The best prices for Microsoft 365 in March 2024

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Office 365 on Razer laptop

(Image credit: Jennifer Young - Windows Central)

1. 365 Personal
2. 365 Family
3. 365 Home & Student
4. 365 Business
5. How to choose

Whether you're writing your autobiography, creating a spreadsheet for your ever-shrinking household budget, or making snazzy PowerPoint presentations to impress your boss, Microsoft 365 is essential. Since the shift from Microsoft Office to the subscription-based Microsoft 365, it's become more expensive to stay in Microsoft's ecosystem.

But with that added price comes added value. In addition to Microsoft improving its most familiar apps, the tech giant also adds new services to its subscription on a regular basis without increasing the cost. For example, Clipchamp has additional features for Microsoft 365 subscribers. You can also enhance your subscription with a Copilot Pro, though that costs an additional $20 per month.

Microsoft 365 Personal

Direct from the source

Direct from the source

You can, of course, buy your subscription directly from Microsoft. The Personal version is limited to just one person, but other than that you get all the other benefits the program has to offer including regular updates and such. The subscription will cost you $69.99 a year, or $6.99 a month if you'd rather the short-term commitment.

<a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=kXQk6%2AivFEQ&mid=46107&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fmicrosoft-365%2Fp%2Fmicrosoft-365-personal%2Fcfq7ttc0k5bf%3Factivetab%3Dpivot%3Aoverviewtab" data-link-merchant="microsoft.com"" target="_blank">See at Microsoft Store

Other retail options

Other retail options

Target and Amazon often have sales on Microsoft 365 Personal. Unfortunately, now is not one of those times. But if you have a RedCard, you can save 5% on a Microsoft 365 Personal subscription through Target. If you purchase through Amazon, note that it will be set to renew annually by default. You can cancel that if you'd like, however.

<a href="https://target.georiot.com/Proxy.ashx?tsid=8428&GR_URL=https%3A%2F%2Famazon.com%2Fdp%2FB07F3TQ6DQ%2F%3Ftag%3Dhawk-future-20%26ascsubtag%3Dhawk-custom-tracking-20" data-link-merchant="Amazon US"" target="_blank">See at Amazon | <a href="https://goto.target.com/c/221109/81938/2092?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.target.com%2Fp%2Fmicrosoft-365-personal-12-month-subscription-digital%2F-%2FA-78297146%23lnk%3Dsametab" data-link-merchant="target.com"" data-link-merchant="Amazon US"">Buy at Target

An extra 3 months for free

An extra 3 months for free


If you know you'll need Microsoft 365 Personal for a while, grabbing 15 months at a time is a solid bargain. Walmart charged $69.94 for 15 months of Microsoft 365 Personal, which effectively gets you three months for free when compared to the normal retail price of 12 months. Unlike Walmart's other deal, this one is for a digital code.

<a href="https://goto.walmart.com/c/1943169/565706/9383?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.walmart.com%2Fip%2FMicrosoft-365-Personal-15-month-Subscription-Email-Delivery-889842435153%2F354236902%3Ffrom%3D%2Fsearch" data-link-merchant="walmart.com"" target="_blank">See at Walmart

Microsoft 365 Family

Sharing is caring

Sharing is caring

Microsoft 365 Family has the benefit of a free trial month so you can see if it's right for you and your brood. Once the 30 days are up, it will cost $99.99 a year, or $9.99 a month. With Microsoft 365 Family you can share amongst up to 6 people, so for multiple users this really is the better value subscription. 

<a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=kXQk6%2AivFEQ&mid=46107&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fmicrosoft-365%2Fp%2Fmicrosoft-365-family%2Fcfq7ttc0k5dm%3Factivetab%3Dpivot%3Aoverviewtab" data-link-merchant="microsoft.com"" target="_blank">See at Microsoft Store

Another option

Another option

Target doesn't have a discount on the Right now on Microsoft 365 Family, but you can save 5% if you have a RedCard. That card gets you 5% at Target and Target.com across the board, so it's not an exclusive deal to this subscription.

<a href="https://goto.target.com/c/221109/81938/2092?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.target.com%2Fp%2Fmicrosoft-365-family-digital%2F-%2FA-78297147%23lnk%3Dsametab" data-link-merchant="target.com"">Buy from Target

Microsoft 365 Home & Student

Not another subscription

Not another subscription

If the idea of another subscription fills you with dread, you still have options. Microsoft Office Home and Student will get you all of the basic Office apps in one payment of $149.99. You won't get the full benefits of a Microsoft 365 subscription such as use over multiple devices, cloud storage and regular updates. For some, the trade-off is worth it for a simple one-off payment. 

<a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=kXQk6%2AivFEQ&mid=46107&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fmicrosoft-365%2Fp%2Foffice-home-student-2021%2Fcfq7ttc0h8n8%3Factivetab%3Dpivot%3Aoverviewtab" data-link-merchant="click.linksynergy.com"" target="_blank">See at Microsoft Store

Microsoft 365 Business

Business time

Business time

The Microsoft 365 Business Basic subscription is designed for small businesses. With it, you get access to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook on the web. It also gets you a custom business email, business apps like Bookings, Planner, and Forms, and phone and web support at any time. The entry-level Microsoft 365 Business Basic plan costs $6 per month per user.

<a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=kXQk6%2AivFEQ&mid=46107&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fmicrosoft-365%2Fbusiness" data-link-merchant="microsoft.com"" target="_blank">See at Microsoft Store

When you really mean business

When you really mean business

As the name suggests, Microsoft 365 Business Standard is the standard subscription for many business users. It comes with everything you get in the Microsoft 365 Business Basic plan but also gets you access to the desktop versions of Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook. The Business Standard subscription also comes with Loop, additional Clipchamp features, and the option to get Copilot for Microsoft 365 as a paid add-on.

<a href="https://click.linksynergy.com/deeplink?id=kXQk6%2AivFEQ&mid=46107&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&murl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.microsoft.com%2Fen-us%2Fmicrosoft-365%2Fbusiness" data-link-merchant="microsoft.com"" target="_blank">See at Microsoft Store

Office 365 Education

Students and teachers with an eligible email address can get access to the Office apps for free. Office 365 Education comes with Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, and other classroom tools. Microsoft's Office 365 Education website has instructions on how to register and get started. Office 365 Education effectively saves you $69.99 per year compared to Microsoft 365 Personal.

Speaking of Microsoft 365 Personal, college students with an eligible email address can get Microsoft 365 Personal for $2.99 per month.

Office Online is free

Don't forget that you can use all of Microsoft's Office apps online, completely free. They are web-based but you can create and edit documents, workbooks and design presentations using just your browser. Simply sign into the Microsoft Office website to get started. No installation is required; you can collaborate with others online and get 5GB of free cloud storage on OneDrive.

The free service does have its limitations, the most obvious being you cannot use the programs offline and will need a reliable internet connection. You also won't get all the features a subscription to Microsoft 365 provides on some apps, such as using macros or advanced formatting.

Choosing the best version for you

With Microsoft 365, it really comes down to what you want to use it for and who is likely to need access. If it's just for your own use but you want to use across multiple devices, a Microsoft 365 Personal subscription will be the best option. My whole family uses Word, Excel, and other Microsoft apps and services, so a Microsoft 365 Family subscription makes the most sense.

I used Microsoft's Office apps all throughout school and university, so I didn't have to pay for access to the apps for years. Many students and teachers are unaware of the fact that they can get Microsoft Office apps for free, so it's worth a friendly reminder to your fellow students and educators.

Microsoft 365 and its apps and services are standard among business and enterprise users. Since Microsoft has a variety of plans for business users, it's worth shopping around a bit, particularly if you're looking to purchase hundreds of licenses.

Sean Endicott
News Writer and apps editor

Sean Endicott brings nearly a decade of experience covering Microsoft and Windows news to Windows Central. He joined our team in 2017 as an app reviewer and now heads up our day-to-day news coverage. If you have a news tip or an app to review, hit him up at sean.endicott@futurenet.com.

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