Which Copilot is which

One name, several products

Microsoft Copilot is made by Microsoft; this free course is independent and not affiliated with or endorsed by Microsoft.

Microsoft uses the name Copilot for more than one thing. There is a consumer Copilot you can use in an app or web page for chat, questions, images and everyday help. There is also Copilot built into Microsoft 365 apps such as Word, Excel, Outlook and Teams. At work it is available to people whose organizations have switched it on, and some organizations offer a lighter chat version to everyone with a work account. Some personal Microsoft 365 subscriptions include Copilot features too. Names, bundles and what each plan includes change often, so check Microsoft's current pages.

The difference matters because of data. A personal chat is not the same as a work Copilot that follows your organization's settings. Before you paste anything, ask yourself which Copilot you are in.

How to tell where you are

Look at which account you are signed in with. A personal account usually means a consumer setup, even when you use Copilot inside a personal Microsoft 365 subscription. A work or school account usually means your organization's setup, and an administrator may control what appears. Look for notices in the app about how your data is handled, and check your organization's guidance.

If you are not sure, ask your IT team: "Which Copilot am I allowed to use for work files, and what may I put into it?" It is a normal question and shows good judgment.

Prompts work in both

The skill of asking clearly applies to both. Give the task, context, audience and format. Weak: "Help with my report." Strong: "Rewrite the summary of my report for senior managers. Keep it under 150 words, plain language, and list the one decision they need to make."

At work you can also point Copilot to a file or meeting you have access to, where your setup allows. Be exact about which one. "Use the budget document from last week's meeting" is clearer than "use the stuff."

Worked example: two places, two rules

Funmi in Lagos uses personal Copilot to plan a weekend trip and draft a note to a friend. She uses her company's Copilot in Outlook to draft a reply to a client, because that is the tool her employer approved for work email.

She does not copy the client's email into the personal one. She also reads each draft before it goes out. Matching the tool to the data is the habit to build.