Microsoft 365 for Charities: What You're Actually Entitled To (and How Ipswich Minster Saved £800 a Year)

If you run a charity or church in Suffolk, there's a good chance you're paying more for your software than you need to, or using something that isn't quite fit for purpose because nobody had time to look into the alternatives.

Microsoft runs a dedicated programme for registered charities that can bring real, meaningful savings on the tools most organisations already rely on: email, file storage, Teams, and the Office apps. We recently helped Ipswich Minster move over from Google Workspace to Microsoft 365 under this programme, saving them roughly £800 a year in licensing and application costs. Here's what's actually available, who qualifies, and what changed for them.

What Microsoft actually offers charities

Microsoft's nonprofit programme has changed over the past year, so it's worth being clear on where things currently stand.

Microsoft 365 Business Basic is free for eligible charities, for up to 300 users. This includes Exchange email on your own domain, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive with a generous amount of storage per user, and the web based versions of Word, Excel and PowerPoint. For a lot of small and medium charities, this alone covers what staff and volunteers actually need day to day.

Microsoft 365 Business Premium and Office 365 E1 used to come with a batch of free licences as well, but Microsoft retired that particular grant in July 2025. They're still available to eligible charities at a steep discount, typically around 75% off the standard price, which still makes them considerably cheaper than the equivalent commercial plans. Business Premium adds the full desktop versions of the Office apps along with stronger security and device management, so it's worth considering if your charity handles sensitive data or manages its own devices.

Who actually qualifies

To be eligible, your organisation generally needs to be a registered charity, meaning registration with the Charity Commission for England and Wales, OSCR in Scotland, the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland, or recognised charitable tax exempt status with HMRC.

Eligibility is checked through a validation partner (Charity Digital is the usual route in the UK), and the process typically takes a few working days once you've submitted your charity number and some basic details.

It's worth knowing that free and discounted licences are for paid staff and unpaid trustees or leadership volunteers acting in that capacity. General volunteers can usually be added under the discounted pricing rather than the free grant, and members, donors or programme participants aren't eligible for either.

Why this matters if you're already on Google Workspace

A lot of charities end up on Google Workspace simply because it's familiar, or because it was the obvious choice when they first set things up. That's completely understandable, but it's worth checking what you're actually paying, because Google's nonprofit pricing isn't as generous as Microsoft's in most cases. Where Microsoft offers a properly free tier that covers core productivity tools for up to 300 users, Google's equivalent nonprofit plans are usually discounted rather than free.

That gap is exactly what we found with Ipswich Minster.

The Ipswich Minster move

Ipswich Minster had been running on Google Workspace, paying for licensing across their team along with a handful of separate applications to cover gaps Google Workspace didn't fill on its own.

We moved them across to Microsoft 365 under the charity programme, consolidating their email, file storage, document collaboration and team communication into one properly licensed, properly supported setup. Between the free and discounted charity pricing and no longer needing separate paid applications to plug the gaps, the switch saved them around £800 a year.

For a church managing a busy calendar of services, events and community outreach, that's £800 that can go back into the work they actually exist to do, rather than software subscriptions.

Is this worth looking into for your organisation?

If you're a registered charity currently paying for Google Workspace, or paying full commercial price for Microsoft 365 without realising a charity rate exists, it's worth a proper look. The eligibility check is quick to run, and the potential saving, particularly for organisations juggling several separate tools, can be significant.

We help charities and community organisations across Suffolk work out what they're eligible for, get set up properly, and migrate over without losing emails, files or momentum in the process.

Wondering what your charity could be saving on Microsoft 365? Let's have a conversation.