Microsoft 365 E3 vs Office 365 E3

Office 365 E3 and Microsoft 365 E3 share the same productivity apps—Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Teams, Exchange Online, SharePoint—but that is where the similarity ends. Office 365 E3 at $23/user/month is a productivity-only suite. Microsoft 365 E3 at $36/user/month is a full platform that adds Windows 11 Enterprise, Enterprise Mobility + Security, and device management capabilities.

The $13/month price gap buys 82 additional features spanning device management (41 features), identity and access (25 features), security (12 features), and compliance (4 features). These are the tools that let IT manage endpoints with Intune, enforce Conditional Access policies, deploy Windows Autopilot, and protect data with Azure Information Protection P1.

If your organization already manages Windows licensing and EMS separately, Microsoft 365 E3 almost certainly saves money by bundling everything. If you only need cloud productivity apps and your users work exclusively in browsers or on unmanaged devices, Office 365 E3 keeps costs low.

Office 365 E3 is the right fit for organizations that only need cloud-based productivity and collaboration. If your users work primarily in web browsers or on personally owned devices, you do not manage a Windows endpoint fleet, and you handle identity and security through a separate stack (or do not need those controls yet), O365 E3 at $23/user/month delivers the full Office apps suite, 50 GB Exchange mailboxes, unlimited OneDrive storage, and Teams without paying for capabilities you will not use.

Microsoft 365 E3 is built for organizations that need to manage devices, enforce security policies, and control identity from a single platform. If you deploy Windows PCs, need Intune for device management, require Conditional Access or Azure AD P1, or want Azure Information Protection, M365 E3 bundles all of this at $36/user/month. Buying Office 365 E3 ($23) plus Windows Enterprise E3 ($7) plus EMS E3 ($10.60) separately would cost $40.60/user/month—making M365 E3 the cheaper path.

If you manage Windows devices or need identity and security controls, Microsoft 365 E3 at $36/user/month is the clear choice—it bundles everything for less than buying the components separately. If you only need cloud productivity apps without device management or advanced security, Office 365 E3 at $23/user/month saves $13/user/month by skipping capabilities you do not need.

What is the difference between Microsoft 365 E3 and Office 365 E3?

Office 365 E3 is a productivity-only suite that includes the Office apps, Exchange Online, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams. Microsoft 365 E3 includes everything in Office 365 E3 plus Windows 11 Enterprise, Enterprise Mobility + Security E3 (Intune, Azure AD P1, Azure Information Protection P1), and advanced compliance tools. M365 E3 adds 82 features that O365 E3 does not have.

Is Microsoft 365 E3 worth $13 more than Office 365 E3?

Yes, if you need device management or identity controls. Microsoft 365 E3 at $36/user/month bundles Windows 11 Enterprise ($7 standalone), Intune ($10.60 in EMS E3), and Azure AD P1. Buying these separately with Office 365 E3 costs over $40/user/month. You save money and get a single management console. If you do not manage Windows devices, the extra $13 may not be justified.

Does Office 365 E3 include Windows licenses?

No. Office 365 E3 does not include Windows 11 Enterprise or any Windows upgrade rights. You would need to license Windows separately through volume licensing or a Windows 365/Microsoft 365 subscription. Microsoft 365 E3 includes Windows 11 Enterprise E3 with upgrade rights, Windows Autopilot, and Windows Update for Business.

Does Office 365 E3 include Intune or device management?

No. Office 365 E3 does not include Microsoft Intune or any endpoint management capabilities. To manage devices with O365 E3, you would need to purchase Intune separately or add Enterprise Mobility + Security E3. Microsoft 365 E3 includes Intune and the full EMS E3 suite for mobile device management, mobile application management, and PC management.

Can I upgrade from Office 365 E3 to Microsoft 365 E3?

Yes. You can upgrade users from Office 365 E3 to Microsoft 365 E3 through the Microsoft 365 admin center. The transition is seamless with no disruption to existing services. All Office 365 E3 features carry over, and users gain immediate access to Windows 11 Enterprise, Intune, Azure AD P1, and the other 82 additional features.

What security features does Microsoft 365 E3 add over Office 365 E3?

Microsoft 365 E3 adds Azure Active Directory P1 (Conditional Access, MFA, self-service password reset), Azure Information Protection P1 (data classification and labeling), Microsoft Defender for Endpoint P1 (basic endpoint protection), and Intune-based device compliance policies. Office 365 E3 includes Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 and basic Exchange security, but lacks the endpoint and identity security layer.