Microsoft has begun shifting its consumer cloud subscriptions to a shared storage model, and the company is simultaneously closing the book on an older generation of its office software. According to BornCity, new and upgraded Microsoft 365 Family and Premium subscriptions have received 2 TB of shared OneDrive space by default since October 8, 2026. Previously, each person on a plan was allotted 1 TB, which meant a six-person subscription could hold as much as 6 TB in total.
The change lands alongside the end of support for Office 2021. Microsoft will stop servicing that perpetual software package on all operating systems on October 13, 2026, per BornCity. From that date, the company will no longer issue security patches, bug fixes, or technical assistance for the product.
Why it matters
The storage revision reverses a long-standing selling point of Microsoft's family plans. Under the old arrangement, every additional member effectively added another terabyte to the pool, so a full six-person household could accumulate six times the storage of a single subscriber. The new structure caps the entire group at 2 TB regardless of how many people share it.
BornCity reports that a six-user subscription therefore stands to lose as much as 4 TB of combined capacity, a reduction of roughly 66.6 to 66.7 percent. Microsoft, asked about the cut, attributed the change to greater flexibility, according to BornCity.
The timing compounds the pressure on customers. Households and small businesses weighing a move to Microsoft 365 now face a smaller storage allowance than the one they may have signed up for, while users of the standalone Office 2021 package must decide whether to migrate or run unsupported software.
Different dates, different documents
Microsoft's own documentation does not tell a single consistent story. BornCity notes that one support page dates the new storage model to October 7, 2026 for new, expired, or repurchased plans, one day earlier than the October 8 date given elsewhere. Existing Family and Premium subscribers are to be moved onto the new model at their first renewal, with one page citing May 2, 2027 and another naming April 1, 2027.
Eligible existing customers in selected regions may receive bonus storage when they renew, though BornCity reports that the markets and the amounts have not been disclosed. For Microsoft 365 Pro, the switch to 5 TB of shared storage takes effect on November 1, 2027, a reduction of up to 1 TB.
Not every tier changes. Microsoft 365 Personal keeps its 1 TB allowance, and the Basic plan continues to offer 100 GB. Subscribers who need more room can buy additional space at 10 US dollars per month for each terabyte, up to a ceiling of 10 TB per subscription. US pricing for the plans is unchanged: 129.99 dollars a year for Family, 199.99 dollars a year for Premium, 99.99 dollars a year for Personal, and 1,200 dollars a year, or 100 dollars a month, for Pro.
Copilot access widens as Office 2021 winds down
In exchange for the tighter storage terms, Microsoft is broadening access to its Copilot assistant. BornCity reports that all members of a Family or Premium plan will be able to use the AI features through a shared usage allowance, where previously only the account holder had that access. That expansion comes with a caveat: Microsoft's grounding guidance still states that on Family plans only the primary account owner receives full Copilot functionality.
Business customers are getting new options as well. Microsoft 365 SharePoint Storage and OneDrive Storage have entered public preview, letting organizations buy additional capacity through Azure on a usage basis beyond what their licenses include, with administrators controlling the arrangement. Separately, usage-based billing for Microsoft 365 Copilot Business through Cloud Solution Provider becomes the default on December 1, 2026, with a standard limit of 4,000 Copilot credits per user per month. BornCity notes that the first rollout wave skips several countries, among them Germany, France, and Italy.
For customers who prefer to stay on locally installed software, Microsoft points to Office LTSC 2024, whose regular mainstream support runs until October 9, 2029. The Publisher application is no longer part of that release. Virtualized and server-based environments follow their own schedule: Microsoft 365 Apps on Windows Server 2022 will receive feature updates only up to version 2608, after which the company will supply security updates alone until October 10, 2028. Microsoft is directing those customers toward Windows Server 2025, which carries mainstream support until November 2029 and extended support until November 2034.
What to watch: how existing Family and Premium subscribers respond when their renewals arrive in 2027, and whether Microsoft clarifies the conflicting dates and the regional bonus storage it has so far left undefined.
