Microsoft Adds AI-Powered Office Features to Microsoft 365 Plans in Selected Markets
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It seems Microsoft has decided to give more to its customers by including AI features in its existing Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscriptions. Instead of requiring an additional fee for Copilot Pro, Microsoft has chosen to make these advanced tools part of the regular subscription—at least for now, in specific regions.
Microsoft quietly announced the change last week, rolling out these features in Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan, and Thailand. It's been nine months since Microsoft introduced Copilot Pro, a tool that brings AI-powered assistance to familiar Office apps. “We’ve spent that time adding new features, improving performance, and listening carefully to customer feedback,” Microsoft shared. “Based on that feedback, we’re making Copilot part of our Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscriptions.”
In addition to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and OneNote, Microsoft 365 users in these regions will also get access to Microsoft Designer, a creative app for graphic design, along with monthly AI credits. These credits allow users to try out AI-enhanced capabilities in apps like Paint, Photos, and Notepad on Windows, adding a new layer of creative power for everyday tasks.
However, for Family plan subscribers, only the account holder gets access to Copilot’s features—it’s not something the whole family can share, at least for now.
With this bundle, Microsoft is also raising subscription prices in these select countries. Microsoft explained the increase by pointing out the added value that’s been incorporated into Microsoft 365 over the years. “To reflect the value we’ve added over the past decade and enable us to deliver new innovations for years to come, we’re increasing the prices of Microsoft 365 Personal and Family,” the company said. In Australia, for example, the Family plan has gone up by $4 AUD monthly, and the Personal plan by $5 AUD. These changes are notably less than the $33 AUD that Copilot Pro used to cost on its own.
For Microsoft, this shift appears to be a test run for these price adjustments, potentially hinting that similar changes could come to the U.S. and Europe in the future. The experiment with Copilot Pro's separate subscription fee didn't quite take off. Many users found the $20 monthly add-on too high for what it offered.
I’ve reached out to Microsoft for further clarification on whether these bundled features will be rolled out to U.S. and European subscribers and why they’ve limited the initial release to these specific regions. However, Microsoft hasn't yet provided a comment on this update.
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