March Licensing Update: E5 Security Add-On for Business Premium

In this month’s update, Microsoft has expanded access to its E5 Security add-on, making it available to Microsoft 365 Business Premium customers for the first time.

This licensing change brings enterprise-grade security capabilities, previously limited to E3 and E5 plans, into reach for small and mid-sized organizations using Business Premium.

This announcement allows IT teams to strengthen their security posture without moving to a full enterprise license, offering a more flexible and cost-effective path to advanced protection.

What’s New

The Microsoft E5 Security add-on, previously only available to Microsoft 365 E3 and E5 tenants, is now supported on Microsoft 365 Business Premium. This change brings a suite of advanced security tools into reach for small and mid-sized organizations without requiring an upgrade to enterprise licensing.

This add-on includes:

• Defender for Office 365 Plan 2
• Defender for Endpoint Plan 2
• Defender for Identity
• Defender for Cloud Apps
• Entra ID Plan 2

The bundle is priced at $12 per user/month—less than half the cost of purchasing these tools individually.

Why It Matters

This update gives Microsoft 365 Business Premium customers access to security capabilities that were previously only available through enterprise licensing. With the E5 Security add-on, organizations can now implement:

• Advanced threat protection and phishing simulation
• Extended detection and response (XDR)
• Risk-based conditional access and sign-in monitoring
• Deeper visibility into endpoint and cloud activity

Organizations on Business Standard or Business Basic can upgrade to Business Premium to take advantage of the new add-on.

Planning Considerations with Sourcepass MCOE

This update reflects Microsoft’s continued effort to bring enterprise-grade capabilities to the small and mid-sized business space. With the E5 Security add-on now available for Business Premium, organizations have a more cost-effective path to advanced protection and centralized security management.

For ongoing updates like this, subscribe to our YouTube channel for our monthly Microsoft podcast. Our Microsoft consultants at the Sourcepass Center of Excellence continue to monitor these developments to help organizations stay informed and in control of their Microsoft environments.