Microsoft 365 comes with a variety of plan options. These are broken down into the Business and Enterprise (‘E’) options. Each has several levels, with each tier bringing more in-depth, efficient features. There are also add-ons available, just to make things even more difficult.
We tend to recommend M365 Business Premium to most SMEs, churches and charities because it’s the most appropriate for them and contains the vast majority of features they would need. For larger organisations that require improved security and compliance, we recommend looking to move from M365 E3 to M365 E5 when they have made use (implemented) all the features they are entitled to under their E3 licensing.
So, why move to M365 E5? Here are a few of our thoughts.
What is the Microsoft 365 E5 plan, and why choose it?
The E5 Microsoft 365 plan builds on the features available under Microsoft 365 E3 or Business Premium by enhancing the productivity, security, analytics and compliance services available with improved automation.
The main benefits which give it the edge fall across four broad areas, namely:
- Improved analytics and Power BI Pro – The E5 plan comes with Power BI Pro, a cloud-based business intelligence and analytics service provided by Microsoft. It aims to provide interactive visualisations and business intelligence capabilities with an easy-to-use interface. Power BI Pro is the paid version of the software that provides additional features and functionality not available in the free version. These include support for larger data sets, more advanced data modelling, and custom visuals. Power BI Pro also allows users to share their work with others within their organisation.
- Improved communication capability – E5 adapts to bandwidth variations, from ASDL or high-speed fibre broadband to mobile networks, to ensure each user enjoys an optimal video, audio and content sharing experience. It also includes cloud-based audio conferencing and call capabilities which allow meetings of up to 250 attendees via a single phone unit. You can also integrate existing telephony systems with Microsoft Teams for call control and PBX capabilities in the cloud, or connect to PSTN for external calls.
- Improved Security – E5 comes with a host of unique features to help you organisation boost its cybersecurity posture, including Azure Information Protection Plan and Microsoft Defender for Office 365, endpoint, identity and cloud apps. It enables users to configure their security to match their specific requirements, monitor and manage threats through dashboards and analytics and focus security resources more effectively, based on intelligence and facts. It also helps minimise your attack surface and identify attacks earlier so you can proactively deal with them.
- Improved Compliance – The advanced compliance package is another of the most critical aspects of the E5 plan. Compliance is essential as GDPR continues to evolve (and it’ll undoubtedly get even stricter in the coming years). The M365 E5 plan enables you to safeguard sensitive data across the cloud, apps and endpoints, identify and remediate critical risks within your organisation, and investigate and respond to legal requirements with relevant data. You can also evaluate compliance and respond to and regulatory requirements and safeguard sensitive data. You can mitigate sensitive information risk through a consistent set of policies applied across cloud and on-premise environments and endpoints.
How does M365 E5 compare to E3 and Business Premium?
The Microsoft 365 E3 plan combines best-in-class productivity apps with core security and compliance capabilities. It includes desktop versions all of the Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise like
Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote, OneDrive storage, and Microsoft Teams.
- Windows 10 and Windows 11 Enterprise
- Microsoft Bookings
- Power Apps for Microsoft 365
- Exchange Online
- Microsoft Stream
- Yammer
- Sway
- Microsoft Planner
- Microsoft Lists
- Microsoft To Do
- Microsoft Viva Insights
- Microsoft Viva Connections
The E3 costs £31.70 per user per month, but, of course, it’s less efficient and secure than the E5, which includes advanced security, compliance, voice, and analytical capabilities as standard, through additional tools such as:
- Power BI Pro
- Azure Active Directory Premium 1 & 2
- Microsoft Defender for Endpoint
- Microsoft Defender for Office 365
- Microsoft Defender for Identity
- Azure Information Protection Plan 2
- Microsoft Defender for Cloud Apps
- Insider Risk Management
- Phone system (PBX capabilities in the cloud with Microsoft Teams)
- Audio Conferencing
You can also purchase add-on services, including SharePoint Syntex, Microsoft Viva Topics, Microsoft Viva Insights and Windows 365.
If you’re looking for something a little more cost-effective, Microsoft 365 Business Premium comes in at £16.60 per user per month. This is a much cheaper option than either the E5 or E3 plans. It’s available for up to 300 users, making it useful for some SMEs, charities and churches. The main differences between the Business and Enterprise plans are the advanced analytics from Power BI and the compliance features. Not everyone needs these, but they offer a unique insight into your system. You can use them to ensure your organisation is always running at peak efficiency. Check out a very insightful comparison of these plans here.
What do we recommend for SMEs, churches or charities?
Every organisation is different, and we’ll treat you as such. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all, and there are lots of factors to consider.
With that said, we wouldn’t recommend going for M365 E5 unless your organisation is already using all it has available in E3/BP, or unless you need the specific enhancements available in E5 – in particular, Cloud PBX, Power BI Pro, and automation in the security and compliance space.
E3 is a decent option, but the extra layers of security and compliance are worth much more than the extra £15 or so per user per month.
For some organisations, Business plans are more appropriate. That’s especially true for those on a tighter budget. However, as your system becomes more efficient and you save money, we recommend switching to the E5 plan. If possible, you should see faster growth by starting on the E5 in the first place.
Can AMDH Services help you?
AMDH Services is an ICT consultancy based in the Midlands. Our Microsoft expertise means we’re perfectly suited to work with all manner of developing systems.
We firmly believe that cloud networks are the way forward and that Microsoft 365 is the best you can get. If you’d like to find out more, why not book a security and/or compliance workshop with us, so we can show you how to use M365 E3 / BP better and what parts of the E5 portfolio you’d benefit from?
If you could use a helping hand regarding ICT strategy, why not drop us a message? We’re always interested to hear from new people. If you’d like to proceed after we’ve had an obligation-free chat, one of our experienced staff members will pop across to visit you. They’ll take the time to integrate with your team, identifying what you need from Microsoft 365.
Our other services include ongoing security, cost modelling and infrastructure design.
Get in touch using the form at the bottom of this page. We look forward to your message and walking you through the various Microsoft options.
Prices were correct at the date of original publication.
