Copilot or ChatGPT: which is better for business?
Neither is better for every business. Microsoft 365 Copilot works inside your Microsoft email and files and only shows each person what they can already open, so if you use Microsoft 365, test it first. ChatGPT Business suits work that doesn't depend on your Microsoft files, or businesses that don't use Microsoft 365.
This guide compares the business versions, Microsoft 365 Copilot and ChatGPT Business, not the free consumer apps.
What's the difference between Copilot and ChatGPT?
Microsoft 365 Copilot is built into Microsoft 365. With a Copilot licence it can work from your organisation's emails, files and meetings, as long as the person asking can open them. ChatGPT is OpenAI's own app, and its Business and Enterprise plans are separate subscriptions that work from what people type in or upload.
Copilot and ChatGPT side by side
Checked on 05/10/2026 against the vendors' pages listed at the end. Prices change, so check before you buy.
| Microsoft 365 Copilot | ChatGPT Business | |
|---|---|---|
| Where it works | Inside Microsoft 365: Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams and the rest. | In OpenAI's own app and website. |
| What it works from | Your organisation's emails, files, chats and meetings, limited to what each person can already open. | What people type in or upload to it. |
| Is your data used to train models? | No. Microsoft says prompts, responses and data accessed through Microsoft Graph aren't used to train foundation models. | Not by default on ChatGPT Business and Enterprise, unless you opt in. |
| Where it's processed | In the nearest region, but it can use other regions when busy. Outside the EU, queries may be processed in the US, the EU or elsewhere. | Depends on the plan. OpenAI's pages don't say for every plan, so ask before you buy. |
| Price per person | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on from £13.80 a month paid yearly, or £19.32 monthly, excluding VAT, on top of an eligible Microsoft 365 plan. | $20 a month billed annually, or $25 monthly, with at least two seats. |
How much do Copilot and ChatGPT cost for a business?
On 05/10/2026, Microsoft listed its Microsoft 365 Copilot Business add-on from £13.80 per user a month paid yearly, or £19.32 paid monthly, excluding VAT, on top of an eligible Microsoft 365 plan. OpenAI listed ChatGPT Business at $20 per user a month billed annually, or $25 billed monthly, with at least two seats.
Microsoft's £13.80 is an offer for purchases up to 31/12/2026; the usual yearly price is £16.10. Microsoft also includes Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat with web results in eligible Microsoft 365 plans at no extra cost, but working from your own files needs the paid licence. OpenAI's prices are in US dollars and may vary by country.
Which is safer for confidential information?
Both business versions say they don't train their models on your business data by default, so the bigger risks sit with you: staff using personal accounts, documents shared too widely in Microsoft 365, and nobody checking the output. Settle those before you choose, whichever tool you pick.
The guide Is ChatGPT or Copilot safe for confidential information? goes through what each one keeps.
Can you use Copilot and ChatGPT together?
Yes, but each one needs its own business accounts, its own line in your AI policy and its own checks. Start with one job and one tool, usually the one you already pay for, and add the second only if the first leaves a gap you've written down.
How should you choose between Copilot and ChatGPT?
Pick one job that comes up every week, and test the tool you already have access to for four weeks on your own documents, with a person checking every output. Time the job before and after. Only look at the other tool if the first leaves a gap that matters.