Starting July 2026, Microsoft significantly expands the functionality of Microsoft 365 E3. With the addition of Defender for Office 365 Plan 1, Intune Suite features, and Copilot Chat, E3 customers get more value than ever. But with the current promotions and the announced price increase in July 2026, is Business Premium perhaps a better alternative? In this article, we explain why the E3 + EMS combination remains the gold standard for organizations that take security seriously. Also check our current Microsoft 365 pricelist for the latest rates.
What changes in July 2026?
Microsoft adds the following functionality to Microsoft 365 E3:
- Microsoft Defender for Office 365 Plan 1 – Advanced protection against phishing, malware, and malicious attachments
- Intune Suite features – Remote Help and Advanced Analytics for improved device management
- Copilot Chat – AI assistance in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook
These enhancements bring E3 closer to the E5 level.
Business Premium: an attractive alternative?
At first glance, Microsoft 365 Business Premium with Copilot Business seems like a cost-effective alternative. The license includes:
- Microsoft 365 desktop apps
- Exchange, SharePoint, and Teams
- Intune for device management
- Defender for Business
- Basic Conditional Access
Yet Business Premium falls short for organizations with serious security and compliance requirements.
Five reasons why E3 + EMS remains superior
1. Advanced Identity Protection
EMS E3 provides risk-based Conditional Access – access policies that automatically respond to suspicious behavior. When a user logs in from an unknown location or a compromised device, access can be automatically blocked or additional verification required.
Business Premium only offers basic Conditional Access without risk-based intelligence.
2. Identity Governance and Lifecycle Management
With EMS you get access to:
- Access Reviews – Periodic evaluation of who has access to what
- Entitlement Management – Structured management of access rights
- Privileged Identity Management (PIM) – Just-in-time admin access
These features are essential for compliance with NIS2, ISO 27001, and GDPR. Business Premium does not offer these capabilities.
Critical for audits: Organizations that need to demonstrate compliance – for certifications, audits, or regulators – require the extensive logging and reporting capabilities of Enterprise licenses. With E3 + EMS, you can prove at any moment who has access to what data, when access rights were reviewed, and which security measures are active. Business Premium lacks this audit trail.
3. Advanced Information Protection
EMS includes Azure Information Protection P1 with:
- Document tracking – Track who opens documents, even outside your organization
- Automatic classification – Sensitive data is automatically labeled
- Rights Management – Prevent documents from being printed, copied, or forwarded
Business Premium lacks these advanced DLP features.
4. Scalability without user limits
Business Premium has a maximum of 300 users. E3 has no user limit and is built for enterprise scalability. When your organization grows, you don't need to migrate to a different platform.
5. Enterprise Copilot vs Copilot Business
A subtle but important difference: with E3 you have access to Microsoft 365 Copilot (enterprise version), while Business Premium works with Copilot Business.
The key differences:
Copilot Enterprise (with E3):
- Full Microsoft Graph integration
- Extensive governance and compliance logging
- Advanced analytics and reporting
- Full data residency control
Copilot Business (with Business Premium):
- Limited Microsoft Graph integration
- Basic governance logging
- Limited analytics
- Limited data residency control
For organizations where AI governance matters, this difference is significant.
Should you keep EMS after July 2026?
A valid question: if E3 now includes Intune Suite features, is EMS still necessary?
Our advice: yes, for most organizations.
The Intune features coming to E3 (Remote Help, Advanced Analytics) are valuable for IT support, but EMS offers much more:
- Risk-based Conditional Access
- Identity Governance (Access Reviews, PIM)
- Azure Information Protection with document tracking
- Cloud App Security basics
A hybrid model can be cost-effective: EMS for key users (IT admins, management, finance) and only E3 for other users. This way you maintain maximum security where needed, without unnecessarily high costs.
Conclusion: security is not a cost-cutting area
With the July 2026 enhancements, Microsoft 365 E3 becomes even more valuable. Combined with EMS E3, you have:
- The most advanced identity protection
- Complete compliance tooling for NIS2 and ISO 27001
- Enterprise-grade Copilot with governance
- Scalability without limits
Business Premium is an excellent solution for smaller organizations with limited compliance requirements. But for organizations that process sensitive data, must comply with strict regulations, or simply don't want to compromise their security, E3 + EMS remains the gold standard.
Need to demonstrate compliance? Then Enterprise is the only right choice. During audits, certification processes, or inquiries from regulators, you need evidence – not just that you have security measures in place, but that they work and are being followed. You can only provide that burden of proof with the governance and reporting tools included in E3 + EMS.
Next steps
Unsure if your current license configuration is optimal? Universal Cloud is happy to help with:
- License assessment – Analysis of your current situation and usage patterns
- Gap analysis – What security and compliance features are you missing?
- Cost optimization – Hybrid models for the best value
- Migration plan – Smooth transition to the optimal configuration
Contact us for a no-obligation consultation.
