Business Standard and Business Premium look deceptively similar on paper — both include the full desktop versions of Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams. The real difference, and the one worth understanding before you choose, is security.
What Business Standard Includes
Business Standard gives you the desktop and web versions of the core Office apps, email hosting, Teams, and 1TB of cloud storage per user via OneDrive. For a lot of small businesses, that covers everyday work perfectly well. What it doesn't include is any of Microsoft's advanced security tooling — you get baseline protection, not the additional layers Premium adds.
What Business Premium Adds
Business Premium includes everything in Standard, plus a set of security features aimed specifically at protecting devices, identities and data:
- Advanced threat protection for email and attachments
- Conditional access — blocking or challenging sign-ins based on location, device or risk
- Mobile device management, so lost or stolen devices can be remotely wiped
- Information protection tools for sensitive data
Who Actually Needs Premium
If your business handles sensitive client data, works in a regulated sector, has staff using their own personal devices for work, or has been the target of phishing attempts before, the extra cost of Premium is usually well justified — it closes gaps that Standard genuinely leaves open. For a very small team with straightforward needs and good separate security practices already in place, Standard plus additional third-party security tools can sometimes be the more cost-effective route. The right answer depends on your specific risk profile, not a blanket rule.
A Common Mistake
The mistake worth avoiding isn't choosing the "wrong" licence — it's assuming Microsoft 365 is fully secure by default regardless of which licence you're on. Even Business Premium's security features need to be properly configured (MFA enforced, conditional access policies actually set up) to provide real protection. The licence gives you the tools; someone still has to switch them on properly.
What This Looks Like at REONEX
REONEX can talk through Business Basic, Standard and Premium and recommend the right mix for your team based on your actual security needs, not a default upsell. See Microsoft 365 for Leeds businesses or Microsoft 365 & Cloud for more, and explore Cyber Security for how REONEX configures the protection that comes with your licence.