Copilot Credits and Usage-Based Billing: What does it mean for your business?

Microsoft is expanding Copilot beyond chat and into more advanced AI-powered tools and agents that can help complete tasks, search across business data, and support workflows. 

To support these newer features, Microsoft is introducing more usage-based billing through Copilot Credits from 30 June 2026. 

In simple terms, Copilot Credits are how Microsoft measures and charges for certain advanced Copilot and agent activities. A simple action may use fewer credits, while more complex tasks, requests, or agent workflows may use more. 

For most businesses, this is not something to panic about. Usage-based billing is turned off by default, which means your organisation will not automatically start incurring pay-as-you-go Copilot charges unless an administrator enables it. 

However, if your organisation is using, or planning to use, newer Copilot agent features, it is important to understand how usage-based billing works and make sure the right billing controls, limits and alerts are in place. Read our quick guide below. 

Microsoft has announced new and expanded Copilot agent experiences, including tools such as Copilot Cowork, Work IQ API, Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat pay-as-you-go services, SharePoint agents and other Copilot Studio agent scenarios. 

Some of these services are billed based on usage, rather than being covered only by a fixed monthly licence. 

The key date to be aware of is 30 June 2026. For organisations already using Copilot Cowork through Microsoft’s Frontier or preview programs, Microsoft has indicated usage-based billing should be set up by this date. 

Importantly, usage-based billing is turned off by default. Your organisation will not automatically start using pay-as-you-go Copilot services unless an administrator enables it. 

For most organisations, Copilot costs may now include two parts: 

1. Your existing Microsoft 365 or Copilot licences; and 
2. Optional usage-based charges for certain advanced Copilot or agent features, if enabled. 

This gives businesses more flexibility, but it also means usage needs to be managed carefully. 

Your organisation can choose whether to enable these features, who can access them, and what spending limits or alerts should apply. 

If usage-based billing is not enabled, users can generally continue using their existing Microsoft 365 services and any Copilot features already included with their current licences. However, they may not be able to access newer usage-based Copilot experiences, such as certain agents, Copilot Cowork, SharePoint agents or custom AI experiences that require Copilot Credits. 

This change is unlikely to affect organisations that: 

• Do not currently use Microsoft 365 Copilot, Copilot Studio, SharePoint agents, Copilot Cowork or custom Copilot agents. 
• Have not enabled usage-based billing; or 
• Are only using standard Microsoft 365 apps and services under their existing licences. 

If your organisation does not have Copilot licenses and has not enabled any pay-as-you-go Copilot services, there is generally nothing immediate you need to do. 

That said, it is still worth being aware of the change, especially if your team is exploring AI, agents, automation, or Copilot rollout planning. 

We recommend appointing a dedicated billing administrator within your organisation to review the relevant settings before enabling any usage-based Copilot services. We can support your team in setting up the usage-based controls and services. 

At a high level, your administrator should: 

1. Decide whether the organisation wants to enable usage-based Copilot services 
2. Review Copilot billing and usage settings in the Microsoft 365 Admin Centre 
3. Create or review the relevant billing policy 
4. Set monthly usage limits, budgets, and alerts 
5. Choose which users or groups should have access; and 
6. Monitor usage regularly once enabled. 

The dedicated billing administrator should make sure spending controls are in place before enabling access. This is particularly important if Copilot agents are used broadly across the organisation. 

If you are unsure whether this affects you, we can help review your current Microsoft 365 and Copilot licencing, confirm whether usage-based billing is enabled, and recommend sensible controls for your environment. 

We can also help configure policies, usage limits and alerts so your team can explore Copilot safely, without unexpected billing surprises. If you need support, you can log a ticket with our Service Desk or call us on 1300 850 172.