Perplexity starts at $17/mo billed yearly, Microsoft Copilot at $8.33/mo billed yearly. Both have a free plan. Every plan from both vendors, the limits each one actually publishes, and what changed recently, with a source on every line.
Pick Microsoft Copilot if you want the lowest monthly bill. Beyond price and free access, the deciding factor is which models and features you need; we track the money, not the model quality.
| Fact | Perplexity | Microsoft Copilot |
|---|---|---|
| Free plan | Free tier | Free tier |
| Cheapest plan | Pro · $17/mo billed yearly | Microsoft 365 Personal · $8.33/mo billed yearly |
| Top plan | Max · $167/mo billed yearly | Microsoft 365 Premium · $16.67/mo billed yearly |
| Plans tracked | 4 | 4 |
| Yearly discount | Yearly prices only | up to 17% |
| Allowance periods | WeeklyMonthly | Not stated |
| Latest change | None logged | None logged |
| Last checked |
One vendor only publishes billed-yearly prices, so this page compares per-month prices billed yearly where offered.
| Tool | Plan | Price | Limits as stated & source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Perplexity | Pro | $17/mo billed yearly | Pro Searches, Research queries, Comet assistant and file/app creation all 'weekly/monthly limits (average use)'; numbers not published. Limited-time +$40 Computer credits. Source: perplexity.ai · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Perplexity | Max | $167/mo billed yearly | 'Unlimited usage'; 10,000 monthly credits; limits '(advanced use)' not quantified. Limited-time +$450 Computer credits. Source: perplexity.ai · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Perplexity | Education Pro | $10/mo | Everything in Pro for verified students/educators (SheerID). Source: perplexity.ai · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Perplexity | Enterprise Pro | $40/mo | 400 Pro Searches/week; 50 Research/month; 80 Comet queries/month; 100 file-upload sessions/week. Source: perplexity.ai · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Microsoft Copilot | Microsoft 365 Personal | $9.99/mo | 1 person; 1 TB; Copilot in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, OneNote with 'higher usage than free' (not quantified). Source: microsoft.com · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Microsoft Copilot | Microsoft 365 Family | $12.99/mo | 1-6 people (AI for subscription owner only); up to 6 TB; same Copilot usage as Personal. Source: microsoft.com · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Microsoft Copilot | Microsoft 365 Premium | $19.99/mo | 'Extensive usage'; AI agents (research reports, data analysis); advanced Copilot features. Source: microsoft.com · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Microsoft Copilot | Microsoft 365 Copilot Business (add-on) | $18/mo billed yearly | Business add-on to existing Microsoft 365 plans. Source: microsoft.com · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Tool | Free? | What you get for $0 & source |
|---|---|---|
| Perplexity | Free tier | Free (Standard): 'practically unlimited basic searches'; Pro Searches 3/day; Research queries 1/month; no advanced models or image generation; limited file uploads. Source: perplexity.ai · checked 2026-10-16 |
| Microsoft Copilot | Free tier | Microsoft Copilot app is free; paid Microsoft 365 plans give 'higher usage than free' (Personal/Family) or 'extensive usage' (Premium). Free usage limits not published on this page. Source: microsoft.com · checked 2026-10-16 |
No price, limit or free-tier change logged for Perplexity or Microsoft Copilot yet. We check both vendors' pages daily.
Microsoft Copilot is cheaper to start: Microsoft 365 Personal costs $8.33/mo billed yearly, against $17/mo billed yearly for Perplexity Pro. At the top end, Perplexity Max is $167/mo billed yearly and Microsoft 365 Premium is $16.67/mo billed yearly.
Perplexity: Yes. Free (Standard): 'practically unlimited basic searches'; Pro Searches 3/day; Research queries 1/month; no advanced models or image generation; limited file uploads. Microsoft Copilot: Yes. Microsoft Copilot app is free; paid Microsoft 365 plans give 'higher usage than free' (Personal/Family) or 'extensive usage' (Premium). Free usage limits not published on this page.
Perplexity Pro ($17/mo billed yearly): Pro Searches, Research queries, Comet assistant and file/app creation all 'weekly/monthly limits (average use)'; numbers not published. Limited-time +$40 Computer credits. Microsoft 365 Premium ($19.99/mo): 'Extensive usage'; AI agents (research reports, data analysis); advanced Copilot features.
Perplexity: only billed-yearly prices are published. Microsoft Copilot: up to 17% off when billed yearly (Microsoft 365 Personal: $8.33/mo instead of $9.99).
No change is logged for either since we started tracking. Prices were last checked 2026-10-16.