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MS-900 Practice Question: A company has 10 users who need only Exchange…
A company has 10 users who need only Exchange Online mailboxes and Microsoft Teams. They do not need desktop versions of Office apps. What is the most cost-effective Microsoft 365 plan for this requirement?
⚠ Common exam trap
Test-takers frequently confuse 'Office 365 E1' as the cheapest option due to its 'E' enterprise branding, but Microsoft 365 Business Basic is actually the lowest-cost plan that includes both Exchange Online and Teams, and the exam tests the distinction between business and enterprise pricing tiers.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Microsoft 365 Business Basic
Microsoft 365 Business Basic provides Exchange Online mailboxes and Microsoft Teams, along with web and mobile versions of Office apps, without including desktop Office installations. This makes it the most cost-effective plan for the 10 users who need only email and Teams, as it offers the required services at the lowest per-user price among the options.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✓
Microsoft 365 Business Basic
Why this is correct
Microsoft 365 Business Basic is the correct choice because it bundles hosted Exchange Online mailboxes with Microsoft Teams, and it does so at the lowest per-user price among plans that include both services. It also provides web and mobile versions of Office apps, which is sufficient for users who only need email and chat/collaboration. For a 10-person tenant, this plan avoids paying for desktop Office applications that are not required.
- ✗
Microsoft 365 Apps for Business
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft 365 Apps for Business installs the full desktop Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.) and includes OneDrive, but it does not include Exchange Online mailboxes at all. Because the 10 users specifically need hosted mailboxes and Teams, this plan lacks the core email service and team collaboration capability. It would leave the organization without any mail system unless separately licensed.
- ✗
Microsoft 365 Business Standard
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft 365 Business Standard includes Exchange Online, Teams, and also the fully installed desktop Office applications, making it more feature-rich but significantly more expensive per user than Business Basic. Since the stated requirement is only mailboxes and Microsoft Teams, the desktop apps are superfluous. Selecting this plan would incur unnecessary licensing costs for the same email and Teams functionality.
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Office 365 E1
Why it's wrong here
Office 365 E1 is an enterprise-grade plan that includes Exchange Online and Teams, but it is designed for larger organizations and typically carries a higher monthly price than Microsoft 365 Business Basic. For a 10-user deployment, its advanced compliance and analytics features provide no practical advantage, and it does not offer a small-business discount. Business Basic delivers identical email and Teams essentials at a more appropriate SMB price point.
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Related to this question
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Benefits of Microsoft Cloud
Key term
Microsoft Teams
Microsoft Teams is a collaboration platform that integrates chat, video meetings, file storage, and application integration into a single workspace, primarily used within the Microsoft 365 ecosystem.
Key term
Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 is a subscription-based cloud service from Microsoft that combines productivity tools like Office apps with security, device management, and online storage.
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JA
Written by Johnson Ajibi, MSc IT Security
Senior Network & Security Engineer · founder of Courseiva
This MS-900 practice question is part of Courseiva's free Microsoft certification practice question bank. Courseiva provides original exam-style practice questions with explanations, topic-based practice, mock exams, readiness tracking, and study analytics to help learners prepare for the MS-900 exam.