According to Forbes Advisor, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central has been named the best overall ERP system while earning a 5/5 rating in their reviews. It is also consistently ranked among the best small business accounting software for Canadian companies that have outgrown entry-level tools like QuickBooks.
Today, businesses are migrating from Dynamics NAV to Business Central. If you are planning for Business Central implementation, that is, moving from an older version to the new one, then this article is for you.
Table of Contents
Understanding the business central pricing plan is a critical step before you sign off for an ERP software solution for your business.
Continue reading to narrow down your choices and choose the plan that best suits your business requirements.
Prices as of October 2026. Source: Microsoft Canada (microsoft.com/en-ca/dynamics-365/products/business-central/pricing). All prices are per user per month, billed annually, plus applicable tax.
Types of Business Central Licenses
Dynamics 365 Business Central offers three types of licenses to its users.
Dynamics 365 Business Central Essentials User
Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium User
Dynamics 365 Business Central Team User
Business Central Pricing Update: What’s New?
Microsoft announced the first Dynamics 365 Business Central price increase in more than five years. This new Business Central pricing shift in 2025 represents the numerous advances to the platform, such as its new powerful tools, increased storage, and AI-based functionalities. The new prices and storage capacity will be effective from October 1, 2025.
Furthermore, over the years, Business Central has kept expanding and helping small and mid-sized businesses by incorporating additional value in areas such as finance, analytics, supply chain, and manufacturing. The vision is to continue to assist companies to manage their end-to-end processes on a single platform.
Key Product Updates in 2025
Microsoft Copilot in Business Central
AI-powered financial analysis
AI-powered account reconciliation
Better analytics for finance and manufacturing
Improved integration with Microsoft Power Platform
Sustainability module
Master data management
More localizations / Additional localizations
New Pricing and Storage Updates in 2025
Microsoft is going to increase the price and storage of all Business Central cloud licenses. The updates will be in effect on all new subscriptions and renewals from October 1, 2025.
Business Central New Pricing vs. Old Pricing | Comparison
To clearly compare the new Business Central pricing vs. old Business Central pricing and storage entitlements of the various Business Central license types, refer to the following table:
* (Prices as of October 2026—source: Microsoft Canada. CAD figures per user per month, billed yearly, plus applicable tax.)
| License Type | Old Price (CAD) | New Price (CAD)—Effective Nov 1, 2025 | Old Storage | New Storage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Essentials (Full User) | CAD 95 per user/month | CAD 108.50 per user/month | 2 GB | 3 GB |
| Premium (Full User) | CAD 135.70 per user/month | CAD 149.20 per user/month | 3 GB | 5 GB |
| Team Member (Limited User) | CAD 10.90 per user/month | No change—CAD 10.90 per user/month | — | — |
| Business Central Device License | CAD 54.67 per device/month | ~CAD 61.50 per device/month (approx. the CAD equivalent of Microsoft's USD $45 list price) | 1 GB | 1.5 GB |
Note: Team Member licenses do not include storage entitlement. The CAD device price is an approximate conversion of Microsoft's USD list price and may vary slightly by partner—confirm 2026—source: the current CAD figure with your business central partner.
Essentials License
The Essentials subscription is tailored for users who require complete access to most of the modules of Microsoft Business Central. As per the recent announcement made by Microsoft, the new price of the Essentials license will be CAD 108.50 per user per month, beginning on October 1, 2025. Also, all Essentials users will get 3 GB of included storage, an increase over the 2 GB that was previously included.
In simple terms, this subscription is designed for full users such as sales, purchase, finance, project, inventory, warehouse, supply chain, and customer relations.
Essentials subscription does not restrict the number of users for this license; however, it cannot be integrated or added with the Premium in the same deployment.
With Microsoft Dynamics Business Central Essentials subscription, businesses can keep track of customer interactions. It can automatically record interactions for purchase, sales, and service documents, like when a document is posted or printed.
Dynamics Business Central Essentials subscription is based on monthly and annual plans. The annual plan often includes an attractive discount for the users.
Users may access all important financial management operations, including fixed assets, inventory levels, production orders, accounts payable, general ledger, budgets, and service management.
Dynamics 365 Business Central Essentials Functionality
Finance Management
Sales and Marketing
Sales and Delivery
Purchasing and Payables
Inventory
Supply Planning and Availability
Project Management
Warehouse Management
The Essentials version of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central offers powerful business functionality across supply chain/inventory management, project management, purchases, financials, payables, CRM, human resources, warehousing, and more.
Premium License
For users looking for a comprehensive business solution, the Premium license is the most suitable option. According to the latest update from Microsoft, the Premium license will be priced at CAD 149.20 per user per month starting October 1, 2025, and will now include 5 GB of storage.
It provides access to all modules of Dynamics 365 Business Central, which includes financial management, distribution, CRM, advanced manufacturing, etc.
Dynamics 365 Business Central Premium Functionality
Service Management
Manufacturing
Financial Management
Supply Chain Management
Customer Relationship Management
Project Management
Warehouse Management
Human Resources Management
D365 Business Central Premium license comprises all the functionalities covered by the Essentials tier, in addition to two new powerful modules:
Service Management
Manufacturing
Refer to the table below to compare the current licensing cost and functionality of Dynamicsvs. 365 Business Central Essentials vs.users Premium:
(Prices as of October 2026—source: Microsoft Canada. Per user per month, billed yearly, plus applicable tax.)
| Functionality | Essentials | Premium |
|---|---|---|
| Price per user per month | CAD 108.50 | CAD 149.20 |
| Financial Management | ✓ | ✓ |
| CRM | ✓ | ✓ |
| Project Management | ✓ | ✓ |
| SCM | ✓ | ✓ |
| Warehouse Management & Inventory | ✓ | ✓ |
| Service Order Management | ✓ | |
| Manufacturing | ✓ |
Team Member License
As of now, Microsoft does not communicate any changes in price regarding the Team Member license. Its price and specifications will be unchanged (CAD 10.90 per user per month) till the next update from Microsoft. This option is ideal for light users who perform basic tasks such as reporting, workflow approval, time & expense tracking, and information gathering. This plan is optimal for users who simply stick to basic or standard functionality.
This basic functionality may include reading or limited writing access for selected light users without editing permission.
By availing of this option, businesses can extend the advantages of this feature to additional users within their organizations without even breaking the bank.
Dynamics 365 Business Central Team Members user can perform the following tasks:
Read anything within Dynamics 365 Business Central without editing access.
Approve or reject any assigned workflows.
Create, modify, or delete any sales quote.
Create, modify, or delete personal data.
Update customer ledger data.
Modify a time sheet for jobs.
Update previously produced vendor, item, and customer records, among other data and entries, in Business Central.
Users cannot use Power Apps to access Dynamics 365 data.
Like the Essentials, Premium, and Team Member license types, which address varying user roles and business requirements, the Device License provides additional flexibility to accommodate shared-use instances.
Device License in Business Central
A Device license in Microsoft Business Central new pricing enables many users to share access to the system via a single, shared device, e.g., a point-of-sale (POS) terminal, shop floor terminal, or a warehouse kiosk.
It implies that, rather than buying a user license for each employee using the same workstation or terminal, companies can license the device itself. This will be useful for unlimited users who can access the system without needing individual logins, assuming they do so one at a time.
As of November 1, 2025, the Device license with 1.5 GB storage is priced at USD $45 per device per month by Microsoft—approximately CAD 61.50 at current exchange, subject to currency adjustment. Microsoft prices the device SKU comparably across currencies but does not publish a CAD figure on its public pricing page, so confirm the exact CAD amount with your business central partner before budgeting.
Collectively, these license types provide that companies of any scale and any workflow could find an affordable access model that suits their business organization.
Which Dynamics 365 Business Central Subscription Should You Choose?
For manufacturing, the premium plan is the best option, as it includes all the modules and advanced functionalities. But for other business operations, your choice may lie between Essentials and Team Member subscriptions depending on which modules align with your business requirements.
If you want to gain full access to most of the functionalities of Dynamics 365 Business Central, you can choose the Business Central Essentials plan. The Premium plan includes all the features offered by Essentials along with two other features such as Service Order Management and Manufacturing. However, if your users just want to do the basic tasks like reading or viewing data in Business Central, then Team Member plan is the best option for them.
In a nutshell, you can consider Team Members to perform only basic tasks. Premium is tailored for advanced and complex functionality like manufacturing and service management.
Before choosing one, it is important to take into account the unique features and limitations of each plan. Moreover, you can combine various license types according to your requirements.
In this article, we have tried to illustrate the difference between Premium, Essentials, and Team member licenses along with their plans.
So, in case you are planning for Dynamics 365 implementation, feel free to reach out to Dynamics Square. We are a trusted Microsoft Dynamics 365 partner in Canada.
