Integrate Microsoft 365 Copilot into Outlook

The setup starts with logging into the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

Step 1: Verify admin access

Sign in with a global administrator account at admin.microsoft.com. The Microsoft 365 Copilot plan costs 28.10 EUR per user per month according to Microsoft’s current price list (2026). Skipping this step means no licenses can be assigned and AI features stay disabled.

Step 2: Activate the license

Go to Users > Active users and assign the Copilot license to a test account. If you skip this step all AI capabilities in Outlook remain locked and only the standard interface appears.

Step 3: Enable the Outlook add-in

In the same Admin Center under Settings > Integrated apps, turn on Microsoft 365 Copilot. Confirm activation for the whole organization. Skip this step and the assistant works only for single test accounts, not company-wide.

Step 4: Create the first filter rule

In Outlook on the web go to Settings > Mail > Rules. Click New rule and select the Copilot option “Filter by priority”. Enter a concrete keyword such as invoices. Without this rule messages stay unsorted and the inbox continues to fill manually.

Step 5: Run a test

Send yourself a test message containing the keyword. Copilot moves the message shortly afterwards. Skip the test and you only notice after days whether the rule actually works.

Step 6: Adjust permissions

Return to the Admin Center and restrict Copilot under Privacy to internal data sources only. This step prevents accidental processing of external content.

Step 7: Schedule regular review

Open the Copilot report in Outlook under Reports every Monday. Expect to adjust the rules again after a few weeks — how often depends on the mailbox. Skip this step and filters become outdated while mis-sorting increases.

The final step that often fails is license renewal: after twelve months the automatic renewal is sometimes disabled because the credit card limit in the company portal was not updated.