Basic Administrative Tasks for Copilot and Agents · Topic 1 of 5
Built In Capabilities and Licensing Models
AB-900: compare Copilot Chat with Microsoft 365 Copilot, monthly licenses with pay as you go including SharePoint, and features admins can turn off.
- 5 min
- Copilot Chat is included and uses web data. Microsoft 365 Copilot is the paid add-on that uses work data.
- Monthly licenses are per user. Pay as you go is usage based and billed to an Azure subscription.
- SharePoint agents are one of the services that pay as you go can meter.
What it is
Copilot comes in more than one form, and the form a user gets depends on the license behind it. Copilot Chat is the free, secure chat experience that comes with eligible Microsoft 365 subscriptions. Microsoft 365 Copilot is the paid add-on that goes further: it works inside Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Teams and can use a person's own work data.
There are two ways to pay for Copilot capabilities. A monthly license is assigned to a named user. Pay as you go bills usage to an Azure subscription, so nothing is assigned to individuals. An administrator also decides which Copilot features are switched on.
How it works
Built in capabilities compared
Microsoft Learn labels the experiences Basic and Premium in places, and the Microsoft 365 Copilot app is now called Microsoft Copilot. The exam outline still says "Copilot Chat" and "Microsoft 365 Copilot".
| Copilot Chat | Microsoft 365 Copilot (licensed add-on) | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost model | Included with eligible Microsoft 365 licenses | Per user license, added to an eligible plan |
| Grounding | Web data. Work content only if the user supplies it | Web data plus work data through Microsoft Graph, automatically |
| In Word, Excel, PowerPoint | Limited standard access | Full experience with priority access |
| Agents | Agents that use web data are included | Agents that use web and work data |
| Admin tools | Basic controls and reporting | Added advanced management controls and analytics |
Both are covered by enterprise data protection for Microsoft Entra work accounts.
With Copilot Chat, a user can still bring work content into a prompt. They paste text, upload a file, open Copilot Chat from Teams or Outlook with content already open, or use a pay as you go agent that can reach organizational content.
Agents in this comparison
Agents that rely on instructions and public websites come with Copilot Chat. An agent that reads work data, such as SharePoint files, needs the Microsoft 365 Copilot license or pay as you go.
Monthly license compared with pay as you go
| Monthly license | Pay as you go | |
|---|---|---|
| Who is billed for | Each named user | Usage, through a billing policy |
| Setup | Assign the license to users or groups | Create a billing policy, link an Azure subscription, connect it to a service |
| Best when | Someone uses Copilot heavily every day | Usage is occasional or you are still learning demand |
| Covers | The full Copilot experience in apps | Metered services such as Copilot Chat agents and SharePoint agents |
Pay as you go lets an organization try features without prepaying per user. The services Microsoft lists for it include Copilot Chat agents, SharePoint agents and the Microsoft Copilot Retrieval API (preview).
A SharePoint agent is an agent built on the content of a SharePoint site. With pay as you go, people without a Copilot license can still ask a SharePoint agent questions, and the usage is metered. Pay as you go is off by default, and a Global Administrator or subscription owner can turn it on.
Features an admin can switch on or off
Go to Microsoft 365 admin center > Copilot > Settings. The tabs are User access, Data access, Copilot actions and Other settings. The AI Administrator role can change them. Global Reader can only view.
| Feature | Where | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Agents | Data access | Who can access agents and which types they can install |
| Web search | Policy in the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center | The "Allow web search in Copilot" policy |
| Copilot image generation | Copilot actions | When off, Copilot does not generate images |
| Screen and camera sharing | Copilot actions | On by default |
| Pin Copilot Chat | User access | Controls where Copilot Chat is pinned |
| Copilot Frontier | User access | Early access to preview features. No users by default |
| Self service purchases | User access | Allow, allow trials only, or do not allow |
A worked example
A 400 person company licenses 60 sales staff for Microsoft 365 Copilot. The other staff have Copilot Chat only. HR builds a SharePoint agent for the policy library and wants everyone to use it. The admin creates a pay as you go billing policy for the HR cost center and connects it to SharePoint agents. Only the 60 sales staff get the in app Copilot experience. Everyone can use the HR agent, and its usage is billed to HR. Because the company has no use for generated images, the admin also turns Copilot image generation off.
How the exam asks about this
- "Which Copilot option grounds responses in work data automatically?" Microsoft 365 Copilot, through Microsoft Graph.
- "Users without licenses must be able to use a SharePoint agent, billed by use." Pay as you go.
- "Where do you configure image generation and agent access?" Microsoft 365 admin center > Copilot > Settings.
What to remember for the exam
- Copilot Chat is included and uses web data. Microsoft 365 Copilot is the paid add-on that uses work data.
- Monthly licenses are per user. Pay as you go is usage based and billed to an Azure subscription.
- SharePoint agents are one of the services that pay as you go can meter.
- Copilot settings live under Copilot > Settings in the Microsoft 365 admin center.
- The AI Administrator role manages Copilot settings with less power than Global Administrator.
Copilot Chat is not "Copilot with no data". It is protected by enterprise data protection. It simply does not reach into a user's work data on its own.
Common mistakes
Assuming pay as you go needs a license per user. It does not. The billing policy covers users, and usage is charged to the Azure subscription.
Thinking Copilot Chat can never see work data. It can, when the user supplies the file or content, but it does not search Microsoft Graph by itself.
Looking for every setting in one place. Some Copilot settings are shortcuts to other portals, such as the Microsoft 365 Apps admin center, the Teams admin center or the Power Platform admin center.
Check yourself
What is the main difference between Copilot Chat and Microsoft 365 Copilot?
Copilot Chat is included and uses web data, while the Microsoft 365 Copilot add-on also uses work data from Microsoft Graph automatically.
How do you pay for SharePoint agents without assigning licenses?
Use Copilot pay as you go, with a billing policy linked to an Azure subscription and connected to the service.
Where do admins turn Copilot features on or off?
In the Microsoft 365 admin center under Copilot > Settings, with the AI Administrator role.
Topic 1 of 5 in Basic Administrative Tasks for Copilot and Agents
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