Access to this page requires authorization. You can try signing in or changing directories . Access to this page requires authorization. You can try changing directories . Check out all of our small business content on Small business help & learning and our Microsoft 365 small business help on YouTube. Microsoft 365 for business is a subscription service that you use to run your organization in the cloud while Microsoft takes care of the IT for you. Microsoft manages your devices, protects you against real-world threats, and provides your organization with the latest in business software. This article shows you how to sign up for a free 30-day trial or buy a Microsoft 365 for business subscription, including Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Business Standard, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, Microsoft Defender for Business, or Microsoft 365 Apps for business. Microsoft reserves the right to suspend access to its products and services if payment isn't received after your one-month free trial ends. Storage for trials is limited. Need help with choosing a plan? Choosing a plan depends on your specific business needs. The Microsoft 365 plan chooser helps you select a plan. The tool makes recommendations based on your answers to questions about things like the size of your business, your field of work, the devices that you use, and what kind of features, IT support, and security that you're looking for. Before you begin You don't need an existing Microsoft account to sign up for a free trial. For all other procedures in this article, you need the following items: You must have a Microsoft account, and you must be at least a Billing Administrator for your organization. For more information, see About admin roles . Find out what type of billing account you have . If you have a Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) billing account type, you must also be a Billing account owner or contributor to do the tasks described in this article. For more information, see Understand billing accounts and Manage your Microsoft business billing profiles . If you have a Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) billing account type with Microsoft, you automatically receive a product called Microsoft Entra ID Free. This product improves your tenant management and security by tracking new tenants created with the same billing account. There's no charge for this product, and there's no other action you need to take. To learn more about this product, see Microsoft Entra ID Free . Find out what type of billing account you have . Payment options for Microsoft 365 operated by 21Vianet in China International credit cards aren't accepted. You can pay for your subscription by using: Online payment by using Alipay or China UnionPay Proof of payment is provided in the form of Fapiaos. You can submit your Fapiao request to our Fapiao system about three days after you pay. Storage limitations for Microsoft 365 trial customers If you have a Microsoft 365 trial, your subscription is limited to 300 GB of pooled storage. Pooled storage provides a single pool of storage for each tenant, and spans OneDrive, SharePoint Online, and Exchange Online. The storage pool represents the maximum amount of collective storage for these three services and is shared across and consumed by all users within the tenant. All SharePoint sites and OneDrives contribute towards pooled storage. In Exchange Online, pooled storage contributions include user mailboxes, shared mailboxes, and group mailboxes. All other mailbox types, including archive mailboxes, don't count towards pooled storage. Trial-only tenants are limited to 30 days and 300 GB. Try a free trial subscription To create an account and sign up for a free trial subscription of Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Microsoft 365 Business Standard, Microsoft 365 Business Premium, Microsoft Defender for Business, or Microsoft 365 Apps for business, use the following steps. Go to the Microsoft 365 Products site. Select the plan that you want, such as Microsoft 365 Business Standard , scroll down the page, and select Try free for 1 month . On the next page, follow the steps to set up your account. The sign-up process might take several minutes to complete. After it completes, you're ready to start the setup wizard for your subscription. For more information about setting up your subscription, see Next steps . When you start a free trial, we automatically create a billing account for you. You use your billing account to manage your account settings, invoices, payment methods, and purchases. For more information about billing accounts, see Understand billing accounts . At the end of your trial period, your subscription renews to an annual term subscription by default, unless you turn off recurring billing from inside of Billing > Your products . Buy a subscription from your free trial At the end of the free trial period, most trial subscriptions automatically convert to a paid subscription. The paid subscription defaults to the plan that you currently have. You can buy a different plan by following the steps in Buy a different subscription . If you want to buy your subscription before your trial is over, use the following steps. Find out what type of billing account you have . If you have an MCA billing account type: Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , then select your trial subscription. If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Billing > Your products page and select the trial subscription that you want to buy. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , then select your trial subscription. If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Billing > Your products page and select the trial subscription that you want to buy. On the subscription details page, select Start a paid subscription now . In the Start a paid subscription now pane, enter the number of licenses that you want, select a subscription length and billing frequency, and then select Change plan . If you have an MOSA billing account type: Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , then select your trial subscription. If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Billing > Your products page and select the trial subscription that you want to buy. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , then select your trial subscription. If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Billing > Your products page and select the trial subscription that you want to buy. On the subscription details page, in the License section, select Buy paid subscription now . In the Buy subscription pane, choose a monthly or annual commitment for your subscription, and then select Checkout . On the Checkout page, verify the information, including Items in this order , and then select Place order . Cancel your free trial subscription If you decide to cancel your trial subscription before the free trial period ends, go to the Microsoft 365 admin center and turn off recurring billing . The trial automatically expires when your month ends, and your credit card isn't charged. Try a different subscription If you already have a Microsoft 365 for business subscription, use the Microsoft 365 admin center to try a different subscription. When you add a subscription through the Microsoft 365 admin center , the new subscription is associated with the same organization (domain namespace) as your existing subscription. This association makes it easier to move users in your organization between subscriptions, or to assign them a license for the other products they need. Find out what type of billing account you have . If you have an MCA billing account type: Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. Find the plan that you want to try, and select Details .

In the Select a plan drop-down list, select the trial plan. Enter the number of licenses that you want to buy when the trial ends. Note All trial subscriptions include 25 free licenses for the duration of the trial period. All trial subscriptions include 25 free licenses for the duration of the trial period. Select Start free trial . In the Checkout pane, choose the billing profile that you want to use, or add a new one. The Product name section lists the cost, subscription term, number of licenses, and renewal date for the trial subscription. To match the renewal date with another subscription paid by the billing profile, select Select a different renewal date . If necessary, change the number of licenses that you want to buy when the trial ends. When you're ready, select Place order . If you have an MOSA billing account type: Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. Find the plan that you want to try, and select Details . On the next page, enter the number of licenses that you want to buy when the trial ends, and then select Start free trial . Note All trial subscriptions include 25 free licenses for the duration of the trial period. All trial subscriptions include 25 free licenses for the duration of the trial period. Choose to receive a text or a call, enter your phone number, and then choose Text me or Call me . Enter the verification code, and then select Start your free trial . On the Check out page, select Try now . On the order receipt page, select Continue . Buy a different subscription As your users change roles, they might need features that aren't available in their current Microsoft 365 for business subscription. When this situation arises, you can add a new subscription that includes those features and assign licenses to the people who need them. When you buy another subscription through the Microsoft 365 admin center, the new subscription is associated with the same organization (domain namespace) as your existing subscription. This association makes it easier to move users in your organization between subscriptions , or to assign them a license for another subscription they need. If you want to move all of your users to a different subscription, see Upgrade or change to a different Microsoft 365 for business plan . You must move or reassign users from your free trial subscription to the new subscription before your trial subscription expires. By doing this, you keep your data, accounts, and configuration. Otherwise, that information is deleted. If you have an MCA billing account type: Check out this video and others on our YouTube channel . If you found this video helpful, check out the complete training series for small businesses and those new to Microsoft 365 on YouTube. Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. Select the plan that you want to buy, and then select Details . On the product details page, in the Select a plan drop-down list, select the plan, and enter the number of licenses that you want to buy. Select a subscription length and billing frequency, and then select Buy . In the Checkout pane, choose the billing profile that you want to use, or add a new one. The Product name section lists the cost, subscription term, number of licenses, and renewal date for the subscription. To match the renewal date with another subscription paid by the billing profile, select Select a different renewal date . Select Place order . If you have an MOSA billing account type: Go to the admin center . If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. If you're using the Simplified view , select Billing , and then select Add more products . If you're using the Dashboard view , go to the Marketplace page. Select the plan that you want to buy, and then select Details . On the product details page, enter the number of licenses that you need, select a billing frequency, and then select Buy . On the Checkout page, verify the Sold to information. Select a payment method or add a new one. Verify the number of licenses that you need, and then select Place order . If you have a new account and are setting up your first subscription, use the guided setup articles to help you get started. Set up Microsoft 365 Business Basic Set up Microsoft 365 Business Standard Set up Microsoft Defender for Business Set up Microsoft 365 Apps for business If you already have a subscription and are adding a new subscription, you can move users to it. To learn how, see Move users to a different subscription . If you upgraded to Microsoft 365 Business Premium, use the steps in the Business Premium library to set up your new security capabilities. Visit the Microsoft 365 Business Premium library Related content Microsoft 365 for business training videos (video) Add users and assign licenses at the same time (article) Assign licenses to users (article) Upgrade to a different plan (article) Buy or edit an add-on for Microsoft 365 for business (article) Add storage space for your subscription (article) Was this page helpful? Need help with this topic? Want to try using Ask Learn to clarify or guide you through this topic? Additional resources Last updated on 2026-04-23