M365 vs Google Workspace Pricing UK 2026: Cost Comparison

Microsoft 365 vs Google Workspace pricing UK 2026: which is actually cheaper?

If you manage IT procurement for a UK business, you have almost certainly faced this question: should we be on Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace? Most businesses default to Microsoft because it is what they know — and Microsoft is very good at making it feel like the safe, obvious choice.

But "safe" and "cheapest" are not the same thing. In this article, I am going to do a proper cost comparison — per seat, per team size, including migration — so you can make an informed decision rather than defaulting to the status quo.

Last updated: 2 May 2026 — reflecting current official Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 UK list prices for 2026.

Google Workspace pricing UK 2026 — official tiers

These are Google's official UK list prices for 2026, on the annual-commitment plan:

| Tier | Price (UK, annual) | Storage per user | Meeting size | Recording | |---|---|---|---|---| | Business Starter | £5.00 / user / month | 30 GB | 100 participants | No | | Business Standard | £10.00 / user / month | 2 TB pooled | 150 participants | Yes | | Business Plus | £15.00 / user / month | 5 TB pooled | 500 participants | Yes + eDiscovery | | Enterprise Standard | Contact sales | 5 TB pooled (expandable) | 1,000 participants | Yes + advanced security | | Enterprise Plus | Contact sales | 5 TB pooled (expandable) | 1,000 participants | Yes + S/MIME |

Flexible monthly billing adds roughly 20 percent on top of these figures. The annual commitment is the price most SMBs will see.

Microsoft 365 pricing UK 2026 — equivalent tiers

Microsoft's official UK pricing for the most common SMB tiers in 2026:

| Tier | Price (UK, annual) | Storage per user | Includes | |---|---|---|---| | Microsoft 365 Business Basic | £5.10 / user / month | 1 TB OneDrive | Web Office only | | Microsoft 365 Business Standard | £10.30 / user / month | 1 TB OneDrive | Desktop Office apps | | Microsoft 365 Business Premium | £19.40 / user / month | 1 TB OneDrive | + Intune + Defender | | Microsoft 365 Apps for Business | £8.10 / user / month | 1 TB OneDrive | Desktop apps only, no Exchange |

Like-for-like: which is cheaper at 10, 25 and 50 seats?

| Plan | Per seat/month | 10 seats / year | 25 seats / year | 50 seats / year | |---|---|---|---|---| | Google Workspace Business Starter | £5.00 | £600 | £1,500 | £3,000 | | Google Workspace Business Standard | £10.00 | £1,200 | £3,000 | £6,000 | | Microsoft 365 Business Standard | £10.30 | £1,236 | £3,090 | £6,180 | | Google Workspace Business Plus | £15.00 | £1,800 | £4,500 | £9,000 | | Microsoft 365 Business Premium | £19.40 | £2,328 | £5,820 | £11,640 |

The closest like-for-like comparison is Google Workspace Business Standard vs Microsoft 365 Business Standard: £10.00 vs £10.30 per user per month. Google is marginally cheaper on licence, but Google includes 2 TB of pooled storage per user vs Microsoft's 1 TB, so the value difference is larger than the headline price.

At Business Premium-level features (Intune, Defender, advanced compliance), Microsoft 365 is £4.40 per user per month more expensive than Google Workspace Business Plus.

What do you actually get for the money?

Microsoft 365 strengths. The Office desktop apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) remain the gold standard for document creation. If your team relies heavily on complex Excel models, PowerPoint presentations or Word documents with advanced formatting, M365 has a genuine edge. SharePoint is powerful for document management — though it requires expertise to configure well. Microsoft 365 Business Premium also bundles Intune (device management) and Defender (endpoint security), which Google Workspace does not include at any tier without Enterprise pricing.

Google Workspace strengths. Google Workspace is built for real-time collaboration. Multiple people can work on the same document simultaneously without merge conflicts. Google Meet is simpler than Teams for most SMBs to use. Gmail remains the better email experience for most users. Administrative overhead is significantly lower — it takes far less IT expertise to manage than M365. Storage is 2× Microsoft at the Business Standard tier.

What most UK SMBs actually use. In our experience, the majority of SMBs use their productivity suite for email, calendar, video calls and document sharing. For these core use cases, both platforms perform equally well. The cost difference and the collaboration UX are therefore the deciding factors.

What about migration costs?

This is the question most cost comparisons skip — but it matters. Moving from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace involves migrating email, calendar, contacts and files. The migration itself is technically straightforward for a qualified partner, but it requires planning, communication and user training.

Our workspace migrations start from £9.99 per seat for straightforward environments. A 25-seat migration typically completes in 4–6 weeks and costs £250–£600 depending on complexity.

At 25 seats, the annual saving versus Microsoft 365 Business Premium is £1,680. The migration cost pays back in 2–4 months.

The security consideration

Microsoft 365 Business Premium includes Microsoft Intune (device management) and Microsoft Defender (endpoint security), which gives it a genuine security edge over Google Workspace Business Standard at a comparable price point. If you are in a sector where mobile device management and endpoint security are critical requirements, Business Premium is worth the premium.

Google Workspace counters this on the Enterprise tier with Context-Aware Access, DLP and Vault — but for sub-100-seat SMBs without specific compliance requirements, Workspace Business Standard's built-in security is entirely adequate.

Which tier should you actually pick?

Pick Google Workspace Business Starter (£5/user/month) if your team is under 10 people, uses less than 30 GB of storage each, and does not need to record video meetings.

Pick Google Workspace Business Standard (£10/user/month) for most UK SMBs. It is the sweet spot: 2 TB pooled storage, meeting recording, 150-participant meetings, and a price that is marginally cheaper than the equivalent Microsoft tier.

Pick Microsoft 365 Business Premium (£19.40/user/month) if you genuinely need Intune device management and Defender endpoint security, or if your team is on Excel daily and would lose productivity moving off the desktop apps.

The honest conclusion

For most UK SMBs in 2026, Google Workspace Business Standard at £10.00 per user per month is the cheaper, more storage-rich, easier-to-administer choice versus Microsoft 365 Business Standard at £10.30 per user per month. The migration is a one-off cost that pays back quickly.

If your team relies heavily on desktop Office applications (particularly Excel for complex models), or if you have Microsoft-specific compliance requirements, Microsoft 365 is worth the additional cost.

If you are unsure, a free 30-minute review with us will give you a clear recommendation based on your specific usage pattern and existing infrastructure.

Frequently asked questions

How much is Google Workspace Business Starter in the UK in 2026?

Google Workspace Business Starter costs £5.00 per user per month in the UK on the annual plan, or £6.00 per user per month on the flexible monthly plan. The Starter tier includes 30 GB of cloud storage, custom business email, 100-participant video meetings and standard support.

How much is Google Workspace Business Standard in the UK in 2026?

Google Workspace Business Standard costs £10.00 per user per month in the UK on the annual plan, or £12.00 per user per month on the flexible monthly plan. It includes 2 TB of pooled cloud storage per user, 150-participant meetings with recording and noise cancellation.

What is the official Google Workspace pricing in the UK for 2026?

Business Starter £5/user/month, Business Standard £10/user/month, Business Plus £15/user/month — all on the annual-commitment plan, all direct from Google. Flexible monthly plans are roughly 20 percent more. Enterprise tiers require a Google sales quote.

Is Google Workspace cheaper than Microsoft 365 in the UK?

For most UK SMBs, yes. Google Workspace Business Standard is £10.00 per user per month versus Microsoft 365 Business Standard at £10.30, and Google's plan includes more cloud storage. Microsoft 365 only becomes cheaper to operate when you specifically need Intune device management or Defender security, both included in Business Premium.

What is the difference between Google Workspace Business Starter and Business Standard?

Business Starter (£5/user/month) gives you 30 GB of storage, 100-participant video meetings without recording, and standard support. Business Standard (£10/user/month) gives you 2 TB of pooled storage per user, 150-participant meetings with recording, and noise cancellation. If your team needs meeting recordings or more than 30 GB per user, Business Standard is the right tier.

How much does it cost to migrate from Microsoft 365 to Google Workspace?

A managed migration typically costs £10–£24 per seat depending on data volume and complexity. A 25-seat migration usually completes in 4–6 weeks and costs £250–£600. The savings on per-seat licensing usually pay back the migration cost in 2–4 months.