--- title: "Exchange Online Plan 1 vs Plan 2: A Comprehensive Comparison" description: "Understand the differences between Exchange Online Plan 1 and Plan 2 and choose the best option for your organization." canonical: "https://adamtheautomator.com/exchange-online-plan-1/" --- # Exchange Online Plan 1 vs Plan 2: A Comprehensive Comparison > Understand the differences between Exchange Online Plan 1 and Plan 2 and choose the best option for your organization. Source: https://adamtheautomator.com/exchange-online-plan-1/ --- ATA Learning Tap to hide [ ATA Learning ](/) * [Home](/) * [Tutorials](/tutorials/) * [Instructors](/author/) * [Advertising](/advertising/) * [Recommended Resources](/resources/) * [About Adam](/about-adam/) Search for: * [](https://twitter.com/adbertram) * [](https://github.com/Adam-the-Automator) * [](https://www.linkedin.com/company/adam-the-automator-llc) * [](/feed/) ![Exchange Online Plan 1 vs Plan 2: A Comprehensive Comparison](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Exchange-Online-Plan-1-and-Exchange-Online-Plan-2_-Whats-the-Difference_.png) # Exchange Online Plan 1 vs Plan 2: A Comprehensive Comparison [![](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9a14f10ff1b1ec7d790d34f5b559e4d3de2d31b172e6ef266dfd8b479174d97b?s=192&d=mm&r=g)June Castillote](https://adamtheautomator.com/author/june/)24 September 20204 min. read Categories: [IT Ops](/category/it-ops/) Tags:[Microsoft Exchange](/tag/microsoft-exchange/) Table of Contents * [Comparison Summary](#h-comparison-summary) * [Common Features](#h-common-features) * [Mailbox Storage Limits (User, Shared, Archive)](#h-mailbox-storage-limits-user-shared-archive) * [Exchange Online Plan 1](#h-exchange-online-plan-1) * [Exchange Online Plan 2](#exchange-online-plan-2) * [Mailbox Preservation](#h-mailbox-preservation) * [Data Loss Prevention](#h-data-loss-prevention) * [Unified Messaging Services](#h-unified-messaging-services) * [Final Comparsion](#h-final-comparsion) If your organization is looking to get a cloud email service, Microsoft offers several subscriptions that include Exchange Online. If you begin researching you may see references to both Exchange Online Plan 1 and Exchange Online Plan 2. Which to choose? In this article, you’re going to get an in-depth review of both Exchange Online plans and will see them compared side by side. By the end, you’ll know what benefits you get from both plans, and what you’d get as extra if you opt for the more expensive plan. > Remove Exchange on-premises without compromising ease of management. [Use EasyEntra](https://easyentra.com/easyentra-ad-manager-freemium-edition/?utm_source=adam&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=easyentra&utm_content=freemiumarticle) instead of AD Users & Computers – Completely Free! ## Comparison Summary Exchange Online Plan 2 can be regarded as an upgraded version of Exchange Online Plan 1. All features of Exchange Online Plan 1 are included in Exchange Online Plan 2. > _Pricing is a huge consideration. Exchange Online Plan 1 is $4.00 user/month and Exchange Online Plan 2 is $8.00 user/month._ Apart from the apparent difference in pricing, what are the other differences between the two Exchange Online plans? These differences may help you decide which plan to finally get. The next sections will attempt to help you answer these questions. * Is the mailbox space enough? * Can users archive old messages? * Can deleted messages be retained and restored? * If an employee leaves, can the mailbox data be preserved? * How are sensitive data protected? * Is there support for voicemail integration? ## Common Features There are many features that are common across the two plans like: * _[SMTP relay](https://adamtheautomator.com/office-365-smtp-relay/)_ * Mail hygiene * _[Hybrid deployment](https://adamtheautomator.com/connect-azure-ad-to-office-365/)_ **_Related: [How to Set Up an Office 365 SMTP Relay with Connectors](https://adamtheautomator.com/office-365-smtp-relay/)_** ## Mailbox Storage Limits (User, Shared, Archive) Mailbox storage is a huge concern when picking an appropriate plan. Let’s cover each plan and how much mail you can store. ### Exchange Online Plan 1 Each user mailbox can be a **maximum of 50GB**. _Shared mailboxes_ and _public folder mailboxes_ are also given the same maximum size as a user mailbox. The 50GB maximum mailbox size limit cannot be increased. **You can create up a 50GB archive mailbox size.** ### Exchange Online Plan 2 User mailboxes are given a **100GB maximum mailbox space**, which is double the maximum size of an Exchange Online Plan 1 mailbox. ![A User Mailbox with Exchange Online Plan 2 License](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Untitled-2020-09-23T232425.368.png) A User Mailbox with Exchange Online Plan 2 License The maximum mailbox size of a shared mailbox is initially set to 50GB, without a license. The screenshot below shows the mailbox size of the shared mailbox without a license. ![A Shared Mailbox Without An Exchange Online Plan 2 License](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Untitled-2020-09-23T232503.646.png) A Shared Mailbox Without An Exchange Online Plan 2 License But, if a shared mailbox is assigned with an Exchange Online Plan 2 license, its size would increase to 100GB. ![A Shared Mailbox With An Exchange Online Plan 2 License](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Untitled-2020-09-23T232545.921.png) A Shared Mailbox With An Exchange Online Plan 2 License > _Note: While shared mailboxes do not require a license to be assigned, the users who will access a shared mailbox must have an Exchange Online license assigned._ **With Exchange Online Plan 2, mailbox archiving is unlimited.** > _“Unlimited” doesn’t mean unlimited. The initial size of the archive mailbox is set to 100GB. If more archive mailbox space is needed, Exchange allocates another 100GB from your archive mailbox space. This behavior is referred to as the [auto-expanding archive](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/compliance/autoexpanding-archiving?view=o365-worldwide)._ ## Mailbox Preservation There are times that employees or even the organization itself could be involved in a legal proceeding. And in these cases, mailbox data may need to be preserved so that if summoned, a company can retrieve it. Organizations may preserve selected or all mail items from mailboxes. These can be preserved by putting items in an _[In-place hold](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/compliance/create-a-litigation-hold?view=o365-worldwide)_ or placing an entire mailbox in the _[Litigation hold](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/compliance/create-a-litigation-hold?view=o365-worldwide)._ Another way to preserve the mailbox is by turning the mailbox into an _[inactive mailbox](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/compliance/create-and-manage-inactive-mailboxes?view=o365-worldwide)_. However, a prerequisite for creating an inactive mailbox is by placing the mailbox in litigation hold before the Exchange Online license is removed. **All of these mailbox preservation methods require that the mailbox is assigned with an Exchange Online Plan 2 license.** If a company assigns a mailbox an Exchange Online Plan 1 license, a company can still preserve the mailbox but it must assign a separate (add-on) archiving license. ![Placing a mailbox in litigation hold requires an Exchange Online Plan 2 license](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Untitled-2020-09-23T232636.342.png) Placing a mailbox in litigation hold requires an Exchange Online Plan 2 license ## Data Loss Prevention Protecting sensitive information is of the utmost importance. Whether it is your organization or your client, data leak must be prevented by those who are responsible for keeping them safe. **An Exchange Online Plan 2 subscription is the only license available with the data loss prevention (DLP) feature.** With it, you can use built-in DLP policies or even create custom ones based on your business requirements. Below are just some of the information that you could protect with DLP policies. * Social security number * Banking details, such as bank account numbers from different countries. * Passport number * Driver’s license number * Tax file number For example, if an employee responded to a phishing email and was asked to send their tax file number by email. Having a DLP policy to protect this type of information from being shared would prevent possible data leakage. The image below is just an example of what happens when a message that matches a DLP policy assigned in the organization. ![A message containing DLP](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Untitled-2020-09-23T232728.956.png) A message containing DLP Data loss prevention is an excellent feature to have if your organization is concerned with protecting sensitive information. ## Unified Messaging Services Does your company need to manage voicemails in their mailbox or perhaps need an auto attendant service, you need unified messaging (UM). UM allows mailbox owners to receive voicemails in their mailbox and manage them. Other than the convenience of managing voicemails via the mailbox, the auto-attendant is handy, The auto-attendant is like a digital phone receptionist that answer calls and provide options or menus that users can then press on their phone. If you’ve called into a bank’s phone system and was asked to press numbers to be directed to the right department – that’s what the auto-attendant does. **Unified message services are only available with an Exchange Online Plan 2 license or any Microsoft 365 subscription that includes Exchange Online Plan 2.** ## Final Comparsion Let’s wrap up with a summary of all of the features in plan 2 that don’t come with plan 1 to help you make a better decision. > With EasyEntra, first-level support teams can focus on what instead of where! [Manage AD, Entra ID, and Exchange Online](https://easyentra.com/?utm_source=adam&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=easyentra&utm_content=standardarticle) from a consolidated, intuitive console.
FeatureExchange Online Plan 1Exchange Online Plan 2
Price$4/user$8/user
User mailbox storage max50GB100GB
Shared mailbox storage max50GB100GB
Mailbox archiving max50GBUnlimited
Mailbox preservationAdd-on license neededYes
Data loss preventionNoYes
Unified MessagingNoYes
Looking at the features alone, Exchange Online Plan 2 has better (and bigger) features than Exchange Online Plan 1. However, while those additional features are great to have, they come at double the cost. And as always, money tends to be a huge factor when deciding to get into a deal. In the end, I hope that this article has helped you determine what you’re getting (or not getting) with the Exchange Online Plan you’ll choose. Share this article [Share on X](https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fexchange-online-plan-1%2F&text=Exchange%20Online%20Plan%201%20vs%20Plan%202%3A%20A%20Comprehensive%20Comparison)[Share on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/sharer/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fexchange-online-plan-1%2F)[Share on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fadamtheautomator.com%2Fexchange-online-plan-1%2F) ## Related Posts ![](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/Exchange-Distribution-Groups_-Your-How-To-Ultimate-Guide.jpg) ### [Exchange Distribution Groups: Your How-To Ultimate Guide](/exchange-distribution-group/) Need to work with Exchange distribution groups? Learn the ins and outs of how to manage them with the Exchange Admin Center and PowerShell. ![](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/How-to-Move-Exchange-Mailboxes-with-PowerShell.png) ### [Move Exchange Mailboxes with new-moverequest Command](/new-moverequest/) Learn how to move mailboxes the right way using PowerShell and the New-MoveRequest cmdlet. ![](https://adamtheautomator.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/How-to-Move-Exchange-Mailboxes-with-Exchange-Admin-Center-Moving-user-mailboxes-is-a-common-1.jpg) ### [Easily Move Mailbox with Exchange Admin Center](/move-mailbox/) Learn how to move a mailbox in Exchange 2013, 2016 and 2019 in this informative walkthrough tutorial. ## Categories * [IT Ops](/category/it-ops/) * [Cloud](/category/cloud/) * [DevOps](/category/devops/) * [Home Ops](/category/home-ops/) * [Information Security](/category/infosec/) * [Software Development](/category/software-development/) ## Site * [Home](/) * [Tutorials](/tutorials/) * [Instructors](/author/) * [Advertising](/advertising/) * [Recommended Resources](/resources/) * [About Adam](/about-adam/) Copyright 2026© ATA Learning | [Privacy Policy](/privacy/)