Microsoft Copilot Review: An Epic Assortment of AI Features

Copilot is an AI chatbot you can talk to over text or with your voice, similar to ChatGPT or Gemini. You can use Copilot to do deep research, generate images and videos, handle complex reasoning, pen creative writing, process files, search the web, and more. In general, you can think of Copilot as an advanced, all-encompassing virtual assistant.

You can use Copilot for coding help, too. In fact, the name ‘Copilot’ comes from GitHub’s (a Microsoft subsidiary since 2018) AI assistant that launched in 2021. Copilot’s coding features are outside the scope of this review, but you can still evaluate Copilot’s coding ability for yourself.

I find AI chatbots like Copilot most useful for answering questions and doing research. In many instances, it’s just easier to ask a chatbot a question with natural language instead of writing out the keyword soup a search engine needs to find an answer. Deep research can also be an excellent jumping-off point for solving more complicated problems. 

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Although AI chatbots can be useful, they routinely (and confidently) get things wrong, so don’t take what Copilot says at face value, especially if it’s important. Whatever research you do with Copilot, make sure to corroborate everything with outside sources.

Note that Copilot and Copilot+ are very different things. Copilot, as mentioned, is Microsoft’s AI chatbot. Copilot+ refers to a lineup of NPU-equipped Windows computers with special AI features. This review focuses on the chatbot.

At a basic level, Copilot takes in prompts and spits out responses. Large language models (LLMs, or, put simply, just models) composed of artificial neural networks trained on huge datasets enable this functionality. This sounds complicated, but you can think of it like a really complicated equation that has access to the internet for information on every topic imaginable.

Copilot isn’t like a traditional program that can improve only with new versions: It learns from your interactions with it. So, over time, even without new models or dedicated features, Copilot can become more accurate. This is a gradual process, so don’t expect to notice a difference day to day.

Unlike ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, Copilot largely doesn’t use proprietary LLMs. Instead, Copilot relies on OpenAI’s models. Different Copilot modes engage different ones. The model each mode uses changes over time, and Microsoft isn’t always transparent about this. For example, Copilot’s “Smart” mode uses GPT-5, whereas “Think Deeper” uses “the latest reasoning models from OpenAI.”

But Copilot isn’t the same as ChatGPT. Microsoft trains Copilot with its own users’ data if they don’t opt out, and the chatbot mixes in a host of other technologies, too. The exact details on how Copilot works versus ChatGPT at a low level are unclear.

Copilot is accessible on the web, desktop apps (macOS and Windows), and mobile apps (Android and iOS), but that’s just the beginning. You can also find Copilot (and Copilot-powered features) in Windows on both regular and Copilot+ PCs.

Otherwise, Copilot is part of Bing, powering Microsoft’s AI search experience and Microsoft Edge. It works inside Microsoft 365 apps and has a robust presence on GitHub, too. Copilot is no longer accessible in messaging apps, such as Telegram and WhatsApp. 

If you want the core chatbot Copilot experience, stick with its apps and web version.

Copilot’s free version gives you limited access to features like deep research, image generation, and voice chat. You can also use Copilot’s apps and Copilot within Microsoft’s Edge browser for free. According to Microsoft, free users get “15 boosts per day to generate images [boosts are for faster, more detailed image generation] and get access to the latest AI models during non-peak hours.” A free Microsoft account also gets you 5GB of OneDrive storage and access to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, OneDrive, and other apps on both mobile and the web. Importantly, you don’t get access to Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps for free.

The most confusing thing about Copilot’s pricing is that you can no longer get a standalone Copilot subscription. Instead, Microsoft now bundles Copilot features with Microsoft 365. Most paid tiers get you advanced security with Microsoft Defender, desktop versions of Microsoft 365 apps (Excel, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, Teams, and Word), and more OneDrive storage. It's similar to how Google’s Gemini subscriptions also include a host of features, including cloud storage and tight integrations with Google apps.

Microsoft 365 Personal ($9.99 per month) and Microsoft 365 Family ($12.99 per month) unlock Copilot’s integration with Microsoft 365 apps, higher Copilot usage limits than you get for free, limited access to image generation, and preferred access to Copilot during peak traffic times. The only difference is that the Family option supports up to six users, whereas the Personal option supports just one. Copilot features are available only to the account holder, however, so you shouldn't subscribe to Microsoft 365 Family unless your family needs the Microsoft 365 apps.

Microsoft 365 Premium ($19.99 per month) unlocks the highest limits on AI image generation and Copilot usage, along with preferred access during peak traffic times. Premium subscribers also get “exclusive access to select features” in Copilot. Currently, select features largely means different AI agents, such as Copilot’s Researcher agent, which is like using deep research in the context of your Microsoft 365 app content.

Claude, Grok, Perplexity, and other chatbots generally start at $20 per month for premium plans, and they don’t benefit from the same wider software ecosystems of Google or Microsoft, so Copilot is a good value. Still, Gemini is even more cost-effective, given its robust AI video generation tools (which Copilot doesn’t offer), more generous cloud storage, and slightly cheaper starting price ($8 per month).

Enterprise Copilot plans are outside the scope of this review, but they include several unique features, such as the ability to create AI agents for your business and integrate them into your workflows. Copilot Studio starts at $30 per user per month, billed annually, while Microsoft 365 Copilot Business starts at $21 per user per month, billed annually.

You need to create an account to access all of Copilot’s different modes, do deep research, save your conversations, and more. You can sign in with an Apple, Google, or Microsoft account.

Copilot’s web interface is largely consistent with that of its desktop and mobile apps. Like other chatbots, Copilot has a simple, uncluttered design with a central text field. Prompt suggestions appear below the text field to guide you if you don't know what an AI chatbot can do, which is great for accessibility. The menu on the left houses tabs for Discover (news), Labs (new Copilot features), Library (easy access to deep research reports, images, and more), and Shopping, followed by your conversation history. You can start a new conversation at the top of the menu and expand or minimize it.

You can ask Copilot anything in the central text field, and responses usually generate quickly, depending on the mode you choose. Copilot doesn’t have a model selector like other chatbots, but it does let you pick among different modes in a drop-down menu (in order): Quick Response, Search, Smart, Smart Plus, Study and Learn, and Think Deeper. 

Buttons beneath responses give you an easy way to copy or share them, while Copilot’s Edit in a Page button opens responses in a text editor. Copilot’s Pages feature works like an AI note-taking app, and you can find your Pages in Copilot’s Library tab. I like that you can edit and save a response from Copilot while continuing to prompt, but Pages likely won’t replace a dedicated note-taking app if you are serious about taking notes.

Copilot’s tone is stiffer than ChatGPT’s, putting it more in line with Gemini. Unlike ChatGPT, Copilot doesn’t let you personalize your instance of Copilot in any major way. ChatGPT can be grating, but I generally prefer it to Copilot, and I can adjust it to my tastes as needed.

Like other chatbots, Copilot has memory. It can remember details about you from past conversations and, over time, automatically personalize its chat experience. However, this feature isn't super robust. Like Gemini, if you ask Copilot, for example, what the first message you ever sent it is, it tells you it can’t remember past conversations. With ChatGPT, I can ask this question and get an answer. 

If you don’t want to chat with Copilot alone, you can click the Invite button at the top-right of the interface to send out an invitation to chat with it alongside your friends. I appreciate the novelty of this feature, but it’s not particularly useful to me. However, you might enjoy talking to Copilot with somebody else.

Which Copilot Mode Should You Use?

As mentioned, Microsoft isn’t forthcoming about which LLMs power each mode, outside of Smart (which uses GPT-5.1) and Smart Plus (which uses GPT-5.2). I tested Copilot’s various modes and put together a quick guide on how you should use them:  

• Quick Response: This is best for simple prompts, ideally anything that doesn’t require Copilot to search the internet to answer.

• Search: Use this mode for questions that require Copilot to search the internet. This mode isn’t usually any slower than Quick Response.

• Smart: This is ideal for complex prompts (such as image recognition, file processing, or simple math problems) that require a quick response.

• Smart Plus: If available to you, use this in place of Smart. Since this mode uses GPT-5.2, it’s strictly better than Smart, albeit not by a large margin.

• Study and Learn: Try this option if you want to learn more about a topic rather than get a direct answer. As the name suggests, it's best for studying.

• Think Deeper: Limit the use of this to complex reasoning prompts (hard math or science problems, programming, and more) that you want Copilot to spend extra time on.

Deep research isn’t one of Copilot’s main modes, and you access it via a separate menu. Still, it's another way to use Copilot. Lean on this mode for any prompts you want Copilot to spend extra time on and generate a lengthy report about, complete with a long list of sources.

You can access Copilot Voice, Copilot’s voice chat functionality, directly from Copilot’s central text box by clicking the microphone icon on the right. This is available on Copilot’s apps and web interface, whereas Gemini limits its full voice chat features to Chrome and its mobile apps. Furthermore, you can also control Microsoft’s Edge web browser via conversations with Copilot. Copilot Voice supports screen sharing, which Microsoft calls Copilot Vision, but more on that later.

You can choose between eight different voices, but they have confusingly vague names, such as Alder and Wave, so you need to actually select each one and listen to it first. Copilot Voice supports a surprisingly large number of languages, too; you should be able to talk to Copilot in your native language, even if it's not English.

The actual voice chatting experience with Copilot is competent. Responses generate quickly, and you don’t have to press a button to start or stop speaking, giving it an organic feel. Copilot’s various voices are reasonably lifelike, though not quite at the level of Sesame’s AI voice technology, for example. You can tell that you’re talking to an AI, albeit one doing a good approximation of the human voice.

Mico and Portraits: Intriguing, With Some Kinks

If talking to a faceless AI voice just feels too impersonal, you can try out Mico. Mico is an avatar for Copilot’s voice chat that turns Copilot into a blob-like creature with eyes and a mouth. It can adopt different expressions and change color during conversations. Think of Mico like Clippy for the modern age. Of course, a blob that talks isn’t particularly human, but it can be easier to connect with an avatar of some sort.

If you need more than a blob, Copilot has Portraits. Portraits are Copilot avatars of actual human beings, complete with lip-sync. This makes talking to Copilot feel significantly more natural. On the other hand, Portraits don’t have particularly detailed or high-resolution models, and I noticed occasional buffering and stuttering that interrupted the flow of conversation. Furthermore, you realistically get much less choice with voices; if the sound of the voice contrasts the look of the Portrait too much, it’s distracting.

Audio Expressions: Create Audio Clips With AI

In addition to voice chat, Copilot also offers AI-powered text-to-speech with Audio Expressions. You can either give Copilot the text you want it to voice or prompt it to generate text on a certain topic and then voice what it generates. You start with one of Copilot Voice’s options and then personalize it with styles. These run the gamut from the familiar, such as curiosity or surprise, to the more adventurous, such as skeleton or zombie. Copilot can automatically choose styles and create audio clips with multiple styles, which makes sense for a story with multiple characters.

Audio Expressions feel slightly more lifelike than Copilot’s voice chat, considering how much control you have over them. That said, it’s hard to see much use for this feature, outside of getting a voice-over for a website you're on. Compared with the many dedicated AI text-to-speech services available, Audio Expressions don’t meaningfully stand out.

All major chatbots now search the web automatically, if your prompt requires it. I asked Copilot (Search), ChatGPT (GPT 5.2 Instant), and Gemini (3 Fast) a series of questions ranging from what was going on with Donald Trump and Greenland to when I could expect the second season of Pluribus and more. All three were able to answer most of my questions. However, Copilot stumbled when I asked what Warframe’s current weekly Incarnon weapon rotation was. This is a consistently hard question for chatbots, but ChatGPT and Gemini gave the right answer.

The detail and length of responses varied among the chatbots, but I didn’t notice a significant difference on average. Copilot consistently generated responses the slowest, while ChatGPT was the quickest. ChatGPT also includes articles for further reading when relevant, which the other chatbots don't. Copilot and Gemini highlight relevant portions of text when you hover your cursor over a linked source, which is great for connecting claims to evidence. ChatGPT doesn’t do this, but it does pop out articles, making it easy to see their titles, source names, and publication dates. Copilot has a similar feature, but it doesn’t show publication dates and wastes space by including the web address of the source.

All three chatbots can include images in their responses, with Copilot and ChatGPT automatically showing them when relevant. With Gemini, you need to ask for an image directly if you want one. Anecdotally, Copilot and Gemini seem to include tables in their responses more consistently than ChatGPT, which I generally prefer, even if the information is the same.

I used Copilot’s Search mode for the above testing, but I also asked the same questions via its Quick Response mode. I didn't notice much of a difference, but you might, depending on your prompt. A simple question that necessitates only a single source won’t benefit much from Search mode, but the latter can sometimes call in more sources when your question demands it.

Copilot in Bing: Some Nice Additions to the Interface

Microsoft’s search engine, Bing, has Copilot functionality. If you use Bing, you’re likely already familiar with the summaries that populate at the top of the page when you search for something. These are similar to Google’s AI Overviews, but Bing's summaries showed up more often in my testing. I also found that Bing’s interface made it easier to connect claims to evidence.

If you open the Copilot Search tab in Bing, you can prompt Copilot directly. This doesn’t feel much different than prompting Copilot on its web interface, but one interface tweak to Copilot in Bing surprised me: Hovering over linked sources in Bing’s Copilot Search includes excerpts alongside web addresses. In this way, it works more like ChatGPT. Importantly, Copilot Search in Bing still highlights relevant portions of text when you hover over links. So, it’s purely an upgrade.

Copilot Search also gives you buttons to search for images or videos related to your prompt, courtesy of Bing’s media searching functionality. This is convenient, and it’s not something available in Copilot’s web interface. However, I still prefer using Copilot in its apps or on its web interface, because Copilot Search doesn’t let you do deep research, switch modes, upload files, or more. Google’s AI Mode in Google Search, for comparison, offers AI agent functionality, the ability to select a model and upload files, and a unique Deep Search mode.

Deep research is my favorite AI chatbot feature. Think of it like a more in-depth web search. Simply toggle deep research, submit a prompt, and wait for 10 minutes at most to get a comprehensive report on your topic of choice. These reports can run dozens of pages and cite numerous sources.

To find out how Copilot’s deep research feature stacks up against the competition, I gave Copilot, ChatGPT, and Gemini different deep research prompts across various topics, such as a comparison between two different espresso machines, a gear progression guide for my Ironman account in Old School RuneScape, what hairstyling products would be a good fit for my head of hair, and more. 

Copilot consistently generated its reports faster than the competition, but its reports were usually the shortest; Claude’s deep research reports are similar. ChatGPT's and Gemini's reports tend to go deeper. Gemini always read through the most sources, but its actual citations were closer to those of ChatGPT and Copilot. Despite these differences, the actual information in these reports was generally consistent. Nonetheless, I prefer ChatGPT’s or Gemini’s deep research, as I want the most comprehensive reports possible.

Copilot has some quality-of-life features that I appreciate. For example, if you hover over an in-text citation with your cursor on a Copilot report, it highlights relevant text in the report, something neither ChatGPT nor Gemini does. Copilot also asks follow-up questions (like ChatGPT) and lets you tweak its research plan (like Gemini) before starting on a report. However, it doesn't do these things consistently. I prefer follow-up questions to the ability to edit a research plan before beginning a report; the former is what ChatGPT always asks.

Copilot doesn’t have all the features that other chatbots have. For example, it can't do deep research based on the images you provide. Gemini also adds an easy-to-access menu at the top of its reports that lets you jump between sections, as well as lets you generate relevant flashcards, infographics, quizzes, and web pages with a single click. Like ChatGPT, Copilot’s reports appear in the main chat field, which isn’t as easy to navigate as Gemini’s sidebar interface. That said, Copilot can export reports to Word, just as Gemini can with Google Docs.

All the reports have a different tone, too. Whereas Copilot and Gemini are a bit more formal, ChatGPT’s report reads more like an elaborate forum post. I prefer ChatGPT’s tone because it's slightly more engaging, but your opinion might differ.

Image generation is now a staple feature of AI chatbots. To see how Copilot fares, I put its capabilities up against ChatGPT (GPT Image 1.5) and Gemini (Nano Banana Pro) in three different tests. My first prompt was, “Generate me an image of a cozy suburban home with an open floor plan. I want to see a nice living space with a dining room, kitchen, and living room. Nothing too fancy.” Check out Copilot’s (first slide), ChatGPT’s (second slide), Gemini’s (third slide), and MAI’s (fourth slide) results below. I include Microsoft’s in-house MAI-Image-1 model, which you can access in the Bing Image Creator.

Copilot’s image, while generally free of major errors or distortion, lacks detail and looks more like a stock photo. MAI’s image is distorted and grainy: It's clearly the worst of the bunch. ChatGPT and Gemini both performed well, creating believable images without significant problems. However, Gemini’s image has slightly more detail, which makes it feel more lifelike.

My next prompt focused on the AIs’ abilities to tell a story through successive panels in a comic: “Generate me a six-panel comic image of a high fantasy kingdom where wizards have replaced spellcasting with PowerPoint presentations. Make sure there’s a major twist in the final panel.” Take a look at Copilot’s (first slide), ChatGPT’s (second slide), Gemini’s (third slide), and MAI’s (fourth slide) comics below:

Copilot’s comic doesn’t include a twist by the end, fails to tell a cohesive story, and is simplistic. MAI, however, fares even worse, generating a nonsensical five-panel comic filled with errors and distortion. Once again, ChatGPT's and Gemini's results are the most coherent and detailed, while largely avoiding serious issues. However, Gemini’s comic impresses the most, thanks to slides with text that borders on being genuinely amusing, particularly its “Ethereal Connection” lag.

Lastly, I tested the chatbots’ ability to communicate complex information visually through a diagram. I used the following prompt: “I've got an Ethernet switch, a modem, and a router. I want to connect my PC, PlayStation, smart light hub, and smart TV via Ethernet. I want the modem to connect to the router, and then the router to connect to the switch. Then, I want the switch to connect to the devices. Generate me a diagram showing this.” Copilot’s (first slide), ChatGPT’s (second slide), Gemini’s (third slide), and MAI’s (fourth slide) diagrams are below:

Copilot’s diagram doesn’t have any major issues, aside from it not including a connection to the modem. However, its black-and-white illustration is simplistic. MAI’s diagram is primarily distorted nonsense, making it the worst overall. ChatGPT’s and Gemini’s diagrams are almost perfect, but both have some slight issues. The former shows an odd connector to the right of its Ethernet switch, while the latter has a backwards arrow near its PC connection. 

Image Editing: Serviceable, But Not the Best at Anything

Beyond image generation, AI chatbots can also edit images. Images you edit with AI tend to look AI-generated, but Gemini’s Nano Banana image editing functionality impressed us so much that it earned a Technical Excellence award. So, how does Copilot compare? 

To test their performance, I gave Copilot, ChatGPT (GPT Image 1.5), Gemini (Nano Banana Pro), and MAI-Image-1 two editing challenges, starting with removing a hand obstructing a landscape photo. Below are Copilot’s (first slide), ChatGPT’s (second slide), Gemini’s (third slide), and MAI’s (fourth slide) results:

None of the chatbots did a perfect job. Copilot did the best job of matching the color to the original, but its photo looks grainy and doesn’t maintain the original's aspect ratio. Gemini’s image did maintain the original’s aspect ratio and has the highest resolution, but it’s somewhat grainy and washed out. ChatGPT’s image improves contrast and vibrancy but also suffers from significant (and distracting) tessellation. MAI’s image looks terrible, with excessive grain and sharpness.

Next, I tested the AIs' abilities to replace elements in a photo. I submitted a picture of my kitchen and asked them to replace the chairs and table with the ones I uploaded, while matching the lighting and aspect ratio of the original. You can only submit one image to MAI at a time, so the most it could do was edit out my table and chairs. Take a look at Copilot’s (first slide), ChatGPT’s (second slide), Gemini’s (third slide), and MAI’s (fourth slide) results:

Once again, all the images had issues. Copilot introduced significant distortion, as did MAI, even though all the latter had to do was remove my chairs and table. Gemini’s image was the only one that matched the original’s aspect ratio and had the most realistic lighting, but it couldn’t avoid distortion entirely. It also added a window above the sink for some reason. ChatGPT’s image isn’t bad, but it distorts background details, and its somewhat uncanny lighting makes the chairs and table seem somewhat out of place.

Although Copilot uses the same models as ChatGPT, it doesn’t integrate with Adobe Express or Photoshop. Still, you can prompt Copilot directly to make the same adjustments (such as to brightness, contrast, saturation, and more) and get similar results. Neither method is a true replacement for genuine photo editing software.

Copilot in Paint: Generating Images Costs AI Credits

You can leverage Copilot’s image editing and generation capabilities in Paint, Microsoft’s default image editing program. On Windows 11, you can use Copilot in Paint to generate images, remove backgrounds, or remove objects. However, generating images in Paint costs AI credits, which you only get a limited number of each month with a paid Microsoft 365 subscription. As you might expect, image editing and generation don't work much differently in Paint than via Copilot’s app or web interface.

Copilot 3D: Turn Images Into 3D Models

Similar to Gemini’s Whisk feature that lets you animate images, Copilot lets you turn images into 3D models. This is, undeniably, a curiosity that most people won’t use, but if you’re a digital creator, you might be able to have some fun. I tried turning my fake plant into a 3D model, and Copilot did so in just about a minute. 

I wasn’t blown away by the model's quality (which you can see below), but it’s certainly far better than what I could make myself in the same timeframe. I appreciate the ability to download models as a GIF, which makes creating and sharing them easy.

Via Giphy

Copilot doesn’t support video generation in the same way that ChatGPT does with Sora, or Gemini does with Veo. However, you can leverage AI in Microsoft’s Clipchamp video editing app to make videos based on your own media. Think of these like animated slideshows. Clipchamp lets you choose a style and include some backing music, too. I made a video using the above image-generation comparison images as references below. While this isn’t the most advanced functionality, it can be useful if you want to do something fun with your media.

File processing comprises two core components: document analysis and image recognition. These features enable you to identify things in photos or extract information from lengthy PDFs. However, both of these tasks are difficult for chatbots. I gave Copilot (Smart Plus), ChatGPT (GPT 5.2 Thinking, Extended thinking), and Gemini (3 Thinking) the following image of my computer and asked them to identify as many components as possible with as much specificity as possible.

Copilot did the worst job, offering up vague descriptors such as “ATX motherboard” or “likely includes NVMe SSDs." ChatGPT fared much better, identifying my Aqua Computer D5 Next pump, ASUS ROG Hero motherboard, and black G1/4” compression fittings, among other things. Gemini also did an excellent job, identifying my Aqua Computer Leakshield, G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB DDR5 RAM, Lian Li O11 Dynamic EVO XL case, and more.

For document analysis, I prompted Copilot (Think deeper), ChatGPT (GPT 5.2 Thinking, Extended thinking), and Gemini (3 Thinking), to analyze the manuals of my Leakshield (a computer watercooling component), my motherboard, and my motherboard’s BIOS and tell me if I needed Windows to use the Leakshield, if my motherboard supported USB pass-through power, and if so, how I could enable USB pass-through power on my motherboard.

All three bots were able to tell me that I didn’t need Windows, that my motherboard supported pass-through power, and how to enable pass-through power on my motherboard. However, Copilot was the only of the three not to include references to specific pages in the manuals as sources for its claims, even though it used that information.

Keep in mind that chatbots can still hallucinate entire sections from the documents you provide. As such, I don’t recommend using chatbots for anything mission-critical.

Chatbots can do all sorts of writing, from generating cover letters and monologues to novels and speeches. As chatbots get more advanced, testing whether they can write something coherent isn’t enough. So, I gave the following prompt to Copilot (Quick response), ChatGPT (GPT 5.2 Instant), and Gemini (3 Fast): “Without referencing anything in your memory or prior responses, I want you to write me a free verse poem. Pay special attention to capitalization, enjambment, line breaks, and punctuation. Since it's free verse, I don't want a familiar meter or ABAB rhyming scheme, but I want it to have a cohesive style or underlying beat.” 

Each chatbot successfully wrote a poem, but not all of them followed my instructions equally well. Copilot’s poem meets the minimum requirements of my prompt, but it didn’t excel in any one particular area. Gemini’s poem reads the most like prose of the three and doesn't do anything interesting with enjambment or punctuation. ChatGPT’s poem was the best overall, incorporating the largest variety of punctuation and reading the least like prose. ChatGPT was also the only chatbot to include a title for its poem, which is a nice touch. Whether these poems are any good is for you to decide.

Beyond creative writing, chatbots can handle tough math and science problems. To put their abilities to the test, I gave Copilot (Think deeper), ChatGPT (GPT 5.2 Thinking, Extended thinking), and Gemini (3 Pro) undergraduate exam questions in computer science, math, and physics from Harvard, MIT, and Stanford. I gave these questions to the chatbots in PDF format and asked them not to search the internet for any answers.

Copilot performed the worst overall, getting four math questions and two physics questions wrong. Gemini got one physics and one math question incorrect, whereas ChatGPT missed just one physics question. All three chatbots answered all the computer science questions correctly. 

Although ChatGPT came out on top in this test, Gemini’s performance was very nearly the same, and Copilot trailed behind by only a handful of questions. So, you can use any of these chatbots to help out with homework or similar tasks, but make sure you double-check their answers. Even the most advanced chatbots can and will get questions wrong, so you can’t take their answers at face value.

AI-powered shopping tools are increasingly common across AI chatbots, and Copilot includes a couple of related features. Like Gemini, Copilot includes clickable product tiles with links to retailers, specifications, user reviews, pricing information, pros and cons, and more in responses if you ask for buying advice. Product tiles also include a notification bell you can click to track prices and receive notifications when they drop.

On the one hand, this is a convenient interface that compiles the information you want to see when making purchases. On the other hand, the actual products Copilot recommends don’t impress. For example, when I asked for the best laptops of 2026, Copilot didn’t recommend the machines I expected. Your mileage may vary, but buying advice generated from an amalgamation of different online articles just isn't a reliable way to make important purchases. If anything, you should use Copilot as a jumping-off point for further research.

Copilot also has a Shopping tab in its main left-hand menu. Copilot automatically populates this page with buying advice based on your chat history. For example, after asking about laptops, Copilot added a section at the top of my Shopping page with different laptops I could buy. These recommendations aren’t any better than what you get by asking Copilot directly, so, once again, I wouldn’t trust them without further research.

Copilot Checkout is the chatbot’s newest shopping feature. With certain brands, such as Ashley Furniture, you can make purchases directly within Copilot by interacting with their product tiles. I can’t deny this is convenient, but that’s not enough to make me want to use it. Since Microsoft partnered with PayPal and Stripe to enable Copilot Checkout, there’s little reason to worry about the security of your payment information. I prefer to make purchases through retailers I trust so I can take full advantage of customer support.

When you sign up for a Microsoft 365 plan, you can access Copilot in a bevy of Microsoft apps, including Excel, OneNote, Outlook, PowerPoint, Teams, and Word. Copilot does different things in each app, as you might expect, but it works similarly to Gemini across Google’s apps, albeit to a slightly less extensive extent.

Frankly, there are too many features to cover, so I suggest checking out Microsoft’s support page on the specifics of what Copilot can do in every Microsoft app. You can use Copilot for everything from creating PowerPoint presentations to generating text in Word. In Excel, you can use Copilot to give you insights into the data in your spreadsheets or suggest formulas that might be useful. Copilot in Outlook can help you write emails or summarize email threads. You can access each app’s Copilot integration by loading it up and clicking the Copilot button, usually at the top-right.

In testing, I created a new Word document and then prompted Copilot to generate an outline for an AI chatbot review, complete with different sections tied to major features I could fill in. In just a few seconds, Copilot filled up my document with the outline. Like the rest of Copilot’s features in Microsoft apps, Copilot in Word largely worked as advertised. However, the extent to which it is useful depends on your needs. Furthermore, you likely will have to refine your prompts across multiple iterations to get exactly what you want.

You can talk with Copilot in the Microsoft 365 apps themselves, but this version of Copilot also has its own app and web interface, called Microsoft 365 Copilot. Think of this as a dedicated space for talking to Copilot within your Microsoft content. For example, you can prompt Microsoft 365 Copilot to summarize a PowerPoint presentation or a Word document. Alternatively, you could ask it to find the Excel spreadsheet your boss mentioned in an Outlook email that morning and pull out any relevant figures.

From within Microsoft 365 Copilot, you can also use various agents, including Analyst, Photos, Researcher, and more. Agents are, essentially, different modes for Microsoft 365 Copilot, similar to standard Copilot’s modes. Each agent focuses on different sorts of tasks. For example, Researcher is similar to deep research in that it also generates in-depth reports, but it relies on information from both the internet and your files. Like much of Microsoft 365 Copilot, the usefulness of these agents greatly depends on your own needs.

I appreciate Microsoft 365 Copilot's functionality, which can be especially useful if you spend a lot of time in the Microsoft ecosystem. Still, I wish some of its features were part of the standard Copilot experience, even if they are more relevant to professionals and teams in Microsoft's professional ecosystem.

We’ve covered Microsoft’s Copilot-powered Edge browser before, even naming it one of the best AI web browsers, so you can check out our guide to what actually works, and what doesn’t. Edge has a lot of Copilot functionality, including AI agents (called Actions) that can do tasks for you, easy access to Copilot wherever you go on the internet, Journeys (which organizes past browsing into storylines that help you pick up where you left off), and more.

Edge is a great AI web browser option for Windows users since it's free and the default. It has a full suite of AI web browser features, too, so you can get a taste of what you actually find useful. Still, I recommend not getting too caught up in the marketing hoopla surrounding AI web browser agents, as they just don’t work all that well.

A ton of Copilot features are available on every Windows 11 machine, not just Copilot+ PCs. The most significant are Vision and Search, which I cover below. Copilot Actions also work on Windows, just like they do in Microsoft Edge, but they’re currently limited to Windows Insiders, so I haven’t been able to test them at the time of writing. According to Microsoft, Actions on Windows can do everything from extracting info from PDFs to helping you organize your downloads folder.

Aside from the above, you can use the Copilot wake word (Hey Copilot) to start conversations completely hands-free, assuming you meet a few criteria beforehand. Copilot also extends to gaming, although this functionality is in beta. The ability to chat with Copilot while gaming could be useful, but it really just saves you the trouble of launching another chatbot manually.

Vision: Get Help With Whatever’s Onscreen

We’ve covered Copilot Vision before, which is a real-time combination of two other Copilot features: image recognition and Voice. Basically, you can share what’s on your screen and then talk to Copilot about it. It can even walk you through how to use apps on your PC, such as instructing you how to remove an object in Photoshop. This works on mobile, too. Other chatbots, including Gemini, have similar features on mobile.

More than anything else, Copilot Vision is an extension of Copilot’s voice chat functionality. If you’re not a big fan of talking to Copilot (I’m not), you probably won’t find much use for Vision. On the other hand, if you prefer conversing with Copilot rather than typing your messages, it could be invaluable. Like Copilot’s image recognition, Vision's performance can be hit-or-miss. That said, it works well in most instances.

Search: Locate Files Using Natural Language

The Copilot app on Windows lets you search for files using natural language. You can think of Copilot search like an optional file system integration. Once you turn it on, you can ask Copilot to locate certain files or give it access to files you want to talk about. For example, you might ask Copilot to “find my 2026 budget overview PowerPoint.” Although this feature has yet to roll out, Copilot is becoming part of the Windows taskbar, allowing you to talk to Copilot without opening its accompanying app, as is required now.

Aside from depictions of artificial intelligence in movies like “Her” or “2001: A Space Odyssey,” Copilot is not science fiction. And it’s not conscious, even if young people aren’t so sure. You can’t have a relationship with Copilot, nor can it think for itself. 

Adult or illegal content, anything meant to harass, and taboo subjects like hate speech are all against Microsoft’s policies. Copilot is more stuffy than other chatbots, so expect it to refuse to engage with prompts you usually can get away with on other chatbots.

Microsoft isn’t forthcoming with specifics on Copilot’s context window (roughly akin to computer memory). Microsoft generally recommends you use “short and sweet” prompts. The company also notes you shouldn’t exceed 1.5 million words or 300 pages when summarizing or referencing content, as well as stay under that limit when asking questions about content. For rewriting documents, Microsoft advises you to stay under 3,000 words.

Copilot’s usage limits are somewhat unclear. Some Copilot features have explicit limits on how much you can use them, but others don't. For example, Microsoft says that you get between 15 and 25 uses of Deep Research per month, depending on your plan; however, all paid plans get “extensive usage” of Copilot chat. 

Depending on your plan, you get different amounts of credits per month to use for Copilot features in Microsoft 365 apps, except Copilot in Excel, which is available only to Premium subscribers. However, Copilot’s Agent Mode in Excel is available to Family and Personal subscribers on an AI credit basis, while Premium gets “extensive usage” of it "beyond standard credit limits.” Just double-check usage limits before you sign up for a paid plan.

You need to read through the three (long) privacy policy documents (Copilot privacy controls, Microsoft’s privacy policy, and Microsoft 365 Copilot’s privacy) to get a sense of what data Microsoft collects and what it does with it.

Microsoft uses your conversations with Copilot for training, but you can opt out of that, just as you can control what Copilot remembers about you or disable Copilot’s memory entirely. Similarly, Microsoft retains your conversation history for 18 months by default, but you can delete individual items or the entire history. Microsoft even lets you opt out of personalized ads in Copilot and other Microsoft services.

Microsoft 365 Copilot does not use prompts, responses, or your documents to train its underlying models. Furthermore, Microsoft says that Copilot only makes use of your content when you ask Copilot to do something with it. For example, if you ask Copilot to rewrite a paragraph in a Word document, Copilot gets access to just the Word document in question to complete that task rather than perpetually.

Copilot gives me the same vague sense of unease as Gemini does when one company (and one AI product in particular) can access so much of my data across different services. Copilot’s omnipresence across the Microsoft ecosystem feels invasive at times, but Microsoft gives me enough control over my data to somewhat rein in that feeling.

For a company as large as Microsoft, data breaches and vulnerabilities are inevitable, and, unsurprisingly, Microsoft has a long history of dealing with these sorts of attacks. Copilot is not immune to attack either, and new areas of concern with it keep popping up. Microsoft isn’t necessarily much less secure than any other tech company, but either way, you should definitely exercise caution with what (and how much) you share with Copilot.