Distinguishing Microsoft 365 and Office 2024
At first glance, Microsoft 365 and Office 2024 may seem very similar, as they both give you access to Microsoft's popular and widely used applications.
Microsoft now offers AI-powered Copilot features as part of existing Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscriptions—no add-on required. But the capabilities aren't limitless—they work on a new system called "AI credits."
Learn about Microsoft AI Credit
AI credits are essentially a virtual currency across many Microsoft products and services that power AI-powered features. Every time you use an AI feature, whether it's generating suggested responses in Outlook or using Copilot to create a presentation in PowerPoint , that feature consumes a certain amount of AI credits.
AI credit allocation is linked to your Microsoft 365 subscription. Microsoft 365 Personal and Family subscribers will receive 60 AI credits per month, which can be used across a variety of apps, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Microsoft Forms, OneNote, Designer, Notepad, Photos, and Paint.
Yes, these credits are consumed outside of Microsoft 365 apps as well. It's odd because Microsoft Designer , for example, offers 15 credits per month to free subscribers (anyone with a Microsoft account) but if you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, your credit usage will be in the 60 credit range.
Using AI credits in Microsoft 365 apps
AI credits are built into Microsoft 365 apps and some first-party Windows apps. The system automatically deducts the required credits in the background every time you use an AI-powered feature in any productivity app. A credit is used every time you perform an AI-related action, such as generating text, creating a table, or editing an image.
What’s odd about this system is that the AI benefits are only available to the subscription owner and can’t be shared with other members of the Microsoft 365 Family. Since subscribers pay more for the Family plan than they do for the Personal plan, Microsoft should give more credits to Family subscribers and allow family members to share those credits as they wish, just like OneDrive storage.
Track and manage AI credit usage
You can track your credit usage on your Microsoft account page. Credits reset on the first day of each month, regardless of whether they've been used or not. And note that unused credits don't roll over to the next month.
To manage your AI credit consumption, you can optimize the types of tasks you use AI-enabled features for. For example, for a simpler, less demanding task, you can choose to do it yourself to save AI credits for more complex, time-consuming work.
Or you can use other AI tools and chatbots to complement the Copilot features in your Microsoft 365 apps. For example, move more content creation and research work to Gemini and ChatGPT instead of doing it in Word to avoid using AI credit — creating an entire slide deck in PowerPoint or visualizing data in Excel is a much better use of that credit.
Additionally, while Word offers a way to rewrite content using Copilot to change the tone or length, you can do that using the Copilot app on Windows—which doesn't take AI credit—and copy the results into the Word document you're working on.
Curiously, there’s currently no way to buy more credits or upgrade to a higher-end subscription. The only option is to subscribe to the long-standing $20/month Copilot Pro plan. Copilot Pro subscribers can use AI features in Microsoft 365 apps and other Windows experiences without worrying about a credit limit.
Tip : If you want to turn off Copilot in any Microsoft 365 app, you can clear the Enable Copilot check box in the app's settings.
Now that Copilot features are available to all Microsoft 365 subscribers, it’s a great way to try out these AI-powered features in your everyday productivity apps without an additional subscription. If you pay attention to your AI credits and manage them effectively, you can get the most out of AI in the Microsoft ecosystem.
At first glance, Microsoft 365 and Office 2024 may seem very similar, as they both give you access to Microsoft's popular and widely used applications.
Let’s take a look at the cheapest online cloud storage options available. We’ll look at prices both in absolute terms and per gigabyte (per month) so you can choose what’s best for you.
Microsoft Office has supported ActiveX for years as an option for document extensibility and automation, but it's also a serious security vulnerability.
Back in 2023, Microsoft launched a new feature for Microsoft Defender users called Privacy Protection.
The convenience that Microsoft 365, formerly Office 365, brings is undeniable, but it also comes with some major drawbacks.
Some people are reporting that the PDF reader that comes with Microsoft 365 for Android is now showing ads at the top of the page, even though they've paid monthly for the service.
Microsoft continues to push ahead with plans to replace the Remote Desktop application on different platforms with a new Windows App, this time for the Android operating system.
Office 2021 vs. Microsoft 365: Which software is right for you?, Office 2021 and Microsoft 365 can both meet office editing tasks. So Office 2021
In addition to regular exercise and not smoking, diet is one of the best ways to protect your heart. Here are the best diets for heart health.
The third trimester is often the most difficult time to sleep during pregnancy. Here are some ways to treat insomnia in the third trimester.
There are many ways to lose weight without changing anything in your diet. Here are some scientifically proven automatic weight loss or calorie-burning methods that anyone can use.
Apple has introduced iOS 26 – a major update with a brand new frosted glass design, smarter experiences, and improvements to familiar apps.
Yoga can provide many health benefits, including better sleep. Because yoga can be relaxing and restorative, its a great way to beat insomnia after a busy day.
The flower of the other shore is a unique flower, carrying many unique meanings. So what is the flower of the other shore, is the flower of the other shore real, what is the meaning and legend of the flower of the other shore?
Craving for snacks but afraid of gaining weight? Dont worry, lets explore together many types of weight loss snacks that are high in fiber, low in calories without making you try to starve yourself.
Prioritizing a consistent sleep schedule and evening routine can help improve the quality of your sleep. Heres what you need to know to stop tossing and turning at night.
Adding a printer to Windows 10 is simple, although the process for wired devices will be different than for wireless devices.
Diet is important to our health. Yet most of our meals are lacking in these six important nutrients.
You want to have a beautiful, shiny, healthy nail quickly. The simple tips for beautiful nails below will be useful for you.
Students need a specific type of laptop for their studies. It should not only be powerful enough to perform well in their chosen major, but also compact and light enough to carry around all day.
Birth defects are something no one wants. Although they cannot be completely prevented, you can take the following steps to reduce the risk of birth defects in your baby.
As you know, RAM is a very important hardware part in a computer, acting as memory to process data and is the factor that determines the speed of a laptop or PC. In the article below, WebTech360 will introduce you to some ways to check for RAM errors using software on Windows.
The automatic home coffee maker is a modern and professional product, bringing you and your family delicious cups of coffee with just a few quick steps.