Microsoft 365 alternative

LCN Microsoft 365 Alternative: Stop Paying Above RRP

If your Microsoft 365 from LCN costs noticeably more than Microsoft's own list price, you are paying a small reseller's markup. Dead Simple 365 sells the same Microsoft licences below Microsoft RRP, into a tenant you own, with self-service checkout and no sales call. Business Standard is £8.83 and Business Premium £15.55 per user per month ex VAT.

Operated by Dead Simple Computing Ltd, a UK Microsoft 365 reseller. We resell the same Microsoft 365 Business licences through Microsoft's official partner channel, into a tenant you own.

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Why LCN customers end up above Microsoft's RRP

LCN resells Microsoft 365 the way many small UK web and hosting firms do. They are a Microsoft partner who buys licences through the channel, then prices them at roughly two to four times Microsoft's recommended retail price (RRP) to make the line worth carrying.

This is not a scam. It is the maths of a small reseller. Microsoft 365 is a thin-margin product, and a hosting company that sells it as an add-on alongside domains and websites has little volume and no incentive to price it keenly. The markup covers the overhead of carrying a product they were never built around.

The result for you is simple. You pay more per user per month than Microsoft itself charges, for licences that are identical to the ones Microsoft sells direct. The Microsoft 365 you receive from LCN is the same Microsoft 365 anyone else receives. Only the price on the invoice differs.

What the same licences cost with Dead Simple 365

Dead Simple 365 sells below Microsoft RRP, today and after Microsoft's price rise on 1 July 2026. All prices are per user per month, ex VAT, on the annual paid-upfront term.

Business Basic: £4.23. Microsoft RRP is £4.60 today, rising to £5.40 from 1 July 2026.
Business Standard: £8.83. Microsoft RRP is £9.60 today, rising to £10.80 from 1 July 2026.
Business Premium: £15.55. Microsoft RRP is £16.90 and is unchanged in July.

From 1 July 2026 our new-purchase prices move to Basic £4.97 and Standard £9.94, still below Microsoft's £5.40 and £10.80. Premium stays at £15.55.

If LCN is charging you two to four times Microsoft RRP for Standard, you could be paying anywhere from roughly £19 to £38 per user per month for a licence we sell at £8.83. Across ten or twenty seats, billed every month, that gap is the whole reason this page exists. You can also add Copilot Business at £13.80 (Microsoft promo price until 31 December 2026, list £16.10) on only the seats that need it.

How we stay below Microsoft's own price

Microsoft sells almost everything through partners, and every partner buys at a margin below RRP. The question is what each partner does with that margin.

A small hosting reseller spends it on overhead and treats Microsoft 365 as a sideline, so the price goes up. The bigger consumer-facing resellers spend it on intro offers, the headline £1 or £7.99 deals that triple at renewal. We do neither. We share the channel margin back to you as a lower price and keep one number on the site.

That is the entire model. We run as a Microsoft indirect reseller, we publish a price below Microsoft RRP, and there is no teaser price that jumps at renewal. There is no intro rate waiting to expire and no reseller uplift on top of Microsoft's list. If Microsoft changes its list price we tell you before renewal and pass through the real change, and we stay below list.

Your own tenant, provisioned without a sales call

Licences from Dead Simple 365 land in a Microsoft tenant you own. Your tenant is your organisation's Microsoft 365 account, where your users, mail, files and Teams live. We do not hold it, and you can leave at any time and keep everything.

The whole purchase is self-service. You pick a plan, set the number of seats, confirm your company details and pay by card through online checkout. No quote, no callback, no contract negotiation. This is the part no UK incumbent offers: instant provisioning into the customer's own tenant, including Business Premium, the security plan nobody else sells through online checkout.

If your business is happiest with a person to talk to, we have UK support and paid service plans. The difference is that support is something you choose, not a bundled management contract you are forced to buy alongside the licence.

Switching from LCN: what actually happens

Switching is less work than most LCN customers expect, because the move is about billing and licensing, not about rebuilding anything.

Check who owns your tenant. If your Microsoft 365 sits in your own tenant, new licences simply attach to it and your mail, files and Teams stay exactly where they are. There is no email downtime.
Buy your licences from us. Choose your plans and seats and complete checkout. We provision once payment clears.
Let the old LCN licences lapse. Once your users are on the new licences, you stop the old ones at their renewal date so you never pay twice.

If you are in a provider-managed tenant rather than your own, moving is a migration. We will guide you through it, or run it for you as a paid migration service. Either way it is the last migration you should need, because with us the tenant is yours and you never have to ask a provider for permission to leave again.

Find out what you are overpaying before you switch

Before you move a single licence, it is worth knowing exactly what you have. Many businesses on a small reseller are not only paying above RRP, they are also paying for licences nobody uses.

Our free licence audit reads your current Microsoft 365 setup and tells you which licences are assigned, which sit unused, and what the same licences would cost with us. It surfaces the waste and the saving in one place, so the decision to switch is based on your own numbers rather than a sales pitch.

If you already know what you need, you can skip straight to checkout and start an annual price fixed for 12 months. With Microsoft raising Basic and Standard prices on 1 July 2026, starting before then keeps your rate steady while the market moves up.

Side by side

The honest comparison.

Comparison of LCN Microsoft 365 Alternative: Stop Paying Above RRP against Dead Simple 365
What you are comparing	Them	Dead Simple 365
Business Standard price (per user/month, ex VAT)	Typically two to four times Microsoft RRP (roughly £19 to £38)	£8.83, below Microsoft RRP
Renewal behaviour	Reseller markup carries through at renewal	No teaser price that jumps at renewal; only moves if Microsoft's list moves, and we stay below it
Tenant ownership	Resold add-on; ownership varies, check your agreement	Your own Microsoft tenant, always; leave any time and keep everything
Business Premium via online checkout	Not sold through self-service online checkout	Yes, including the security stack (Defender for Business, Intune, conditional access)
Buying and provisioning	Bought as a hosting add-on	Self-service checkout, instant provisioning, no sales call
Support	General hosting support, Microsoft 365 as a sideline	UK support and optional paid service plans, never a forced management contract

Per user per month, ex VAT. Competitor pricing verified June 2026.

Common questions.

Why is LCN's Microsoft 365 more expensive than buying from Microsoft directly?

LCN is a small reseller that sells Microsoft 365 as an add-on alongside domains and hosting. With low volume and overhead to cover, it prices the licences at roughly two to four times Microsoft's RRP. The licences are identical to Microsoft's own, only the markup differs.

Are the Microsoft 365 licences from Dead Simple 365 the same as LCN's?

Yes. We are a Microsoft indirect reseller, so the licences are the exact same Microsoft 365 Business plans bought through Microsoft's official partner channel. Business Standard is Business Standard wherever you buy it. The difference is our price sits below Microsoft RRP rather than above it.

Will switching from LCN break our email?

No, provided your Microsoft 365 is in your own tenant. New licences attach to your existing tenant and your mail, files and Teams stay exactly where they are, with no downtime. If you are in a provider-managed tenant, moving is a guided migration we can run for you.

How much could we save by switching from LCN?

If LCN charges between two and four times RRP for Business Standard, you may be paying around £19 to £38 per user per month for a licence we sell at £8.83 ex VAT. The exact saving depends on your current rate and seat count. Our free licence audit shows your real figures, including any unused licences.

Do I have to talk to a salesperson to switch?

No. The whole process is self-service. You choose your plans and seats and pay by card through online checkout, and we provision into your own tenant once payment clears. UK support and paid service plans are available if you want them, but they are optional, not a bundled contract.

Will the price go up at renewal like a hosting renewal does?

No. There is no teaser price that jumps at renewal. We never add a reseller uplift. If Microsoft changes its list price we tell you before renewal and pass through the real change, and even then we stay below Microsoft's RRP.

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Operated by Dead Simple Computing Ltd, a UK Microsoft 365 reseller. Per user per month, ex VAT. Business customers only.