No install: it works in any modern browser, on Windows, Mac or a Chromebook.
3. College students: 50% off Microsoft 365 Personal
Microsoft offers college students 50% off Microsoft 365 Personal, which is $4.99 a month instead of $9.99. Microsoft’s offer page says you need to be enrolled, full or part time, at a Title IV accredited college or university in the US, and verify your student status.
- Sign up with a personal Microsoft account, not your school account, then verify with your school email or documents.
- The discounted price renews monthly while you’re eligible. Microsoft asks you to re-verify about once a year.
- If you’re no longer eligible, the price rises to the full monthly price.
4. Share Microsoft 365 Family with up to five people
Family costs $129.99 a year for up to six people. Split six ways, that’s about $21.67 each per year. Everyone gets their own 1 TB of OneDrive and the desktop apps, and signs in with their own Microsoft account.
- Sign in to your Microsoft account at account.microsoft.com with the account that pays for Family.
- Go to account.microsoft.com/services and open Sharing for your Microsoft 365 Family subscription.
- Invite each person by email, or copy a sharing link and send it to them.
- They accept the invite and join your family group, then install the apps with their own account.
Each person’s files stay private unless they choose to share them. Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook is only available to the subscription owner on Family, not to the people you share with.
5. Pay yearly, not monthly
If you know you’ll keep Microsoft 365 for a year, yearly billing is a simple saving:
- Basic: $19.99 a year vs $23.88 paid monthly.
- Personal: $99.99 a year vs $119.88 paid monthly, a saving of $19.89.
- Family: $129.99 a year vs $155.88 paid monthly, a saving of $25.89.
- Premium: $199.99 a year vs $239.88 paid monthly.
Monthly billing makes sense for a short project, like a semester or a job search. You can also start with Microsoft’s one-month free trial of Personal, Family or Premium. Set a reminder before it ends.
6. Don’t need Copilot? Basic and Classic plans
Microsoft added Copilot to Personal and Family in January 2025, and prices went up with it. If you don’t want AI features, you have two cheaper routes:
- Microsoft 365 Basic ($19.99 a year) gives you 100 GB of storage, an ad-free Outlook inbox and Word, Excel and PowerPoint on the web and mobile. There are no desktop apps.
- Personal Classic and Family Classic keep the desktop apps without Copilot. Microsoft says existing subscribers with recurring billing could switch for a limited time, and that these plans may not always be offered. Check by going to account.microsoft.com/services, opening your subscription and selecting Manage, then Cancel subscription. If a Classic plan is available to you, it appears as an option there.
Prefer to pay once? Office Home 2024 is a one-time purchase of $179.99 for one PC or Mac. It has no cloud storage and no AI features.
Which Microsoft 365 discount is right for you?
- Student or teacher: try your free school account first, then the 50% college offer if you need desktop apps.
- Light user: free web apps, or Basic for more storage and ad-free email.
- Household of two or more: Family, paid yearly, shared with up to five people.
- No interest in AI: Basic or a Classic plan if your account is offered one.
- Hate subscriptions: Office Home 2024, if you only need one computer.
Be careful with very cheap “lifetime” Microsoft 365 or Office keys from marketplace sellers. Microsoft 365 is a subscription. If a price looks far below Microsoft’s own, buy from Microsoft or a major retailer instead. Our guide to spotting a fake discount explains what to check.
Wondering whether Copilot is worth paying for at all? Compare it in our ChatGPT vs Gemini vs Claude vs Copilot guide, and check our AI privacy settings guide. More app guides are in our Apps section.
FAQ
Can I get Microsoft 365 for free?
Yes. Anyone can use Word, Excel and PowerPoint free on the web at microsoft365.com, and eligible students and teachers can get Office 365 A1 free with a school email.
How much is the Microsoft 365 student discount?
Microsoft offers eligible US college students 50% off Microsoft 365 Personal, which is $4.99 a month as of October 2026.
How many people can share Microsoft 365 Family?
Up to six people in total: the owner plus five others. Each person gets 1 TB of storage and uses their own Microsoft account.
Do family members get Copilot?
Not on Microsoft 365 Family. Microsoft says Copilot features there are for the subscription owner only.
Is there a Microsoft 365 plan without Copilot?
Microsoft 365 Basic has no AI features. Some existing subscribers may also be offered Personal Classic or Family Classic plans when they manage their subscription.
Sources
- Compare all Microsoft 365 plans (Microsoft)
- Microsoft 365 Basic (Microsoft)
- Free Office 365 for students and educators (Microsoft Education)
- Microsoft 365 for students (Microsoft Education)
- Microsoft 365 college student pricing (Microsoft)
- Manage Microsoft 365 subscription sharing (Microsoft Support)
- What’s the difference between a Microsoft 365 subscription and free web apps (Microsoft Support)
- Switching to Microsoft 365 Personal and Family Classic plans (Microsoft Support)
