Microsoft 365 Plans – Feature & Compliance Comparison

Feature / Capability	Business Basic	Business Standard	Business Premium	Enterprise E3 (No Teams)	Enterprise E3 (With Teams)
Email Hosting (Exchange Online)	✅ 50 GB mailbox, no archive	✅ 50 GB mailbox, no archive	✅ 50 GB mailbox + 50 GB archive	✅ 100 GB mailbox + 100 GB archive	✅ 100 GB mailbox + 100 GB archive
Email Archival (EOA)	❌ Not included	❌ Not included	✅ 50 GB archive	✅ 100 GB archive, expandable	✅ 100 GB archive, expandable
Auto-expansion / "Unlimited" Archiving	❌ Not available	❌ Not available	❌ Not available (fixed 50 GB archive)	✅ Auto-expanding archive (up to ~1.5 TB)	✅ Auto-expanding archive (up to ~1.5 TB)
Desktop Office Apps	❌ Web & mobile only	✅ Full desktop apps	✅ Full desktop apps	✅ Full desktop apps	✅ Full desktop apps
Teams	✅ Included	✅ Included	✅ Included	❌ Not included	✅ Included
OneDrive Storage	1 TB per user	1 TB per user	1 TB per user	1 TB per user (expandable up to 5 TB)	1 TB per user (expandable up to 5 TB)
SharePoint	✅	✅	✅	✅	✅
Security Features	Basic security	Basic security	✅ Advanced security (Intune, AIP, Conditional Access)	✅ Advanced enterprise security + compliance (DLP, eDiscovery, Legal Hold)	✅ Advanced enterprise security + compliance (DLP, eDiscovery, Legal Hold)
Device Management	❌ Not included	❌ Not included	✅ Microsoft Intune	✅ Advanced Intune + Group Policy integration	✅ Advanced Intune + Group Policy integration
Compliance & Governance	❌ Limited	❌ Limited	✅ Basic compliance controls	✅ Advanced compliance (DLP, audit logs, data governance)	✅ Advanced compliance (DLP, audit logs, data governance)
Microsoft Defender for Business (Endpoint)	Add‑on	Add‑on	Included — Endpoint protection for Windows/macOS/iOS/Android	Not included (use Defender for Endpoint P2 add‑on)	Not included (use Defender for Endpoint P2 add‑on)
Microsoft Defender for M365 (Email & Collaboration)	Add‑on (P1/P2)	Add‑on (P1/P2)	Included (P1) — Safe Links/Attachments, anti‑phish	Add‑on (P1/P2)	Add‑on (P1/P2)
User Limit	Up to 300 users	Up to 300 users	Up to 300 users	Unlimited (enterprise‑grade)	Unlimited (enterprise‑grade)
Support & SLA	99.9% uptime, standard support	Same as Basic	Same as Basic	Enterprise‑grade support & SLAs	Enterprise‑grade support & SLAs
Pricing (INR / User / Month)	₹174	₹924	₹2,196	₹2,810	₹3,245

Compliance Readiness (Guidance)

Strong Comprehensive features available (with proper configuration). Moderate Achievable with built‑in features; may need add‑ons/process. Limited Core controls missing; add‑ons strongly recommended.

Regulation / Standard	Business Basic	Business Standard	Business Premium	Enterprise E3 (No Teams)	Enterprise E3 (With Teams)
ISO/IEC 27001	Limited Basic security only	Limited Requires add‑ons	Moderate Intune, labels, basic DLP	Strong Retention, DLP, audit, eDiscovery	Strong Retention, DLP, audit, eDiscovery
SOC 2 / SOC 3 (Trust Services)	Limited	Limited	Moderate	Strong	Strong
GDPR (EU)	Limited Minimal governance	Limited Needs DLP/eDiscovery add‑ons	Moderate Labels, basic DLP, device controls	Strong DLP, retention, eDiscovery, audit	Strong DLP, retention, eDiscovery, audit
DPDP Act (India)	Limited	Limited	Moderate Data classification & basic DLP	Strong Advanced governance + audit	Strong Advanced governance + audit
DORA (EU Financial Services)	Limited	Limited	Moderate With Defender add‑ons	Strong With Defender & Purview add‑ons	Strong With Defender & Purview add‑ons

Industrial Fit

BFSI (Banking, Financial, Insurance): Enterprise E3 + Purview + Defender add-ons

SMB / Manufacturing / Services: Business Premium + Defender for M365 P1

IT / Consulting Firms: Business Standard (minimum) + Managed Support; ideally Premium

Highly Regulated (Healthcare, Government, Telecom): Enterprise E3/E5 with Purview & Defender

Important: No Microsoft 365 plan by itself makes an organization “compliant.” The tables above indicate how each plan supports common control requirements (security, governance, audit, retention). Achieving compliance depends on correct configuration (e.g., DLP policies, retention, conditional access), processes, and evidence. For highly regulated workloads or advanced eDiscovery/insider risk/comms compliance, consider targeted add‑ons (Microsoft Purview, Defender for Endpoint P2, Defender for M365 P2) or moving to E5.

Important Backup Advisory

⚠️ M365 does not have native backup by default. Backup is critical for compliance because it acts as the life jacket for every organization.
👉 We provides dedicated backup solutions to ensure your business meets compliance and data protection needs.