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Microsoft product guide
Microsoft Teams
Teams is Microsoft’s chat, meetings and collaboration app. It brings conversations, video calls and shared files into one place for each team or project.
- Best for: teams that work across offices, homes and clients
- Where it runs: Windows, Mac, web and mobile
- Included in: Microsoft 365 plans that include Teams
- Optional add-ons: Teams Phone, Audio Conferencing, Teams Premium
What Teams does for your business
The features clients ask about most, with an example of each in daily use.
Chat and channels
Organize conversations by team or project so decisions stay with the work instead of in inboxes. In practice: A project channel holds all messages, files and decisions for one client job.
Meetings and webinars
Video meetings for up to 300 people on business plans, with screen sharing, recording and live captions. In practice: Run a client kickoff with 40 attendees without a separate meeting tool.
Files and co-editing
Files shared in Teams are stored in SharePoint or OneDrive and can be edited together in the meeting. In practice: Finance edits the same budget file on screen during a review call.
Calling with Teams Phone
Add a business phone number to Teams and take calls on a laptop or mobile. Requires Teams Phone licences. In practice: Reception transfers calls to staff at home without changing numbers.
Guest access
Invite clients and partners into specific teams without giving them access to everything else. In practice: An outside consultant joins one project channel for three months.
Copilot in Teams
Recap meetings, list action items and answer questions about what was said. Requires the Copilot add-on. In practice: Catch up on a missed 60-minute meeting in two minutes.
Which plans include Teams
Every plan below includes Teams. Teams Essentials is the lowest-cost way to get Teams on its own.
| Plan | Teams version | Listing |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Teams Essentials Teams only, no Office apps or email | Chat, meetings, calling | View listing |
| Microsoft 365 Business Basic | Web, desktop, mobile | View listing |
| Microsoft 365 Business Standard | Web, desktop, mobile | View listing |
| Microsoft 365 Business Premium Adds advanced security and device management | Web, desktop, mobile | View listing |
| Microsoft 365 E3 | Web, desktop, mobile | View listing |
| Microsoft 365 E5 Adds advanced security, compliance and analytics | Web, desktop, mobile | View listing |
Variants of these plans without Teams, and Non-Profit and Education versions, are also available. Ask us and we will point you to the right one.
Add Copilot to Teams
Microsoft 365 Copilot is a separate per-user licence that can be added to eligible Microsoft 365 plans.
For IT buyers
Licensing and deployment notes
- Teams-free variants: Some Microsoft 365 plans are sold without Teams in some regions. Make sure you choose the version that matches how you want to work.
- Meeting limits: Business plans allow meetings up to 300 participants and up to 30 hours long. Larger events need Enterprise plans or Teams Premium.
- Phone system: Calling needs Teams Phone licences, a calling plan or direct routing, and Audio Conferencing for dial-in numbers on meetings.
- Governance: Decide who can create teams, how guests are approved and how teams expire. Without rules, team sprawl grows quickly.
- Storage: Each team uses a SharePoint site, and private chats store files in OneDrive. Plan backup and retention accordingly.
- Copilot: Copilot in Teams needs a Microsoft 365 Copilot licence per user and meeting transcription turned on.
Not sure which plan fits your team?
Tell us how many people need Teams and what they use it for, and we will recommend a plan.
Disclaimer: Microsoft may change features, pricing, plans or packaging at any time. Details here are a guide, not an offer; confirm current details on the listing or with us before you buy.
