Microsoft, the software giant, has been expanding its services over time, and a few years ago launched a revolutionary package that includes office software and productivity applications. If you already have your subscription, get ready to discover the additional Microsoft 365 services that you can enjoy totally free.
Features that will be very useful to you both in your daily life and in your work or in your academic life, so don't miss any of them and be encouraged to try them all.
A success for Microsoft
Microsoft 365 offers us productivity services and applications in the cloud, and is the new version of what we previously knew as Office 365. The difference is that, in exchange for our subscription, we no longer only have access to its office programs, but We also access a wide range of additional tools designed to improve collaboration, communication and productivity.
In case you haven't tried it yet, we'll tell you a little more about the key components and features of Microsoft 365:
office apps
- Word as a word processor.
- Excel as a spreadsheet.
- PowerPoint to make presentations.
- Outlook as an email and calendar manager.
- OneNote for taking notes.
- Access as a database.
Collaboration and communication tools
- Microsoft Teams to communicate as a group via chat or video calls.
- SharePoint as a document management and online collaboration platform.
- OneDrive for cloud storage of all types of files.
- Yammer (now Viva Engage), which functions as an enterprise social network for internal communication.
Productivity and management services
- Planner to manage tasks and projects.
- Everything for manage personal tasks.
- Power Automate as a service to automate workflows.
- Forms to create surveys and forms.
What additional Microsoft 365 services can we enjoy for free?
To the applications and tools that are part of this complete platform, we have to add some utilities and functionalities that, although they usually go unnoticed, can be very useful.
Premium templates
It is possible that when the time comes to prepare a resume, a report or design a brochure, you are not very clear about the best format you could use, and that is when Templates become your best ally.
Word offers us a series of simple and basic templates, but if you have a Microsoft 365 subscription, then you can access the premium templates completely free. They are ready to use, but You can also use them as a base to create your own custom template.
The good thing is that you will save a lot of time creating the structure and format of the document and, in addition, the result is very professional.
Additional cloud storage space
With the free version of OneDrive You only have 5 GB of storage in your personal cloud, but by contracting the subscription you automatically increase your available space.
Depending on the subscription plan you have chosen, you will have:
- 100 GB.
- 1 TB.
- 6 TB (1 TB per user).
This means that you now have much more space to store all your files and documents in one place, ensuring that you always have them at hand. You can take advantage of this to backup your most important data and large files and save them to your cloud.
OneDrive Personal Vault
We are still in the cloud, because one of the additional services of Microsoft 365 is related to this form of storage. If you are worried about someone accessing it and view information or files that you especially want to protect, feel free to use the personal vault feature.
What it does is create an additional layer of security for certain files, so that they can only be accessed using a confirmation code, with a PIN, or another security system you have chosen.
With the free plan you can add up to three files to this vault, but with the Microsoft 365 subscription the capacity is unlimited.
60 Skype minutes per month
Skype has lost some popularity after the rise of other tools such as Zoom or video calls through WhatsApp, however, it continues to be very useful.
If you regularly use Skype to make calls to landlines and mobile phones, when you sign up for your subscription you get 60 free minutes each month for these types of calls. The bad thing is that unused minutes do not accumulate from one month to the next and that they can only be used in communications between certain countries, but even so, it is a service that is useful to a large number of people.
Greater security with Microsoft Defender among additional Microsoft 365 services
Microsoft antivirus becomes even more powerful when you subscribe to Microsoft 365. You can protect multiple devices at once and monitor the security of all of them through a unified control panel.
The application is responsible for monitoring your personal information to alert you if identity theft has occurred or if it notices any suspicious activity. And it also acts as a parental filter, allowing the user to set device usage times and filter content which children can access.
Advanced text review
Through Microsoft Editor, in its version for Microsoft 365 subscribers, you have access to advanced grammar checks that will allow you to create increasingly perfect and professional texts. A tool that is even capable of suggesting vocabulary.
And if you access Copilot in Word, then you can increase productivity and efficiency in your work even more.
Technical support via callback
If you use the free version, technical support attention through live chat is limited, and you may have to face long wait times to be assisted, which does not happen if you are a subscriber. Because in this case you can ask them to call you when an operator is available, which avoids unnecessary waiting.
And you'll also receive a faster support response if you contact via email, than non-subscribers.
Did you imagine that you had these additional Microsoft 365 services at your disposal? Have you tried them all?