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Microsoft 365 is far more than just Word and Excel — it’s an ever-growing suite of productivity, collaboration, and automation tools that work together across every device you own. Whether you’re drafting a report, analysing financial data, running a team meeting, or automating a repetitive task, there’s a Microsoft 365 app built for the job. This guide introduces every major app, tells you where you can use it, and helps you figure out exactly which ones deserve a spot in your daily workflow.
You can use all core Microsoft 365 apps directly in your browser at office.com — no installation required. Just sign in with your Microsoft account and start working instantly.

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The Full App Suite at a Glance

Word

Create, edit, format, and share professional documents — from simple letters to complex reports with tracked changes and citations.

Excel

Build spreadsheets, analyse data with formulas and pivot tables, and visualise trends with charts and graphs.

PowerPoint

Design compelling slide presentations and slideshows with animations, transitions, and multimedia content.

Outlook

Manage your email, calendar, contacts, and tasks in one place — with powerful rules, scheduling, and integration across Microsoft 365.

Teams

Chat with colleagues, host video meetings, share files, and collaborate on documents in real time — all in a single hub.

OneDrive

Store, access, and share your files from any device with 1 TB of personal cloud storage included with every Microsoft 365 subscription.

OneNote

Capture ideas, meeting notes, research, and to-do lists in free-form digital notebooks that sync across all your devices.

SharePoint

Build team sites, company intranets, and shared document libraries so your whole organisation can collaborate on the same content.

Planner

Organise projects visually with boards, buckets, and task assignments — a lightweight project management tool built right into Microsoft 365.

Forms

Create surveys, quizzes, polls, and registration forms in minutes, then analyse responses with built-in charts and Excel export.

Power Automate

Build no-code workflows that automate repetitive tasks — like saving email attachments to OneDrive or sending approval requests automatically.

Sway

Turn your ideas into interactive, web-based presentations and reports that look polished on any screen — no design skills needed.
A small number of Microsoft 365 apps — including Publisher (desktop publishing) and Access (relational databases) — are available on Windows only and are not included in every subscription tier. Check your plan at microsoft365.com to confirm what’s available to you.

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Apps Available on Every Platform

You’re not limited to a single device. Here’s a quick reference showing which major apps you can use on each platform:
The desktop apps for Windows and Mac offer the richest feature sets, but the web versions are fully capable for everyday tasks and require no installation.

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Which Apps Do I Need?

Not everyone needs every app on day one. Here’s a practical starting point based on how you use Microsoft 365:
As a student, your core toolkit is small but powerful:
  • Word — essays, assignments, lab reports, and bibliographies
  • PowerPoint — class presentations and group projects
  • Excel — data analysis for science or business coursework
  • OneNote — lecture notes, research clippings, and study guides organised by subject
  • OneDrive — keep all your coursework automatically backed up and accessible from any computer in the library or at home
  • Teams — group project communication and online seminars
Microsoft 365 Personal or Family plans are typically the most cost-effective option for students, and many schools and universities provide Microsoft 365 for free — check with your institution.

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New AI-Powered Features with Microsoft Copilot

Microsoft has integrated its AI assistant, Microsoft Copilot, directly into the core Microsoft 365 apps. With a Copilot licence, you gain AI-powered capabilities across the suite:

Copilot in Word

Draft entire documents from a short prompt, rewrite and improve selected paragraphs, summarise long documents in seconds, and ask questions about your content — all without leaving the page.

Copilot in Excel

Analyse your data in plain English — ask Copilot to highlight trends, generate formulas, create pivot tables, or build charts without writing a single formula yourself.

Copilot in PowerPoint

Turn a Word document or a few bullet points into a fully designed presentation. Copilot generates slides, adds speaker notes, and suggests layouts based on your content.

Copilot in Outlook

Summarise long email threads, draft replies in your tone, prepare for meetings by surfacing relevant emails and documents, and manage your inbox more efficiently with AI-powered suggestions.
Microsoft Copilot for Microsoft 365 requires a separate Copilot licence (currently available as an add-on for business and enterprise plans). The features above are not included in standard Microsoft 365 Personal or Family plans. Check microsoft365.com/copilot for the latest availability and pricing.

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Next Steps

Now that you know what each app does, you’re ready to put them to work. Start with the two or three apps most relevant to your goals, then expand from there as your confidence grows. Every app has a built-in Help pane (press F1 or click the ? icon) with tutorials, templates, and step-by-step guidance to get you up to speed quickly.