Cost calculator
Microsoft 365 cost calculator
See the real cost of Microsoft 365, well beyond the per-seat license.
Your Microsoft 365 bill has two halves. The first is the license you pay for every seat, rising at each renewal. The second is the data underneath it: the storage, backup, and infrastructure that grow every year, whether or not your headcount does.
The calculator below sizes the first half in a few clicks. The rest of the page is about the second, and about an architecture built to keep it down, on infrastructure you own.
The calculator
Calculate your Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership
Estimate your Microsoft 365 costs over the term, based on your seats, plan, annual price rises, and add-on services.
Your scenario
An assumption for renewal increases, 5% is a conservative placeholder.
Microsoft's recent price hikes
2022, first commercial rise in over a decade, up to +20% (Microsoft).
2023, currency realignment, +11% in EUR (Microsoft).
2026, Business plans +12–17% (Microsoft).
Adjust license & add-on assumptions
Set from the plan. USD official list price, eff. 1 Jul 2026. Microsoft official pricing →
An editable estimate of separate spend on backup, archiving and email security. Some plans (Premium/E5) already bundle these.
USD is Microsoft's list currency; other currencies are illustrative conversions.
Microsoft list reference
Backup $0.15/GB; Defender for Office 365 P1 ~$2/seat; Exchange Online Archiving ~$3/seat, list prices, not on a public price page.
The cost of staying on Microsoft 365 Business Standard
You're paying for a platform, not a mailbox
50%of your plan is the layer beyond email & collaboration — a platform you keep paying for.
Renewal increases compound on every seat (5%/yr here), and Microsoft lock-in raises the cost of ever leaving.
Business Standard rose $12.50 → $14 per seat, July 2026
bundled beyond email, most rarely opened
full backup, security & archiving cost extra
What's in your Microsoft bundle — and what you actually need
Based on Business Standard, your selected plan. Change it above to update. See Microsoft's plan comparison ↗
✓Email & collaboration
◐Desktop Office apps — keep with Microsoft, or move to the browser
✕Also in your bundle — 14 apps, most rarely opened
Illustrative estimate of Microsoft 365 costs only, from the inputs you choose. It is not a quote, and it shows no Carbonio price — Carbonio is partner-priced by design.
The hidden half
Why Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership grows over time
You just sized half one — the license you pay per seat. Half two sits underneath it: the storage, backup, and infrastructure your email and files need, and it grows every year.
Beyond the license you already calculated, your Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership is driven by data. Here is what makes up that half, and why it keeps climbing:
What drives it
The data half is built from costs that scale with your data, not your headcount:
- Storage that grows every year
- Backup capacity and longer backup windows
- Archive and long-term retention
- The infrastructure to hold and protect it
- The administration and operations around it
Why it keeps growing
Each of those costs climbs over time, and the license does too:
- Around 60%* of stored data is rarely touched, yet it sits on premium storage you keep paying for.
- Mailboxes only grow, and none of it deletes itself.
- Each new seat adds storage, backup, and infrastructure, so cost outpaces headcount.
- And the license itself keeps rising — up 20%* on Business Basic since 2022.
How Carbonio helps
How Carbonio brings the second half down
This second half is where Carbonio changes the math. It lowers the total cost of that second half in three ways.
Storage efficiency
Compression, deduplication, and HSM shrink the storage, backup, and infrastructure the per-seat calculator never counted.
One suite, not a stack of add-ons
Anti-virus, anti-spam, single sign-on, and backup come with the platform — not as separate tiers or paid add-ons to license and manage.
Infrastructure you own
Run Carbonio on your own hardware or chosen cloud, so the efficiency gains stay with you instead of a provider.
How the storage lever works
Storage is the biggest lever, and the one with numbers behind it. Three built-in capabilities shrink what you have to store, back up, and run.
Compression = 35%* less storage
Carbonio automatically compresses emails, attachments, and stored files, so real-world deployments commonly cut storage consumption by roughly a third, and delay every storage expansion.
- Less storage purchased
- Longer hardware lifecycle
- Lower backup footprint
Deduplication = no duplicate copies
Organizations constantly store identical attachments and documents many times over. Carbonio keeps a single copy and references it wherever needed, and the saving grows as your datasets do.
- Less duplicated data
- Reduced storage consumption
- Improved infrastructure efficiency
HSM = around 60%* moved to lower-cost storage
Most stored data is rarely touched. Carbonio automatically moves that older, colder data to lower-cost tiers while keeping it available.
- Lower storage costs
- Better utilization of existing infrastructure
- Faster primary storage
Together, Compression + Deduplication + HSMgo after that second half, the storage and infrastructure the per-seat calculator never counted. It's the half that grows with your data, and the half Carbonio keeps down, on infrastructure you own.
Who keeps the savings
The difference isn't the technology. It's who benefits from it.
Storage optimization isn't unique — major hyperscalers also use compression, deduplication, and storage tiering internally. The difference is where the savings land.
With a hyperscaler
- The infrastructure belongs to the provider
- Storage optimization cuts their operating costs
- Efficiency improves their margins
- You pay for the service, and they keep the savings
With Carbonio
- The infrastructure belongs to you
- Storage optimization cuts your costs
- Efficiency improves your ROI
- You own the savings
So every efficiency gain Carbonio makes stays with you, not with a provider's margins.
Head to head
Where Carbonio stands apart
Both platforms cover the everyday fundamentals well — email, calendar, contacts, shared folders, and real-time co-editing. Where they differ is structural: where you can run the platform, what comes included versus gated behind a higher tier, and how much of it you own.
| Capability | Carbonio | Microsoft 365 |
|---|---|---|
| Deployment | ✓Run it on your own infrastructure — on-premises, private cloud, or hybrid | ◐Cloud SaaS by default; on-prem/hybrid via Microsoft 365 Local (Exchange/SharePoint Server on Azure Local) |
| Infrastructure | ✓Choose your own OS and hypervisor (Ubuntu/RHEL on VMware, Xen, KVM, Hyper-V) | ◐Vendor-hosted in the cloud; 365 Local runs on Azure Local certified hardware — no choice of OS or hypervisor |
| Authentication / SSO | ✓SAML / SSO federation included — no identity add-on tier | requires Entra ID P1+ |
| Antispam / Antivirus | ✓Embedded antivirus and antispam in the base product | licensed add-on |
| Storage management | ✓Object storage and S3-compatible backend you control | Azure-proprietary only |
| Backup / Recovery | ✓Native real-time backup and version-agnostic restore | ✕not native |
| Data residency | ✓You choose where your data lives | Cloud regions set by Microsoft; on-prem residency possible via 365 Local |
| Sovereignty | ✓European vendor jurisdiction | US-based vendor |
| Privacy / Compliance | ✓Deployment supports GDPR, LGPD, and CCPA controls | configurable tooling |
| Licensing / Cost | ✓One suite — collaboration included, not tier-gated | spread across tiers and add-ons |
Fair-scope note:Microsoft 365 also covers ground Carbonio does not — desktop Office apps, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, device management, and identity across the wider Microsoft ecosystem. Moving to Carbonio replaces the mail and collaboration layer, not that entire stack. Plan availability shifts over time, so treat the Microsoft 365 column as directional and confirm against current Microsoft documentation. Microsoft now also offers Microsoft 365 Local, a sovereign private-cloud option running Exchange and SharePoint Server on Azure Local certified hardware, in hybrid or fully disconnected mode. It narrows the deployment gap for regulated buyers, but still runs Microsoft's server stack on Microsoft-certified infrastructure rather than the OS, hypervisor, and hardware you choose.
Why Carbonio
Microsoft 365 is a platform you rent. Carbonio is one you ownⓘ.
With standard Microsoft 365 cloud plans, the platform, the infrastructure, and the roadmap belong to the vendor. With Carbonio, a self-hosted Microsoft 365 alternative, they belong to you. It's a different operating model, not just a different suite.
Carbonio isn't a self-service download. It reaches you through a certified partner who deploys it, migrates your data, and can run and support it for you. So most of what looks like effort is theirs, not yours.
What you gain
- You own the infrastructure and the data on it
- One suite instead of a stack of subscriptions and renewals
- Open standards and a clear exit, never locked in
- Pricing quoted for your seats and deployment, and predictableⓘ
What your partner handles
- Deployment and setup, on your infrastructure or theirs
- Migration from Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Exchange, or Zimbra
- Hosting, updates, and maintenance, if you want it fully managed
- One point of accountability, with vendor-backed escalationⓘ, in your language and time zone
So there's no real tradeoff. The partner carries the operational load; you keep the ownership, the single suite, and the predictable cost. The one genuine decision is where it runs — on your own hardware, a private cloud, or a partner's cloud, rather than a public SaaS default. That's a choice about control, not a cost.
Common questions
Frequently asked questions
Microsoft 365 pricing
How much does Microsoft 365 cost?
The cost of Microsoft 365 depends on the subscription plan, number of users, and optional services your organization requires. While monthly licensing is easy to calculate, the true cost of Microsoft 365 also includes storage, administration, backup, compliance, and infrastructure expenses. Using a Microsoft 365 cost calculator helps estimate these long-term costs more accurately.
How much does a Microsoft 365 package cost for a business?
Business pricing varies depending on whether you choose Business Basic, Business Standard, Business Premium, Microsoft 365 E3, E5, or other enterprise plans. Organizations should also consider annual storage growth and operational expenses when planning their collaboration budget. A Microsoft 365 pricing calculator can help estimate the overall investment.
How much does Microsoft 365 cost for 500 or 1,000 users?
There is no single answer because costs depend on licensing plans, storage requirements, compliance policies, and operational needs. A Microsoft 365 annual cost calculator helps estimate both licensing expenses and the additional infrastructure and management costs associated with larger deployments.
Total cost of ownership
What is a Microsoft 365 TCO calculator?
A Microsoft 365 TCO calculator estimates the Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership by looking beyond subscription fees. It factors in licensing, storage growth, backup infrastructure, administration, long-term data retention, and operational costs to provide a more complete picture of what your collaboration platform costs over time.
What is the difference between Microsoft 365 licensing cost and total cost of ownership?
Licensing is only one component of your investment. Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership (TCO) also includes data storage, backup, administration, migration, compliance, security, and long-term operational costs. As organizations grow, these additional costs often become more significant than licensing alone.
Why is Microsoft 365 more expensive over time?
Most organizations generate more emails, files, attachments, recordings, and documents every year. Growing data volumes increase storage requirements, backup capacity, and administrative overhead. In addition, subscription pricing and licensing models can evolve over time, increasing long-term operational costs.
What are the hidden costs of Microsoft 365?
The most common Microsoft 365 hidden costs include storage growth, backup and disaster recovery, administration and maintenance, compliance and data retention, security management, migration projects, and long-term operational overhead. These costs are often overlooked when evaluating only subscription pricing.
How can I reduce Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership?
Reducing Microsoft 365 total cost of ownership requires more than choosing a lower-priced license. Organizations can lower long-term costs by optimizing storage usage, reducing infrastructure overhead, improving data lifecycle management, and selecting platforms designed to maximize storage efficiency.
Alternatives and comparison
Is there a Microsoft 365 price comparison tool?
Yes. A Microsoft 365 price comparison typically compares licensing plans and subscription options. For organizations evaluating long-term investment, a Microsoft 365 TCO calculator provides a more meaningful comparison by including the operational costs that affect the overall budget.
What is the best Microsoft 365 alternative for organizations that want more control?
Organizations looking for a Microsoft 365 alternative often prioritize digital sovereignty, infrastructure ownership, deployment flexibility, and predictable long-term costs. A self-hosted Microsoft 365 alternative such as Carbonio allows organizations to control their infrastructure while benefiting directly from storage optimization technologies instead of outsourcing those efficiencies to a hyperscaler.
What is a self-hosted collaboration suite?
A self-hosted collaboration suite provides email, communication, and productivity tools that run on infrastructure you control, whether on-premises, in a private cloud, or through a trusted regional provider. This gives organizations greater control over data, security, compliance, and long-term operating costs.
What is a private cloud office suite?
A private cloud office suite delivers the collaboration experience of cloud productivity platforms while allowing organizations to retain ownership of their infrastructure and data. Organizations with sovereignty, compliance, or regulatory requirements increasingly adopt this model.
How can I compare Microsoft 365 with a self-hosted alternative?
The best comparison goes beyond subscription pricing. Evaluate total cost of ownership (TCO), infrastructure ownership, data sovereignty, storage efficiency, long-term operational costs, vendor lock-in, and deployment flexibility. These factors provide a more complete view than license pricing alone and help determine which platform delivers the greatest long-term value.
Why we think Carbonio is the right fit for sovereign collaboration
Email, files, meetings, and collaboration in one private suite, on infrastructure you own and in your own jurisdiction. A self-hosted Microsoft 365 alternative, delivered and supported by a partner in your region.
Full disclaimer, assumptions and sources
What this page is. Promotional material published by Zextras S.r.l., which develops Carbonio, for organizations evaluating email and collaboration platforms. It is not a quote, an offer, or financial, tax, legal, or procurement advice, and shouldn't be your only basis for a decision.
What the calculator does, and does not do. It estimates Microsoft 365 license and add-on costs over the term you select, from the inputs and assumptions you choose. It does not model storage growth, infrastructure, or administration; those are discussed elsewhere on this page but are not calculated here. It shows no Carbonio price, so it produces no price comparison and no net saving. Your actual Microsoft costs will vary, sometimes significantly, with your Microsoft agreement, region, currency, usage, discounts, taxes, and reseller.
Microsoft 365 prices. Microsoft's public US list prices in USD, per user per month on an annual commitment, before tax, retrieved 8 July 2026. The license figure is taken from the plan you select and can be overridden; the add-ons figure is an editable estimate of separate spend on backup, archiving, and email security, which some plans already include. Microsoft can change pricing at any time, so verify current prices in Microsoft's own pricing announcement, linked above, before deciding.
Currencies. Only the USD figures are Microsoft's list prices. USD is Microsoft's list currency. Figures in any other currency are conversions of those USD prices, calculated using the euro foreign exchange reference rates published by the European Central Bank (rate date 30 July 2026, retrieved 31 July 2026), and are provided for information purposes only. They are not Microsoft's prices in those currencies: Microsoft sets local-currency pricing independently rather than by conversion, and its local prices differ, sometimes materially. For pricing in your currency, consult Microsoft or your reseller.
Past price changes. The 2022, 2023, and 2026 figures describe changes Microsoft has announced and implemented, each linked to Microsoft's own announcement where it appears. They describe the past. The annual price rise in the calculator is an assumption you set and change yourself; it is not a Microsoft forecast, and we make none.
The bundle breakdown. The split between the email-and-collaboration layer and the rest of the bundle is an illustrative allocation we have made for presentation. It is not an official Microsoft classification, and it is not a measurement. The application list reflects Microsoft 365 Business Standard; inclusions vary by plan, version, and region.
Carbonio storage figures. The compression, deduplication, and storage-tiering figures, including around 35% compression and the roughly 60% of stored data that is rarely accessed, are indicative results observed by Zextras across Carbonio deployments. They are our own figures, not independently audited benchmarks, and we offer them as a general indication rather than as a prediction for any particular environment. The Carbonio Storage Management white paper explains how the underlying technologies work. Real-world results depend on your data, deployment, and configuration, and yours may be materially different.
Total cost of ownership. Any reduction in total cost of ownership depends on your environment, your data, and how you deploy and run the platform. Self-hosting moves some costs in-house and adds operational responsibilities. Nothing here guarantees a saving.
The capability comparison. It covers capabilities and deployment, not price. Carbonio and Microsoft 365 are not identical products: Microsoft 365 also covers ground Carbonio does not, including desktop Office apps, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, device management, and identity across the wider Microsoft ecosystem. Moving to Carbonio replaces the mail and collaboration layer, not that entire stack. The Microsoft column was last verified against Microsoft's own published documentation, as of 8 July, and is verified quarterly; Microsoft's plans and capabilities change between reviews. Confirm feature-equivalence for your needs. If you believe something here is out of date, tell us using the "Contact us" section of this website, and we will check it.
Data sovereignty and compliance. References to sovereignty, jurisdiction, and regulatory fit describe how Carbonio can be deployed. They support your own controls; they do not by themselves make any organization compliant, and they are not legal advice. Confirm your compliance position with qualified advisors and your regional partner.
Carbonio licensing, pricing, and support. Carbonio is licensed, not sold: an end user receives a right to use the software on the terms of the Carbonio end-user license agreement, and no rights in its source code. Carbonio is distributed exclusively through partners. Zextras publishes no prices and quotes no end users: your price, and the terms on which deployment, migration, hosting, updates, managed services, and support are provided, are set by your partner under its agreement with you. Software maintenance under the license does not of itself confer any right to technical or organizational support, consulting, or customization. Availability, editions, and terms vary by territory and by partner. Confirm Carbonio pricing with an authorized Zextras partner.
The figures marked with an asterisk (*). Storage figures, including compression, deduplication, and HSM are Zextras's own indicative measurements, described further in the Carbonio Storage Management white paper. The 20% increase on Microsoft 365 Business Basic is Microsoft's own: New pricing for Microsoft 365, 19 August 2021, describing the increase that took effect in March 2022. Feature comparison: zextras.com/compare and the Carbonio vs Microsoft 365 comparison guide.
Trademarks. Microsoft, Microsoft 365, Office 365, Exchange, Outlook, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Entra, and Azure are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. Google Workspace and Zimbra are trademarks of their respective owners. Other product and company names referenced, including Ubuntu, Red Hat, VMware, Xen, KVM, and Hyper-V, are trademarks of their respective owners. All are used here only to identify those products. Zextras Carbonio is an independent product of Zextras S.r.l. and is not affiliated with, authorized, endorsed, sponsored, or reviewed by Microsoft or any other named vendor.