Blog, General Tech News

Microsoft 365 E3 Enterprise Pricing (2026 Guide)

Posted by

Johnson

August 8, 2026

On April 9, 2026

If your organization has more than 300 users and you are evaluating enterprise Microsoft licensing, Microsoft 365 E3 is almost certainly on your shortlist. But between Microsoft’s official list pricing, reseller deals, and the growing number of add-ons, understanding what you actually pay — and what you actually get — takes more than a quick look at Microsoft’s website. This guide cuts through the complexity.

$36

Per user/month (list price)

$6,000

100 users — 1 year at Naijasoftwares

2 Keys

M365 E3 + Teams included

100GB

Mailbox per user — Exchange Online

What Is Microsoft 365 E3?

Microsoft 365 E3 is Microsoft’s entry-level enterprise licensing tier, designed for organizations with more than 300 users. It brings together three major product components under one license:

Office 365 Enterprise E3 — the full Microsoft productivity suite
Windows 10/11 Enterprise — enterprise-grade operating system management
Enterprise Mobility + Security (EMS) E3 — identity, device, and access management

Together, these three pillars give IT teams everything needed to deploy, secure, and manage a large workforce under a single, manageable license agreement.

Microsoft 365 E3 Enterprise Pricing: What Does It Cost?

Microsoft Official List Pricing

Microsoft’s current list price for Microsoft 365 E3 is $36 per user per month, billed annually:

Users	Annual Cost — Microsoft List Price	Monthly Equivalent
10 users	$4,320/year	$360/month
50 users	$21,600/year	$1,800/month
100 users	$43,200/year	$3,600/month
300 users	$129,600/year	$10,800/month
500 users	$216,000/year	$18,000/month

⚠️ Price Increase Alert: Microsoft is raising E3 list prices to $39/user/month effective July 2026. Locking in a 1-year license before this date can save your organization significant budget across your user base.

Best Deal: Authorized Reseller Pricing for 100 Users

At Naijasoftwares, you get a genuine, instantly delivered Microsoft 365 E3 package at a fraction of Microsoft’s list price:

📦 Microsoft 365 E3 Enterprise — 100 Users with Teams | 1-Year License — $6,000

This package includes 2 genuine license keys for your complete 100-user deployment:

Microsoft 365 E3 License Key — 100 Users Full M365 E3 suite — Office apps, Exchange, SharePoint, Intune, Entra ID, Windows Enterprise

Microsoft Teams License Key — 100 Users Full Teams collaboration — chat, video conferencing, file sharing, channels

Why two keys? Microsoft unbundled Teams from all M365 enterprise plans globally in April 2024. New customers now require a separate Teams license. This bundle handles both in one order — no separate sourcing required.

💰

$6,000

Total — 100 users, 1 year

👤

$5/mo

Per user per month

⚡

Instant

Email delivery after payment

🛒 Buy Microsoft 365 E3 — 100 Users | $6,000

What Is Included in Microsoft 365 E3?

📧 Productivity & Collaboration

Office Desktop Apps — Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote (5 devices per user)
Exchange Online Plan 2 — 100GB mailbox + unlimited archive
Microsoft Teams — separate key included
SharePoint Online Plan 2
OneDrive for Business — 1TB+ per user

🔒 Security & Identity

Microsoft Entra ID P1 — SSO, conditional access, MFA
Microsoft Intune — mobile device & app management
Defender for Endpoint Plan 1 — baseline protection
Microsoft Advanced Threat Analytics

✅ Compliance & Governance

eDiscovery — legal hold & content search
Data Loss Prevention (DLP)
Sensitivity Labels & Audit Logging
Litigation Hold for mailboxes
Retention Policies

💻 Device Management

Windows 10/11 Enterprise rights
AppLocker, BitLocker, DirectAccess
Windows Autopilot — zero-touch provisioning
Azure Virtual Desktop rights
Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP)

Microsoft 365 E3 vs E5: Which Plan Does Your Organization Need?

This is the most common question IT decision-makers ask. Here is the full side-by-side breakdown:

Feature	E3 — $36/user/mo	E5 — $57/user/mo
Office Desktop Apps	✅ Full suite	✅ Full suite
Exchange Online	Plan 2 — 100GB	Plan 2 — 100GB
Microsoft Teams	✅ Separate key	✅ Separate key
Defender for Endpoint	Plan 1	Plan 2 — Advanced ✅
Defender for Office 365	Plan 1	Plan 2 — Advanced ✅
Defender for Identity	❌ No	✅ Yes
Microsoft Defender XDR	❌ No	✅ Yes
Power BI Pro	❌ No	✅ Included
Teams Phone System	❌ No	✅ Included
Advanced eDiscovery	❌ No	✅ Yes
Insider Risk Management	❌ No	✅ Yes
Microsoft Purview	Basic	Advanced

✅ Choose E3 When

You need full Office apps across all devices
You have moderate compliance requirements
You want to mix E3 + E5 add-ons selectively
You need 100GB mailboxes with unlimited archive
You need Windows Enterprise rights
You want the lowest per-user enterprise cost

⚡ Consider E5 When

You are in finance, healthcare, or legal
You need advanced threat hunting or XDR
You are paying separately for Power BI Pro
You need Insider Risk Management
You require Teams Phone System (PSTN)
You need advanced audit and eDiscovery

💡 Smart Strategy: Most enterprises save 15–40% by deploying E3 as the base license and adding E5 Security ($12/user/month) only for security analysts, compliance officers, and executives — rather than upgrading every user to E5. For a 500-user organization, right-sizing to 100 E5 and 400 E3 saves roughly $100,000 annually.

What Is Changing in E3 Pricing for 2026–2027?

1. Teams Unbundling — April 2024

Microsoft separated Teams from all Microsoft 365 and Office 365 plans globally. New customers must now purchase Teams as a separate license key. The Naijasoftwares bundle handles this automatically — both the M365 E3 key and the Teams key are included in the $6,000 price, covering your full 100-user deployment in one order.

2. EA Volume Discount Elimination — Late 2025

Microsoft removed Enterprise Agreement volume pricing tiers (Levels B through D). All customers now pay Level A pricing, removing the automatic 6–12% volume discounts that large organizations previously received through EAs. This has made reseller pricing comparatively more attractive for mid-size organizations.

3. List Price Increase — July 2026

E3 rises from $36 to $39/user/month effective July 2026. Purchasing a 1-year license now locks in current pricing — an important consideration before the increase takes effect later this year. For a 100-user team, that is a $3,600 annual increase at list price.

Microsoft 365 E3 Key Features: Deep Dive

Exchange Online Plan 2 — Enterprise Email

Every E3 user receives a 100GB primary mailbox and unlimited auto-expanding archive. This is a significant upgrade over Microsoft 365 Business plans which cap mailboxes at 50GB. Litigation Hold preserves deleted items for compliance — critical for legal and regulated industries.

Microsoft Entra ID P1 — Identity Foundation

Formerly Azure Active Directory Premium P1, Entra ID P1 enables Conditional Access (enforce MFA based on location, device compliance, or risk), Single Sign-On across thousands of SaaS applications, self-service password reset, and Application Proxy for secure remote access without a VPN.

Microsoft Intune — Device Management at Scale

Intune gives your IT team centralized management across Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android devices — including Mobile Device Management, Mobile Application Management, compliance policy enforcement, and Windows Autopilot for zero-touch device provisioning.

Windows 10/11 Enterprise Rights

E3 includes full Windows Enterprise rights — not just Windows Pro. This enables AppLocker (application control), DirectAccess (VPN-free remote connectivity), BitLocker with centralized key management, and Windows Defender Credential Guard to protect domain credentials from theft.

Is Microsoft 365 E3 Right for Your Organization?

✅ Microsoft 365 E3 is the right choice if:

You have 100 to 300+ users
You need full Office desktop apps installable on multiple devices per user
You need enterprise-grade identity management (Entra ID P1)
You need Windows 10/11 Enterprise rights for your device fleet
You need 100GB mailboxes with unlimited archiving
You want a compliance and governance baseline without E5 pricing
You want to buy both M365 E3 and Teams in one transaction

Frequently Asked Questions

❓ How much does Microsoft 365 E3 cost for 100 users?

At Microsoft’s list price of $36/user/month, 100 users costs $43,200/year. At Naijasoftwares, you get 100 users — including both the M365 E3 key and the Teams key — for $6,000/year with instant delivery, global activation, and a warranty guarantee.

❓ How many license keys come with this purchase?

You receive 2 license keys: (1) a Microsoft 365 E3 key that activates the full M365 E3 suite for 100 users, and (2) a Microsoft Teams key that activates Teams for 100 users. Both arrive by email immediately after payment with a step-by-step activation guide.

❓ Why does Teams come as a separate key?

Microsoft unbundled Teams from all Microsoft 365 enterprise plans globally in April 2024. New customers must now purchase Teams with a separate license key. The Naijasoftwares bundle handles this for you — both keys are included in the $6,000 price, covering your full deployment in one purchase.

❓ Is this a one-time purchase or a subscription?

This is a 1-year subscription. After 12 months, you renew by purchasing a new activation key. Annual renewal gives you full flexibility to adjust user counts or switch plans each year without being locked into a 3-year Enterprise Agreement commitment.

❓ What is the difference between Microsoft 365 E3 and Office 365 E3?

Microsoft 365 E3 includes everything in Office 365 E3 plus Windows 10/11 Enterprise rights and Enterprise Mobility + Security E3. If you only need cloud productivity apps, Office 365 E3 is cheaper. If you need Windows Enterprise management and Intune device control, Microsoft 365 E3 is the right choice.

❓ Can I mix E3 and E5 licenses across my organization?

Yes — and this is a proven cost-saving strategy. Assign E5 licenses only to users who need advanced security, compliance, or analytics features. Keep the broader workforce on E3. For a 500-user organization, right-sizing to 100 E5 and 400 E3 saves roughly $100,000 annually vs upgrading everyone to E5.

Final Verdict: Microsoft 365 E3 Enterprise Pricing in 2026

✅ Our Verdict

Microsoft 365 E3 is the productivity and compliance baseline for large enterprises. For organizations that do not need E5’s advanced security stack, E3 delivers exceptional value — full Office apps, enterprise Windows rights, 100GB mailboxes, Entra ID P1, and Intune device management.

The smartest buyers in 2026 are: purchasing before the July 2026 price increase, using authorized resellers to pay below list price, getting both M365 E3 and Teams keys in one bundle, and mixing E3 with targeted E5 add-ons only for users who genuinely need advanced security.

Ready to Deploy Microsoft 365 E3 for 100 Users?

Genuine license. Instant delivery. Both keys included. Activate the same day.

🛒 Buy Now — Microsoft 365 E3 | 100 Users | $6,000

2 license keys — M365 E3 + Teams 1-year subscription Global license Instant email delivery 24/7 customer support Activation warranty