Microsoft is calling Microsoft Copilot the number one productivity app in Windows 11. Above File Explorer. Above Microsoft To Do. Even above the trusty Snipping Tool. From this side of the desk in Lichfield, that ranking tells you more about Microsoft’s marketing priorities than the way a real UK business actually works.
Hi, I’m Andy from Initial IT. We roll Microsoft Copilot out for businesses across Staffordshire and the West Midlands almost weekly now, so I am very far from anti-Copilot. But the “number one productivity app” framing skips a few realities, and that is worth being honest about.
Key takeaways
- Microsoft now ranks Copilot ahead of File Explorer and To Do as the top Windows 11 productivity app.
- Copilot is genuinely useful for summarising emails, drafting documents and pulling notes into actions.
- It is still an assistant on top of the apps you already use, not a replacement for the core tools that run your day.
- For UK SMBs the bigger win is rolling Copilot out safely, on top of Business Premium, with tidy SharePoint permissions.
- If your data is messy, Copilot will reflect it. Tidy first.
Why is Microsoft pushing Copilot as the top productivity app?
There is a big AI PC push under way. Copilot is the public face of that push, so Microsoft has every reason to put it at the top of the ranking. A Copilot icon pinned to the taskbar of every new Windows 11 laptop is the modern equivalent of Internet Explorer in the late 90s, except this one actually does interesting things.
Where Copilot genuinely helps a small business
I am not anti-Copilot. Used in the right places it is one of the better productivity wins I have seen in twenty years of running an IT business.
- Long email threads. Summarised in seconds, with the action items pulled out.
- First drafts of documents. A proposal, a client letter, a policy draft. Edit rather than write cold.
- Meeting summaries. Missed a call? Copilot can turn the recording or chat into a short brief.
- Messy notes into a plan. Half-formed thoughts from a meeting turned into a structured set of actions.
That alone can give a manager or business owner three to five hours back in a week, quietly, without anything dramatic.
Where Copilot is not really “number one”
When I look at how most small businesses actually use Windows 11 in the office, the heavy lifting is still done by other tools.
File Explorer is used constantly. It is how you find client documents, move files, organise folders and keep everything in order. You hardly think about it, you just rely on it.
Same for Microsoft To Do, the Snipping Tool, Outlook search and the humble calendar. None of them get keynote speeches. All of them are woven into the fabric of the working day.
Copilot sits alongside those tools. It does not replace the core systems underneath. Calling it “number one” is a bit like calling a great PA your number one employee. They make everyone else better, but they are not doing the underlying job.
How to make Copilot actually pay off in a UK SMB
Three rules from our Copilot rollouts across Lichfield, Tamworth and the West Midlands:
- Start on the right licence. Microsoft 365 Copilot needs a qualifying base licence. We always recommend Business Premium so the security and device management are in place underneath.
- Tidy SharePoint and OneDrive first. Copilot reflects whatever permissions you already have. Over-shared folders mean Copilot can quietly surface the wrong file to the wrong person.
- Spend thirty minutes training the team. Show people the three to four genuinely useful prompts for their job. Skip the “write me a poem” demo.
How we help
Safe Copilot rollouts are part of our Microsoft 365 service. We do the data governance, the conditional access, the team training and the licence design. If you are weighing Copilot up for your Lichfield, Staffordshire or West Midlands business, have a quick chat with me before you switch it on.
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Take the readiness quiz →Frequently asked questions
Is Microsoft Copilot worth it for a small business?
For most office staff in a UK SMB, yes, but only on top of a properly secured Microsoft 365 Business Premium tenant with tidy SharePoint and OneDrive permissions. The biggest wins are inside Outlook, Word and Teams.
How much does Microsoft Copilot cost in the UK?
Microsoft 365 Copilot is roughly £25 to £29 per user per month, on top of a qualifying base licence like Business Standard or Business Premium. Prices change, so always check the latest on the Microsoft site or with your IT partner.
Is Microsoft Copilot safer than ChatGPT for client data?
Microsoft 365 Copilot keeps your prompts, files and answers inside your tenant and does not train public AI models on them. Public ChatGPT does not give you that guarantee, so it is the wrong tool for confidential client work.
Do we need Copilot, or is Microsoft 365 enough?
Plenty of UK SMBs get most of the value from a well-configured Microsoft 365 Business Premium environment without Copilot. Add Copilot when your data is tidy and you have time to train the team properly.
Where can I find out more about Microsoft Copilot?
You can read more on our Microsoft 365 page, or on Microsoft’s official Copilot site.
– Andy Price, Founder & MD, Initial IT · 01543 524 594 · hello@initialit.co.uk