In this article, you'll learn how to start a 30-day trial of Planner premium features, how to use them during the trial period, and how to request a subscription from your administrator if you want to keep these features.
Important: Copilot in Planner in Teams (preview) has begun to roll out. Once your organization receives this product update, you'll be able to experience the available Copilot functionality with your Project Plan 3 or Plan 5 license, or within your 30-day trial.
After signing into Planner, if you have an E3 or E5 license, you can use all the regular Planner capabilities for free. However, if you want to access more advanced features, such as task history, dependencies, custom fields, and timeline view, you can try a premium license for 30 days at no cost.
Planner with premium features give you all the benefits of Planner, plus the power of the Project Plan 3 license. Features include Timeline (Gantt) view, dependencies, sprints, custom fields, team workload, managing goals, and Copilot (preview available only in the Planner app in Teams) and more. This trial gives you robust project management tool that integrates with other Microsoft apps and services.
How to start a 30-day trial
You can start a 30-day trial of Planner premium features from either Planner app in Teams or the Planner website. Follow these steps to get started:
Planner app in Teams
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To experience premium features within the new Planner, select Try Project next to the diamond icon within the app in Teams. You'll begin your free 30-day trial of these advanced capabilities or be able request a premium license.
Planner website
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If you are using the Planner website, you can start a trial by selecting the Try Project button or by selecting the Timeline menu option. Both options will prompt you to sign up for a trial.
Depending on your organization's settings, you may start the trial right away or you may need to request approval from your administrator. After sending a request, you’ll get a confirmation message and receive a notification when your request is approved or denied.
Premium features available during the trial
Once you start the trial, you have access to all the premium features of Planner for 30 days. You can use these features in both the Planner app in Teams and Project for the Web. Some of the premium features include:
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Task history: View the changes made to a task over time, such as who assigned it, who completed it, and what comments were added.
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Dependencies: Link tasks that depend on each other, so that you can see the impact of delays or changes on your plan.
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Custom fields: Create your own fields to track additional information about your tasks, such as priority, status, or cost.
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Timeline view: See your tasks and dependencies in a Gantt chart, which helps you visualize the progress and duration of your plan.
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Sprints: Organize your tasks into sprints, which are short periods of time where you focus on completing a set of tasks.
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Team workload: Track how much work each member of your team has assigned and balance the workload accordingly.
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Managing goals: Create and track goals for your plan and see how they align with your organization's objectives.
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Copilot: Get personalized suggestions and insights from Copilot, a smart assistant that helps you manage your tasks and plans. Available in preview, and only in the Planner app in Teams.
How to request a subscription after the trial
If you like the premium features and want to keep them after the trial, you can request a subscription from your administrator. To do this:
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Select the Trial button in the Planner app in Teams or the Planner website.
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Next, select Request a subscription. Your request will be sent to your administrator, and you'll be notified of their decision.
Alternatively, you may be able to purchase your own subscription or multiple licenses for your team, depending on your organization's settings. This is called a self-service purchase. It allows you to manage your own licenses without involving your administrator. To do this:
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Select the Trial button.
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Next, select Buy Project. You will be redirected to a page where you can choose a plan and a payment method.
Note: The self-service purchase option may not be available for you, depending on the type of Microsoft 365 license your organization has and your host country. If you are not sure if you have this option, you can contact your administrator for more details.
