What Is Microsoft Copilot? One Name, Several Products

Quick answer

Microsoft Copilot is the name Microsoft puts on AI assistants in its app, Windows, Edge, Microsoft 365 and developer tools. As of October 7, 2026, Microsoft's business page says Copilot Chat comes at no additional cost with an eligible Microsoft 365 subscription; other products differ. This page maps each one and what to check before you pay.

Key takeaways

• Copilot is a family name. Microsoft's pages as of October 7, 2026 describe a free app, Copilot on Windows, Copilot in Edge, Copilot Chat, a paid work license, Copilot Studio and GitHub Copilot.
• Microsoft's pages use "Microsoft Copilot" for the personal app and the paid work license, and say "Microsoft 365 Copilot" was renamed. Check the label inside the app.
• Microsoft says work Copilot Chat "is not grounded in organizational content like files, emails, or chats as part of the chat experience", with exceptions it names.
• This site's rule: find the label, then the account, then ask whether a paid plan is needed. Prices are on the companion page.

What is Microsoft Copilot?

Microsoft Copilot is the name Microsoft puts on several AI assistants, not one product: a free app, assistants in Windows and Edge, a work chat, a paid work license, an agent builder and a coding tool. As of October 7, 2026, each has its own page and terms. A business may already have Copilot Chat: Microsoft's business page says it is at no additional cost with an eligible Microsoft 365 subscription.

Where did you see the name, and what should you check?

Match where you saw the name to a product in the table below; if you pay for Microsoft 365, the business page says Copilot Chat "is available at no additional cost" with an eligible subscription (read October 7, 2026). The list is this site's.

1. A key on the keyboard or an icon on the taskbar. That is probably Copilot on Windows. Microsoft says you can launch it "by clicking the Copilot icon on your taskbar". Check whether you are signed in with a personal or a work account.
2. A Copilot button in Word, Excel, PowerPoint or OneNote at work. Read the label. Microsoft's Learn overview says "Microsoft 365 Copilot (Premium) or Microsoft 365 Copilot (Pro) indicates that a user has a Microsoft Copilot add-on license". "Microsoft 365 Copilot (Basic)" means no add-on license but "standard access".
3. A line on your Microsoft 365 invoice. Search it for "Copilot"; Microsoft says licenses "might continue to reference Microsoft 365 Copilot" during the transition. Ask your administrator who holds it.
4. An icon in the Edge toolbar. Microsoft's Edge page says "click icon in the top right of your window" for Copilot. Check which profile you are signed in with, personal or work.
5. The address copilot.microsoft.com or copilot.cloud.microsoft. The first is the Copilot app Microsoft says is free with a Microsoft account; the Learn overview lists the second as the work web app. Check which account the page signed you in with.
6. A suggestion inside a code editor. That is probably GitHub Copilot, on GitHub's own plans. Check who publishes the extension.
7. An "agent" someone is building. That probably points to Copilot Studio, where "An Azure subscription is required to use agents." Ask the builder which Azure subscription it runs on.

Which Copilot is which?

By this site's count of the rows below, seven products carry the name on the pages we opened. The second column is Microsoft's wording (GitHub's for the last row); where a page states nothing, the cell says so.

Edge note: its FAQ on the updated Copilot app says "a personal account, a work or school account, or both" and "When you hit a limit, you can choose to upgrade to a paid option or come back later."

Why do two products share the name "Microsoft Copilot"?

Because Microsoft's pages use "Microsoft Copilot" for a free personal app and, after a rename, for its work products too. A Microsoft Learn page (Copilot Chat privacy, shown as updated August 24, 2026, "Last updated on 08/24/2026"; read October 7, 2026) says: "Microsoft 365 Copilot is now named Microsoft Copilot, and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat is now named Microsoft Copilot Chat. Some experiences, licenses, and capabilities might continue to reference Microsoft 365 Copilot and Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat during the transition period."

The consumer page says "Microsoft Copilot is free with a signed-in Microsoft account"; the Learn overview lists a work web app as "Microsoft Copilot app (web app) at copilot.cloud.microsoft/". This site's reading: the same name now sits on a free personal app, a work app and a paid license, so "Microsoft Copilot" alone does not tell you which. Re-check this once the transition period Microsoft describes ends.

Can each Copilot see your work files and email?

Per Microsoft's Learn page, the paid license reasons across a wider set of organizational data; Copilot Chat starts from the web.

• Copilot Chat (work): "Unlike Microsoft Copilot, Copilot Chat is not grounded in organizational content like files, emails, or chats as part of the chat experience—it is grounded in data from the web only." (In plain words, per Microsoft's sentence: the chat works from the web, not from your files, unless you bring content in.) The page then lists ways to bring work content in: in the prompt (pasting, uploading or attaching a file), Copilot Chat in Outlook, which "can access user data including their emails, calendar, meetings, chats, and limited file content (OneDrive and SharePoint)", and "a pay-as-you-go agent that has access to organizational content."
• Paid license: "With a paid Microsoft Copilot license, Copilot can reason across a wider set of organizational data, including" emails, meetings, calendars, chats, documents, sites and files, per the Learn overview. It says Copilot "Only accesses content you're authorized to access."
• Free app and Edge: the Edge page says the updated app lets you "connect to email, calendar and cloud storage". Copilot on Windows: "At your direction, it can search your files"; neither page says which account's files.
• Personal Microsoft 365 plans: the individuals page lists "Use Copilot in select apps with work files in a secure way", if "Employer must have an enterprise subscription that includes Microsoft 365 desktop apps and have multi account access enabled".
• Copilot Studio: a section is headed "Connect agents to your data and systems"; the page does not say which data each plan reaches.
• GitHub Copilot: the pages we read do not mention Microsoft 365 files.

Does Microsoft train its models on what you type?

Microsoft's pages say it depends on the product and account, and for the personal app on the app version.

• Work chat: the Learn privacy page says of Copilot Chat: "Prompts and responses aren't used to train the underlying foundation models."
• Paid work add-on: the business page says "Prompts and responses continue to not be used to train the underlying large language models."
• Personal app, updated version: the activity-history page, which applies when you sign in with a Microsoft account, says an updated version "is available as of August 18, 2026" and: "Prompts, responses, and your file contents when using the Microsoft Copilot app aren't used to train foundation models."
• Personal app, older version: the privacy FAQ says "The information in this article applies only to the older version of the Microsoft Copilot app." It also says: "Except for certain categories of users or users who have opted out, Microsoft uses data from Bing, MSN, Copilot, and interactions with ads on Microsoft for AI training."
• Windows, Edge, Copilot Studio: the pages we read state no training rule for these.
• GitHub Copilot: "GitHub does not use either Copilot Business or Enterprise data to train its models." For individual plans: "GitHub may use Copilot interaction data" to train, and "Individual subscribers can opt out of having their data used for AI model training at any time".

What does Microsoft say about mistakes?

Microsoft's privacy FAQ, which applies to the older app version, says Copilot can be wrong; the other Microsoft pages we read carry no equivalent sentence. Its words: "Copilot aims to respond with reliable sources, but AI can make mistakes, and third-party content on the internet may not always be accurate or reliable." It asks users to "double check facts before making decisions or taking action based on Copilot’s responses." This site's suggestion: check figures before quoting them.

What should you do before paying?

Before paying, this site's suggestion is to check the Copilot label in the Microsoft 365 plan you already have. Ask your administrator who holds any license. For workflows, see AI automation for small business and AI meeting notes.

How was this page made?

From Microsoft's and GitHub's own pages, opened on October 7, 2026. They were read from outside the United States, and names, plans and app versions change, so check the label in your own account.

This page was drafted with Claude, an AI model made by Anthropic, a competitor of Microsoft's in AI assistants, and checked against each vendor's published material on October 7, 2026. It ranks no assistant.

FAQ

Is Microsoft Copilot the same as Microsoft 365 Copilot?

A Microsoft Learn page read on October 7, 2026 says "Microsoft 365 Copilot is now named Microsoft Copilot" and that some experiences may still use the old name during a transition. Check the label inside the app.

Can I switch Copilot off in Edge?

Microsoft's Edge page says: "Choose which features to use, and switch them on or off whenever you want." For a work account, ask your administrator. Windows: not stated on the page we read.

Do I need a Microsoft 365 Copilot license to use Copilot Chat at work?

Microsoft's Learn overview, read October 7, 2026, says "Using Copilot Chat doesn't require a Microsoft 365 Copilot license." The same page calls it "a secure AI chat experience available to eligible Microsoft 365 users." Ask your administrator whether your plan is eligible.