Microsoft’s increasing the cost of 365 in March. Here’s how to freeze your price

Have you heard that Microsoft is increasing its subscription prices for Microsoft 365 in March?

It’s the first big price rise that for a decade. And it’s expected to be increased by around 20 to 40 per cent more.

In fact, it’s not just a price increase. Microsoft’s also changing the way it sells 365. It’s a complicated situation and there’s bound to be some short-term issues as we all get used to the changes.

Here is some basic details. You should talk to your IT support partner over the next few weeks to see exactly how it’s going to affect your business.

From March you’ll have a choice of sticking with the rolling month by month contract and swallowing the price increase. Or you can commit to a 12 month agreement.

The main benefit of an agreement is that it’ll lock your current pricing for a year. But the downside is you will lose flexibility.

During your contract you will be able to increase the number of licences you use… but you can’t decrease them.

This means that if your headcount goes down for any reason you will still have to pay for the 365 licences that you no longer need.

You are also not able to move your Microsoft licensing to another IT support company during the contract term.

The alternative option is to have a monthly rolling contract. You are then able to add or remove licences as needed, but the total price will be higher. For some businesses, that flexibility will be worth paying slightly extra for.

It’s worth thinking through your plans for the next 15 months before making a decision.