Compare Microsoft 365 Copilot Notebooks and Microsoft OneNote Notebooks

What is it?

An AI-powered notebook feature within Microsoft 365 Copilot.

• Collect files, pages, and other content in the same Notebook for focused Copilot engagement.

• Engage with Copilot, an AI assistant that answers questions or creates content based on those references.

A digital collection of notes in OneNote.

• Create and organize notes, drawings, and other information in virtual notebooks.

• Type or handwrite text, clip information, and store ideas.

When to use it?

You have a specific project or task that would benefit from AI assistance using your data.

• Example: Compile various files and have Copilot summarize them, draft a proposal, and answer questions using only those references in your notebook.

You need to take or organize notes for yourself or a team over time.

• Example: Take notes for a meeting or class and share those notes for collaboration with others.

Where to find it?

In the Microsoft 365 Copilot experience (the Copilot app or microsoft365.com). Notebooks appears in the left side navigation. Additionally, Copilot Notebooks is now built into OneNote itself.

In the OneNote app on your device or OneNote for the web. Learn more where to find OneNote.

Limitations or restrictions

A Microsoft 365 Copilot license is required to use Copilot Notebooks (which is not available for personal Microsoft accounts). Learn more about current limitations in Copilot Notebooks.

OneNote is available to anyone with a Microsoft 365 account or Office license. Learn more about current limitations in OneNote.

Content gathering and structure

• New pages can be created within a notebook by interacting with Copilot chat.

• Existing content—Word docs, Loop pages, links, past Copilot chats, and more—can be referenced instead of created from scratch.

• Content is organized around referenced materials.

• AI powers information retrieval.

• Notes in a notebook are manually created and organized, structured by sections and pages.

• Images, tables, and files can be inserted anywhere on a page.

• Notes can be tagged (e.g., “Important,” “To-Do”) and found using OneNote’s search.

• Notebook organization is hierarchical and user defined.

Unique features and capabilities

Copilot Notebooks offers advanced features to streamline content collaboration.

• Intelligent suggestions: Automatically recommends relevant files based on the notebook’s title or theme.

• Custom instructions: Set tone, format, or other AI behavior guidelines specific to each notebook.

• Audio overview: Ability to generate summaries of notebook content for quick consumption.

Content stays “live”—if a linked file (e.g. on SharePoint) is updated, Copilot references the latest version thanks to cloud integration.

OneNote offers flexible note-taking with free-form layouts, digital inking, and drawing tools.

• Content embedding: Images, PDFs, spreadsheets, videos, and audio clips can be directly embedded into notes.

• Tagging and navigation: Helps organize content.

• Version history and a recycle bin: Supports long-term knowledge management.

While it doesn’t suggest content, OneNote gives you full control over how you capture and structure your ideas.