What matters most in this plan, and the business problem each part solves
Field and floor staff get a company email address on their phone at a fraction of a desk licence.
Forms, checklists and the odd spreadsheet in the browser — enough for work away from a desk.
Shared PCs and handhelds are managed, encrypted and wiped remotely; kiosk mode keeps them to their job.
Only for staff without a dedicated PC; assigning it to desk workers is an audit finding.
What it is
Microsoft 365 F3 is the frontline licence for staff who need an email address and Office in the browser but not a full desk plan: a 2 GB Exchange Online Kiosk mailbox, web and mobile Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, Teams with shifts, SharePoint, 2 GB OneDrive, Intune, Entra ID P1 and Windows Enterprise E3 on shared devices. It is what most companies with a shop floor or field staff should be buying for them instead of Business Basic or E1, provided the users meet Microsoft’s frontline definition.
Choose it if
- Field and floor staff who need company email on a phone
- Retail, hospitality, logistics, healthcare shifts
- Shared Windows devices managed with Intune
- The middle tier between F1 and E3 in a mixed estate
Do not choose it if
- Desk workers with their own PC — not eligible under Microsoft’s frontline definition
- Users needing more than a 2 GB mailbox or desktop Office
- Users who need Conditional Access on a personal laptop for full-time office work
What is included
Exchange Online Kiosk: 2 GB mailbox, Outlook on the web and mobile
Web and mobile Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote
Full Teams with shifts, walkie-talkie
OneDrive 2 GB, SharePoint
Intune Plan 1, Entra ID P1, Windows Enterprise E3 on shared devices, Windows Autopilot
Exchange Online Protection; Defender Suite and Purview Suite add-ons for frontline available
What Microsoft 365 F3 does not do, and what that means for the business
The names above in plain language: what each capability is, what goes wrong without it, and how to add it. Most of them are included in Microsoft 365 E3; each can also be bought on its own on top of this plan.
Desktop Office apps
Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook installed on PCs and Macs, working offline and with add-ins.
Without it: People work in the browser. Complex Excel models, mail merges, offline work on a flight and Outlook add-ins for CRM or e-signature do not work; the finance team notices first.
Add it: Microsoft 365 Apps for business — from €11.00 per user per month Add to proposal What it is and what it costs →
Or step up to Microsoft 365 E3, which includes it.
Archiving and litigation hold (Exchange Online Archiving)
An archive mailbox that grows to 1.5 TB, and the ability to put a mailbox on hold so nothing in it can be deleted, by anyone.
Without it: A leaver empties the mailbox on the last day and it is gone. A regulator or a court asks for two years of correspondence and gets whatever survived. Mailboxes hit their limit and people delete to keep working.
Add it: Exchange Online Archiving for Exchange Online — from €2.60 per user per month Add to proposal What it is and what it costs →
Or step up to Microsoft 365 E3, which includes it.
Advanced mail security (Defender for Office 365 Plan 1)
Links and attachments are opened in a sandbox before the user gets them; mails pretending to be the CEO or a supplier are flagged.
Without it: A well-made phishing mail with a clean-looking link reaches the inbox untouched; the only defence is the person reading it, and one in ten clicks.
Add it: Microsoft Defender for Office 365 (Plan 1) — from €1.73 per user per month Add to proposal What it is and what it costs →
Or step up to Microsoft 365 E3, which includes it.
Licensing rules and limits
Commercial summary; the rights are governed by the Microsoft Product Terms and the Microsoft Customer Agreement. Reviewed by IT Partner engineers; date at the foot of the page.
- Per user; frontline definition applies (no dedicated device or primary work away from a desk)
- Mailbox 2 GB; cannot be expanded; no archive
- No desktop Office; no Bookings
- Annual commitment: seats can be added at any time; they cannot be reduced until renewal. Cancellation with refund only within the first seven days of the term.
- Monthly commitment: about 20% more per seat than annual; reduce or cancel at each monthly renewal.
- A Microsoft Customer Agreement must be accepted by the customer before the first order; we send it for e-signature.
How to buy it: every option that exists for this product
Only the terms and billing options Microsoft actually sells for this SKU. Prices are Microsoft list prices in EUR; the same table in the other currencies is one click above. “Add to proposal” puts the line with ten licences into the proposal builder, where the quantity is changed.
| Commitment and billing | Per user / month | Per user / year | Flexibility · who it suits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard, with Teams | ||||
| Monthly commitment, billed monthly CFQ7TTC0LH05:0001 | €10.39 | €124.68 | Cancel or reduce at any monthly renewal Temporary staff, pilots, headcount that moves | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, billed annually upfront CFQ7TTC0LH05:0001 | €8.66 | €103.92 | Seats can be added, not reduced, until renewal The headcount you are sure of; lowest price | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, paid monthly CFQ7TTC0LH05:0001 | €9.09 | €109.08 | One-year commitment under a signed agreement; monthly payments, about 5% more By arrangement: the commitment is for the year, the invoice is monthly | Enquire by email agreement required |
| EEA and Switzerland, without Teams | ||||
| Monthly commitment, billed monthly CFQ7TTC0LH05:000M | €9.28 | €111.36 | Cancel or reduce at any monthly renewal Temporary staff, pilots, headcount that moves | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, billed annually upfront CFQ7TTC0LH05:000M | €7.73 | €92.76 | Seats can be added, not reduced, until renewal The headcount you are sure of; lowest price | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, paid monthly CFQ7TTC0LH05:000M | €8.12 | €97.44 | One-year commitment under a signed agreement; monthly payments, about 5% more By arrangement: the commitment is for the year, the invoice is monthly | Enquire by email agreement required |
In one paragraph, for the record
- Microsoft 365 F3 is licensed per user for frontline workers and includes a 2 GB Exchange Online Kiosk mailbox and web Office apps.
- It includes Intune Plan 1, Entra ID P1 and Windows Enterprise E3 rights on shared devices.
- It does not include desktop Office and the mailbox cannot be enlarged.
Questions
F3 or Business Basic for shop staff?
If they meet the frontline definition, F3: cheaper, includes Intune and Entra ID P1 for the shared devices, and Windows Enterprise. Business Basic is for desk workers under 300 users.
Can the F3 mailbox be enlarged?
No; 2 GB is fixed. A user who needs more mail belongs on a desk plan.
Are Defender and Purview available for frontline users?
Yes, as the Defender Suite and Purview Suite add-ons for frontline workers; both are in the catalogue.
Which SKU do I buy in the EU: with Teams or without?
In the European Economic Area and Switzerland Microsoft sells the suite without Teams at a lower price, and Teams as a separate licence — Microsoft Teams EEA. If your people use Teams, the total is close to the old bundled price; if you use another meeting platform, the no-Teams SKU saves the difference. Outside the EEA the bundled SKU is still sold.