Microsoft 365 Nonprofit Pricing Australia — 2026 Guide

Microsoft offers deeply discounted and donated Microsoft 365 licensing for eligible Australian not-for-profit organisations. Eligible NFPs can access Business Basic for $2.50/user/month (donated — effectively free), Business Premium at $9.84/user/month (significantly discounted from the commercial rate of approximately $32/user/month), and Microsoft 365 Apps for Business at $4.50/user/month. These prices are per user, per month, and require annual commitment. Up to 300 users are eligible for donated or discounted pricing.

For Australian NFPs, the Microsoft nonprofit program is one of the most significant technology subsidies available — a 30-user organisation on Business Premium saves roughly $660/month against commercial pricing. This guide covers the available plans, eligibility requirements, the application process, and which plan most Australian NFPs should choose.

Microsoft 365 NFP pricing table — what each plan includes

For NFPs handling sensitive donor, client, or beneficiary data, Business Premium is the recommended plan — the security and device management inclusions justify the higher price.

All donated pricing requires ACNC charity registration and annual renewal through Microsoft for Nonprofits. Pricing is reviewed by Microsoft annually and may change — confirm current rates at microsoft.com/en-au/nonprofits before budgeting.

Are you eligible for Microsoft 365 NFP pricing in Australia?

To access Microsoft's nonprofit pricing, an Australian organisation must be registered with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) as a charity or be a Public Benevolent Institution (PBI). Eligibility is validated by TechSoup Australia on Microsoft's behalf.

Eligible organisations include:

• Charities registered with the ACNC
• Public Benevolent Institutions (PBIs)
• Health promotion charities
• organisations endorsed as deductible gift recipients (DGRs) under Australian tax law

Not eligible:

• Government entities
• Educational institutions (separate EDU programs exist for schools and universities)
• Political organisations
• Religious organisations whose primary activity is worship

Check your ACNC registration status at charity.acnc.gov.au before applying — you will need your ACNC registration number during the application process. If your organisation is not yet ACNC-registered, registration is free and typically takes 4–8 weeks.

How to apply for Microsoft 365 nonprofit pricing in Australia

1. Confirm ACNC registration — look up your organisation at charity.acnc.gov.au and note your registration number.
2. Register at microsoft.com/en-au/nonprofits — create a Microsoft for Nonprofits account and submit your ACNC registration number along with your organisation details.
3. TechSoup Australia validates eligibility — TechSoup reviews your ACNC registration and confirms your organisation qualifies. This typically takes 5–10 business days.
4. Once validated, discounted licensing appears in the Microsoft 365 Admin Centre — you can assign NFP-priced licences to users immediately.
5. Mycelium 365 can manage the application and licensing setup on behalf of your organisation — this is included in the managed IT onboarding process for NFP clients.

Eligibility must be re-verified annually. Microsoft sends a renewal notification before the annual renewal date — if eligibility lapses, pricing reverts to commercial rates. Mycelium 365 tracks renewal dates for all NFP clients and manages the re-verification process.

Microsoft 365 Business Premium — why most Australian NFPs should use it

Most Australian NFPs should use Business Premium rather than Business Basic, despite the higher price. At $9.84/user/month the price difference versus Business Basic ($2.50) is approximately $7.34/user/month — for a 30-user NFP that is roughly $220/month.

That $220/month buys capabilities that are increasingly mandatory for NFPs handling personal data under the Privacy Act 1988 and the Notifiable Data Breaches scheme:

• Defender for Business — cyber security monitoring across all devices, detecting ransomware, phishing, and malware threats. Without endpoint protection, NFPs are vulnerable to the same cyber attacks targeting commercial businesses.
• Intune — device management, essential for staff using personal devices to access client or donor data. Intune enforces security policies (PIN, encryption, remote wipe) without requiring a full device management server.
• Entra ID Conditional Access — MFA enforcement, which is required by most cyber insurance providers. Conditional Access also lets you restrict access to sensitive data based on location, device compliance, or risk level.
• Microsoft Purview — data loss prevention, essential for ACNC compliance and grant acquittals. Purview can detect and block the sharing of sensitive information (beneficiary data, financial records) via email or external sharing links.

For NFPs handling sensitive beneficiary data, donor records, or grant funding, Business Premium is the minimum appropriate standard. Managed IT for not-for-profits from Mycelium 365 ensures Business Premium is correctly configured for your compliance requirements.

Azure donated credits for Australian NFPs

In addition to Microsoft 365 discounts, eligible Australian NFPs receive $3,500 AUD/year in Microsoft Azure donated credits — renewable annually. Azure credits can be used for cloud storage, virtual machines, backup, and AI services.

Many NFPs use Azure credits to fund:

• Cloud backup of critical records — Azure Backup provides geographically redundant backup of donor databases, case management systems, and financial records.
• Hosting low-traffic websites or portals — Azure App Service can host a WordPress site or custom portal at minimal credit cost.
• Running Power BI for grant reporting — Power BI Pro licences (included in Business Premium) connect to Azure SQL or Azure Data Lake for grant acquittal dashboards.
• Azure Virtual Desktop for remote staff — session hosts in Azure provide secure remote access to NFP applications without VPN.

Mycelium 365 manages Azure credit allocation as part of the managed IT service — ensuring credits are used effectively before annual expiry. For more on Azure for NFPs, see our guide on Azure donated credits.

How Mycelium 365 helps Australian NFPs access and manage Microsoft 365

Mycelium 365 manages Microsoft 365 licensing for Australian NFPs as part of its managed IT service — including the initial eligibility application, annual renewal, licence assignment, and full Microsoft 365 environment management.

NFP clients receive the Secure Essentials managed package at the same fixed price as commercial clients ($95/user/month for management — Microsoft 365 licensing is additional at NFP pricing). This includes:

• NFP eligibility application and annual renewal management
• Licence assignment and reassignment as staff change
• Microsoft 365 environment management (Exchange Online, SharePoint, Teams, Entra ID)
• Intune device management and Defender for Business security monitoring
• Managed helpdesk support (8am–6pm AEST, unlimited calls)
• User onboarding and offboarding
• Monthly reporting on security posture and licence utilisation

For a broader overview of Microsoft 365 for the NFP sector, see Microsoft 365 for not-for-profit Australia. Contact Mycelium 365 for a no-obligation conversation about NFP licensing and managed IT — we work with NFPs from 5 users to 300 users across Australia, New Zealand, and the United States.

The combination of donated Microsoft 365 licensing and Mycelium 365 managed IT means an Australian NFP can run a fully managed, security-hardened Microsoft 365 environment for significantly less than the commercial cost of licensing alone — making enterprise-grade IT accessible on an NFP budget.