- A
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Standard to both groups
Why wrong: This would provide desktop apps to contractors unnecessarily, increasing costs without benefit.
- B
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees
Contractors get only the email and storage they need (Business Basic), and full-time employees get the additional desktop apps (Business Standard), minimizing total licensing cost.
- C
Assign Microsoft 365 Apps for business to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees
Why wrong: Microsoft 365 Apps for business includes desktop apps but no email; contractors would still need email, requiring an additional license or service.
- D
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Premium to full-time employees and Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors
Why wrong: Business Premium is more expensive than Business Standard due to added security features (e.g., Intune), which are not required here, making this less cost-effective than the correct answer.
MS-900 Describe Microsoft 365 pricing and support Practice Question
This MS-900 practice question tests your understanding of describe microsoft 365 pricing and support. Read the scenario carefully and evaluate each option against the stated constraints before committing to an answer. After answering, compare your reasoning against the explanation and wrong-answer breakdown below. Once you have made your selection, read the full explanation to reinforce the concept and understand why each distractor is designed to mislead on exam day.
A company has a mix of full-time employees and contractors. Full-time employees need Microsoft 365 desktop apps, email, and cloud storage. Contractors only need email and cloud storage. Which licensing approach is the most cost-effective?
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
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees
Microsoft 365 Business Basic provides web and mobile versions of Office apps, email (Exchange Online), and cloud storage (OneDrive/SharePoint) — sufficient for contractors who don't need desktop apps. Microsoft 365 Business Standard includes the full desktop Office suite plus the same email and storage, meeting the needs of full-time employees. This pairing avoids paying for desktop app licenses for contractors, making it the most cost-effective approach.
Key principle: Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Standard to both groups
Why it's wrong here
This would provide desktop apps to contractors unnecessarily, increasing costs without benefit.
- ✓
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees
Why this is correct
Contractors get only the email and storage they need (Business Basic), and full-time employees get the additional desktop apps (Business Standard), minimizing total licensing cost.
Related concept
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- ✗
Assign Microsoft 365 Apps for business to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees
Why it's wrong here
Microsoft 365 Apps for business includes desktop apps but no email; contractors would still need email, requiring an additional license or service.
- ✗
Assign Microsoft 365 Business Premium to full-time employees and Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors
Why it's wrong here
Business Premium is more expensive than Business Standard due to added security features (e.g., Intune), which are not required here, making this less cost-effective than the correct answer.
Common exam traps
Common exam trap: answer the scenario, not the keyword
The trap here is that candidates may assume contractors need desktop apps or overlook that Microsoft 365 Apps for business lacks email and cloud storage, leading them to choose option C instead of the correct B.
Detailed technical explanation
How to think about this question
Microsoft 365 Business Basic is essentially Exchange Online (50 GB mailbox) plus SharePoint Online and OneDrive for Business (1 TB per user), with Office web apps but no local installation. Business Standard adds the full desktop Office suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, Publisher, Access) licensed per user for up to five devices. Under the hood, license assignment is enforced via Azure AD and the Microsoft 365 admin center; the client activation process checks the license SKU to determine whether desktop apps are permitted, and without the correct SKU, installation is blocked.
KKey Concepts to Remember
- Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
- Find the constraint that changes the correct option.
- Eliminate answers that are true in general but not in this case.
TExam Day Tips
- Watch for words such as best, first, most likely and least administrative effort.
- Review why wrong options are wrong, not only why the correct option is correct.
Key takeaway
Answer the scenario, not the keyword: identify the specific constraint before choosing the most familiar-sounding option.
Real-world example
How this comes up in practice
A startup's cloud architect reviews their monthly bill and notices costs are higher than expected for a long-running batch job. Switching from on-demand instances to Reserved Instances — or using Spot/Preemptible VMs — can reduce compute costs by up to 72 %. Questions like this test whether you understand the tradeoffs between commitment, flexibility, and cost across cloud pricing models.
What to study next
Got this wrong? Here's your next step.
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FAQ
Questions learners often ask
What does this MS-900 question test?
Describe Microsoft 365 pricing and support — This question tests Describe Microsoft 365 pricing and support — Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer..
What is the correct answer to this question?
The correct answer is: Assign Microsoft 365 Business Basic to contractors and Microsoft 365 Business Standard to full-time employees — Microsoft 365 Business Basic provides web and mobile versions of Office apps, email (Exchange Online), and cloud storage (OneDrive/SharePoint) — sufficient for contractors who don't need desktop apps. Microsoft 365 Business Standard includes the full desktop Office suite plus the same email and storage, meeting the needs of full-time employees. This pairing avoids paying for desktop app licenses for contractors, making it the most cost-effective approach.
What should I do if I get this MS-900 question wrong?
Identify which exam domain this question belongs to, review the core concept, then practise similar questions from the same domain.
What is the key concept behind this question?
Read the scenario before looking for a memorised answer.
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Last reviewed: Jun 11, 2026
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