What are Copilot spending limits?
Spending limits are the caps you set in the Microsoft 365 admin centre on how many Copilot Credits your tenant, a group, or an individual can spend in a month. When a cap is reached, Cowork stops for that scope until the next period or until an admin raises it. Alerts fire before the cap, so the limit is a decision point rather than a surprise.
This is the single most important control in the whole pricing model, and the one most often left at its default. Pay-as-you-go without caps is an open account; pay-as-you-go with per-person caps is a budget. Same pricing, completely different risk.
The sensible starting shape for a smaller business is per-person caps on a named pilot group, set at the top of the range the calculator gives you, with alerts at 75%. That way the first month teaches you what real usage looks like, and nobody - including the enthusiast who discovers scheduled tasks - can spend more than you've agreed.
One limitation worth knowing: caps apply per person or group, not per task. You can't say 'no research task over 2,000 credits'. If a task type is expensive, the control is briefing it tighter, or deciding who runs it.
Cowork stops for them until the period resets or an admin raises the limit. Everyday Copilot in their apps keeps working - the cap only affects the metered Cowork side.
Yes - tenant-level caps exist alongside group and individual ones. Most businesses use both: a tenant ceiling as the backstop, per-person caps as the working control.
The definitions are the easy part. Whether Cowork is the right spend is a different question.
We help established UK businesses get a clear view of what they're already running - before they add more on top.