What matters most in this plan, and the business problem each part solves
Citrix, RDS and virtual desktops are properly licensed for Office — the finding that ends most Microsoft audits is avoided.
Legal and HR can freeze a mailbox in a minute; nobody hits a mailbox limit and deletes history to keep working.
Card numbers and personal data are stopped before they leave by email; a discovery request is a search, not a project.
Devices and sign-ins are unmanaged unless another tool covers them; Microsoft 365 E3 adds both.
What it is
Office 365 E3 is the enterprise productivity suite without the security and management layer: Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise with shared-computer activation, Exchange Online Plan 2 with 100 GB mailboxes, archiving and litigation hold, SharePoint, Teams, and the compliance basics — DLP, retention, eDiscovery Standard. What Microsoft 365 E3 adds on top is Intune, Entra ID P1, Windows Enterprise and Defender for Office 365 P1. The most common reason to choose Office 365 E3 is that identity and devices are managed by something else — an existing EMS licence, another MDM, or an Entra ID P1 bought separately.
Choose it if
- Enterprises over 300 users that manage devices and identity with other tools
- Terminal server and virtual desktop estates: shared-computer activation is included
- Organisations that need litigation hold and eDiscovery without buying the full Microsoft 365 E3
- The productivity layer for a group whose security comes from an EMS or a separate Entra ID P1 licence
Do not choose it if
- Companies that want Intune and Conditional Access in the same licence — Microsoft 365 E3
- Anyone needing Windows Enterprise — Microsoft 365 E3
- Under 300 users — Business Standard or Premium are cheaper and equivalent or better
What is included
Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise: desktop, web, mobile, shared-computer activation
Exchange Online Plan 2: 100 GB mailbox, auto-expanding archive to 1.5 TB, litigation hold
DLP for mail and files, retention policies, eDiscovery Standard, basic audit
Teams enterprise (separate licence for new customers since 2024)
OneDrive 5 TB+, SharePoint
Intune, Entra ID P1, Windows Enterprise, Defender for Office 365, Defender for Endpoint
What Office 365 E3 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.
Device management (Microsoft Intune)
IT enrols company laptops and phones, pushes settings and apps, requires encryption and updates, and can wipe a lost device from a browser.
Without it: A laptop left in a taxi still holds company files and mail with no way to wipe it. Staff install what they like. When the insurer or a client’s auditor asks “are your devices encrypted and managed?”, there is no honest yes.
Add it: Microsoft Intune Plan 1 — from €6.90 per user per month Add to proposal What it is and what it costs →
Or step up to Microsoft 365 E3, which includes it.
Conditional Access (Microsoft Entra ID P1)
Rules for who may sign in, from where and from what: require MFA, block unknown countries, allow company data only on a managed device.
Without it: A password stolen by a phishing page works from anywhere in the world, because nothing checks where the sign-in comes from. MFA is all-or-nothing instead of “always outside the office”. There is no way to say “company laptops only”.
Add it: Microsoft Entra ID P1 — from €6.10 per user per month Add to proposal What it is and what it costs →
Or step up to Microsoft 365 E3, which includes it.
Windows Enterprise rights
The Enterprise edition of Windows 11 for company PCs: Credential Guard, application control, long-term servicing, and the licence for virtual desktops.
Without it: Virtual desktops and terminal servers are not licensed for Windows at all, and a set of security controls exists only in Enterprise; an audit finds both.
Add it: Windows 10/11 Enterprise E3 — from €6.60 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.
Endpoint detection and response, enterprise (Defender for Endpoint Plan 2)
The full endpoint security product: threat hunting across all machines, vulnerability management, automated investigation.
Without it: The security team sees alerts but cannot hunt across the estate for the same attacker, and unpatched vulnerabilities are found by the attacker before IT.
Add it: Microsoft Defender for Endpoint P2 — from €4.50 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, no cap
- Shared-computer activation licensed: terminal servers, Citrix, AVD
- No device or identity management: MFA yes (Entra ID Free), Conditional Access no
- 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 CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0001 | €31.52 | €378.24 | Cancel or reduce at any monthly renewal Temporary staff, pilots, headcount that moves | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, billed annually upfront CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0001 | €26.27 | €315.24 | Seats can be added, not reduced, until renewal The headcount you are sure of; lowest price | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, paid monthly CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0001 | €27.58 | €330.96 | 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 CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0012 | €22.62 | €271.44 | Cancel or reduce at any monthly renewal Temporary staff, pilots, headcount that moves | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, billed annually upfront CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0012 | €18.85 | €226.20 | Seats can be added, not reduced, until renewal The headcount you are sure of; lowest price | Add to proposal |
| Annual commitment, paid monthly CFQ7TTC0LF8R:0012 | €19.79 | €237.48 | 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
- Office 365 E3 includes Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise with shared-computer activation, Exchange Online Plan 2 with litigation hold, and eDiscovery Standard.
- It does not include Intune, Entra ID P1, Windows Enterprise or Defender for Office 365.
- It is licensed per user with no user cap.
Questions
Office 365 E3 or Microsoft 365 E3?
If you need Intune, Conditional Access, Windows Enterprise or Defender for Office 365 P1, Microsoft 365 E3; the difference in price is close to what Entra ID P1 and Intune cost separately. If those are covered elsewhere, Office 365 E3.
Does Office 365 E3 include litigation hold?
Yes — Exchange Online Plan 2 is inside it, so litigation hold and the auto-expanding archive are included without add-ons.
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.
Is there a user cap?
No. Enterprise plans have no maximum; they also carry the Microsoft 365 Apps for enterprise edition of Office, which is the version with shared-computer activation for terminal servers and virtual desktops.
Can an existing tenant move its licences to IT Partner?
Yes, without migration: the tenant, data and users stay; we become the partner of record and issue the next invoice. Existing annual commitments run to their renewal date.
Should I buy the three-year term?
Only for the headcount you are certain of for three years. The three-year SKU is the cheapest per seat and protects against Microsoft price rises, but seats cannot be reduced until the end of the term.