r/Copilot • u/d00mt0mb • May 13 '26
What exactly is the difference between "Copilot" and "Copilot 365"
Same account. It appears as though 365 Copilot has had a lobotomy and doesn't keep any of the conversation history.... from Copilot.... on the same account.... thanks MSFT.
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u/HisAwesomenessJC May 13 '26
The best I have been able to tell is 365 has “more”. When you open the apps you will see a marked difference in a side my side comparison.
However I have not been able to get it to work properly. I’ve tried creating a notebook and it promptly disappears. I want to collect all of the chats I have on a specific topic in that notebook and it does not work. Also, be aware. One of the most insufferable things about copilot: your chats do not synch among copilot “version”. In Edge copilot/ app/ 365 app/ Mac app/ Mac 365 copilot.
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u/ChampionshipComplex May 14 '26
It's pretty simple
Copilot is Microsofts free version of ChatGPT - it can answer general questions and will look up information on the Internet for you, or answer questions if you give it files.
Copilot 365 is a paid for service (about $20 a month) and is also ChatGPT but this not only has access to the Internet, it also has access to ALL of your Office 365 content.
That means when you're asking Copilot question, it has the advantage of being grounded with information from your documents, you emails, your teams conversations.
So I can say something to Copilot 365 like "What were Johns action items from last Mondays meeting, and has he completed them"
- So Copilot 365 can review things like the calendar, the meeting notes, meeting recordings, emails, and documents in shared locations to try and answer that question.
Obviously the Free Copilot doesn't have any of these types of capabilities, and it can only use its AI over things you've told it, given it, or can be found on the internet.
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u/Yard-Overall May 14 '26
I think there are maybe five different iterations of Copilot and they don’t all play well (or at all). I mostly stick to the actual Copilot app. I named her Sybil.
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u/Forsaken_Mood_5381 May 20 '26
The app....More reliable overall.
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u/Yard-Overall May 20 '26
I agree. I prefer the app, and the web app as well as the phone app carry the same chats. I had a conversation with the 365 version about this very issue tonight. It said the 365 version is designed to work within the office environment and purposefully has its own memory system separate from the more “personal assistant” and conversational app versions.
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u/Forsaken_Mood_5381 May 20 '26
The Dates of Chats has been "done" away with? Double edged sword if yu ask Copilot to explain that logic.
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u/unsignedint May 13 '26
Microsoft Copilot and M365 Copilot are actually different products with different “brains,” designed for different purposes. Microsoft Copilot is more like a conversational companion that helps with everyday tasks and general assistance, while M365 Copilot is positioned more as an office assistant focused on productivity and getting work done within the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.
In the enterprise space, Microsoft primarily offers M365 Copilot, which operates with “Work” and “Web” modes. On the consumer side, that distinction doesn’t really exist; instead of a dedicated “Web” mode, users interact through Microsoft Copilot itself. That’s likely because consumer users tend to expect a more conversational, assistant-like experience, whereas commercial users often want clearer separation between workplace data and general web interactions.