Office 365 Migration Cost: Microsoft 365 Migration Guide and Pricing in 2024
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One of the first questions our potential customers want to know when they call our company is…
How much does it cost to migrate emails and files to Microsoft Office 365?
Answering this question is difficult due to the variation in environments. However, we will attempt to provide you with general pricing guidelines and considerations to determine your Office 365 migration cost, including how many devices are involved.
Migration ranges can vary significantly based on factors such as the number of users, mailboxes, and devices, as well as the current email hosting and chosen license.
Customers often switch email providers to get all the features they need for their emails, calendars, files, and contacts. They want to benefit from the full features of Office 365, including mobile device management and security control. Customers frequently migrate from Google Workspace, GoDaddy, Intermedia, On-promise Exchange server, or a hosted POP3/IMAP.
What is Microsoft Office 365?
Microsoft Office 365 (M365) is a set of cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) products. Depending on the subscription plan you purchase, it may include the latest versions of one or more of the following:
- Outlook and Exchange Email
- Azure Active Directory
- Office Apps Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
- Teams for Video Meeting & Collobration
- SharePoint and OneDrive online storage
- EndPoint Manager (Intune Mobile Device Management)
- Many other useful services
Microsoft Office 365 (M365) is a set of cloud-based software-as-a-service (SaaS) products. Depending on the subscription plan you purchase, it may include the latest versions of one or more of the following:
Outlook and Exchange Email
Exchange Online
Azure Active Directory
Office Apps Suite (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
Teams for Video Meeting & Collaboration
SharePoint and OneDrive online storage
SharePoint Online
EndPoint Manager (Intune Mobile Device Management)
Many other useful services
The plan you select will depend on the business needs of your employees. For small-to-medium businesses, we recommend Microsoft 365 Business Plans. For businesses with over 300 users, Microsoft Office 365 E3 or E5 plan. It has an unlimited user count, a larger mailbox size, and more.
The most popular plans include Microsoft 365 Business Basic, Business Standard, and Business Premium.
We recommend Business Premium because it provides good value since it includes features such as email, calendars, storage, video meetings (similar to Zoom or WebEx), and enhanced security. Some security features include Microsoft Defender for EndPoint (Next-Gen AntiVirus & AntiMalware), Data Loss Prevention (DLP), Sensitivity Labeling, and Email Encryption.
We suggest Office 365 E5 or another Enterprise Plan for small businesses needing bigger mailboxes and compliance. They offer 100GB of storage and advanced protection with security compliance.
Microsoft Office 365 Most Popular Plans for Small Businesses
| Features Summary | Business Basic | Business Standard | Business Premium | Office 365 E5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly Cost with Annual Commitment | $6.00 per user | $12.50 per user | $22.00 per user | $38.00 per user |
| Email and Calendaring | Included | Included | Included | Included |
| Email Storage Space | 50 GB Mailbox | 50 GB Mailbox | 50 GB Mailbox | 100 GB Mailbox |
| File Storage & Sharing | 1 TB | 1 TB | 1 TB | 1 TB |
| Desktop Office Apps (Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint & more) | Only Web Apps | Up to 5 devices on local machine (desktop or laptop) | Up to 5 devices on local PC & cloud PC | Up to 5 devices on local PC & cloud PC |
| Group Chat / Collaboration / Web Meeting | Teams (Voice & Video Calls) | Teams (Voice & Video Calls) | Teams (Voice & Video Calls) | Teams (Voice & Video Calls) |
| Mobile Device & Security | Apply Mobile & PC Security Policies | Apply Mobile & PC Security Policies | ||
| Advanced Security for email & files | Threat Protection Protect Data Loss or Copying; Restrict Apps & Locations |
Threat Protection Protect Data Loss or Copying; Restrict Apps & Locations |
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| Business Phone System | Add-On | Add-On | Add-On | Include Audio Conference (no calling plan) |
| Users | Up to 300 | Up to 300 | Up to 300 | Unlimited |
Factors That Influence Your Office 365 Migration Process Cost
Once you determined the Office 365 Plan that is right for your business, you will need to budget for the cost of migrating your email from the current email system to O365. Factors such as the price range for mailbox migration services and the need for professional assistance in handling specific technical issues should be considered.
In this article, we will focus on the migration to Office 365 Exchange email only. We won’t consider Azure Active Directory, Intune Device Management, SharePoint, OneDrive, Teams, or other online products. These products are not part of the email migration project.
An email migration project will transfer all emails and folders from one email account into another email account. For example, from [email protected] to [email protected]. Various migration solutions, including tools like the Microsoft SharePoint Online Migration Tool and Exchange Online PowerShell Commands, are available for tenant-to-tenant migrations.
Here are some of the factors that could affect your migration cost:
Number of Users or Mailboxes
In general, the more mailboxes you have, the lower the cost per mailbox you will pay for the migration project. To be clear, ask for a Scope-of-Work (SOW) including “What Is” and “What Is Not” covered in the migration services. eSudo provides a complete SOW with each project.
Size of the User's Mailbox Migration
The size of the user’s mailbox is the total space used by all email messages, including attachments, in one account. The larger the mailbox size, the longer it takes to migrate to Office 365.
Some users have a large mailbox, over 25 GB, and they may have damaged messages. These users need to clean up their mailbox before they can move to O365. If the attachment is corrupted or too large, some messages will not migrate.
To make your mailbox smaller, remove deleted messages and sent messages over 3 years old. Alternatively, we recommend archiving messages over 4 years old to a local personal Outlook file. This will speed up message downloads during migration and improve Outlook Client performance.
Existing Email Server or Data Source
Will the age of your current email system affect the cost of your migration? Moving emails from old Microsoft Exchange or non-Microsoft servers requires extra preparation time before starting the migration.
For example,
- If you are currently using an older onsite Exchange Server 2010 (or older, SBS 2007-2010), there are some additional steps involved before we can start the Exchange to Office 365 migration.
- If you are using POP3/IMAP server, Google G-suite/Apps (Workspace), all your messages may have to be downloaded to Outlook and stored locally, or handled through an IMAP migration.
- If you are using multiple PCs or mobile devices for email, there may be different copies of your messages on different devices because your messages are downloaded; meaning, they are not synced with each other. As a result, we will need to determine which device stores your most recent messages and try to consolidate them into one copy (onto one PC). This will require additional time to prepare and conduct a cleanup before we are able to start migrating your email data to Office 365.
Integration with Windows Server Active Directory (On-premise)
Businesses that have invested in Windows Server Active Directory for user accounts and password management usually do not want to keep track of another set of passwords when migrating to Office 365. There is a solution for this.
You can use Azure AD Connect to implement Single Sign-on (SSO) with Active Directory. This allows cloud and on-premise servers to use the same Windows Domain account password for Office 365 email. I.e. one username/password sign-on for both Active Directory and Office 365.
Office 365 and Active Directory Server integration simplifies the management of user email addresses and passwords. This saves time and money for your business. However, adding this feature may increase setup costs.
Integration with third-party applications or network devices
Do you use any external apps, like a CRM, ID provider, network scanner, or copier, that require email sending? We will need to look into the compatibility of the application or network device. For example, the application or network device must meet the security requirements for Office 365 before it is allowed to send or relay email via the Office 365 mail server.
If so, we can assess your options and determine the time for setup and the associated cost involved.
NOTE: If you use third-party identity providers, like Okta and Duo Security, it also adds a new layer of complexity during the migration. Many larger firms use Okta because it provides single sign-on and Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) to Office 365 and other web applications.
Three Different Migration Options for Office 365 Email
Companies have the option to migrate to Office 365 on their own. However, it is recommended to utilize a Microsoft Cloud partner such as eSudo. This will ensure a smoother transition and minimize downtime. Proper configuration of the Microsoft tenant is crucial to ensure a smooth migration process and can significantly impact migration costs.
eSudo offers various services to assist you in getting started. These services include guiding you through the sign-up and setup process. Additionally, eSudo can help you transfer your email from your current server or another provider.
- Basic implementation without mail migration. This involves setting up a custom email domain for your business and verifying that you can send and receive emails.
- Implementation with Mail Migration and Outlook or PC Configuration. In addition to Option 1 and 3, eSudo will help configure PC Outlook Mail Client and Mobile devices (iPhone, iPad, Android, Windows Phone) to connect to Office 365. This includes some on-site services. It is our most popular option for customers that need end-to-end service.
- Implementation with Mail Migration. In addition to Option 1 services, eSudo will migrate email, calendar and contact data for email users from Exchange or POP3/SMTP servers or Google G-suites.
| Options | Option 1 Without email migration |
Option 2 With email migration and PC setup |
Option 3 With email migration, without PC setup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Migration Cost (20 users minimum) - price range per user: Actual Cost may vary depending on the customer requirements |
$50-75 per user | $200-275 per user | $100-200 per user |
|
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Hourly | ||
|
Hourly | ||
| Onsite Technical Support | Hourly | Set of Hours Included | Hourly |
| Post-Technical Support after Migration to Office 365 go live | 7 days | 30 days | 14 days |
Future Considerations (Post Migration)
Once the email migration is complete, your business can utilize numerous Microsoft 365 features and automation. Here are some suggestions:
- Cloud File Storage replacing on-premise Windows file server or other cloud storage such as Dropbox or Box or Google Drive
- AutoPilot for automating the setup Computer Setup and application management using Azure AD and Intune MDM - this can save time and money by allowing businesses to deploy new devices by dropping shipping to end-user directly and sign to Office 365 to automate the setup.
- Intune Device Management (MDM/MAM) for Windows, Android, and iPhone including company-owned and personal devices (BYOD). This could be done at the same time as Email migration so users can enroll with Outlook on their device and would cut down on time for this part of the Project.
- DLP (Data Loss Prevention) Policies and setup - prevent data from leaving your company assets.
- Conditional Access Policy - Restricting OneDrive and SharePoint Syncing only to Azure AD joined devices
- Data labeling and classification for protecting sensitive information (SSN, Bank, Driver license) from getting sent via email or uploading to personal OneDrive, Dropbox or G-drive.
- Development of policies and procedures for the business in terms of cyber security and technology usage
Based on our extensive experience, eSudo can remove the worry and hassle from the migration process with proven results! Whether you have 5 or 300+ users, we have the experience to meet your organization’s unique deployment needs.
Experienced Microsoft Support Team
We have been supporting Microsoft products for over 25 years and can offer remote and onsite support whenever you need it.
Cost-Effective
Our Office 365 migration services are priced well below industry standards based on 20 people or more, starting at just $180.00 to migrate to Office 365.
Proven Methodology
The last thing anyone wants is a surprise, so go with the team that has done it before, from transitioning 10 mailbox to 300+ mailboxes
