Entra P1 vs P2 vs Entra Suite: which licenses you actually need in 2026

Quick summary: P1 vs P2 vs Entra Suite in 10 clear points

1. Entra P1 is usually the starting point for companies that want a strong identity foundation and conditional access.
2. Entra P2 makes sense when you need risk-based policies, advanced identity protection, and stricter privileged access governance.
3. Entra Suite does not “magically replace” everything: it is usually used as an additional layer in scenarios with strong secure-access and governance requirements.
4. The right question is not “which plan do I buy”, but “which user profile needs which control level.”
5. Licensing your entire workforce with the highest plan is almost never the most efficient option.
6. The most common mistake is buying impulsively after an incident, without profile design or a deployment roadmap.
7. Business + IT + security should decide together: licensing is not only a technical decision.
8. If you already have Microsoft 365 Business Premium or E3/E5, review what is included before purchasing add-ons.
9. For hybrid, multicloud, or complex remote-access environments, Entra Suite usually adds more value.
10. In 2026, the winning strategy is segmented licensing, automation, and quarterly reviews.

When does comparing Entra P1, P2, and Entra Suite really matter?

If your company has 20 users and a couple of cloud apps, this decision may be relatively simple. But as soon as you grow (more teams, more devices, more apps, more third parties, and more audits), identity licensing stops being an administrative detail and becomes a strategic decision.

This comparison is especially important when you are in one of these scenarios:

• You have had security incidents (phishing, compromised accounts, unauthorized access).
• You need granular control by risk or role instead of “MFA for everyone and done.”
• You have privileged users (IT, admins, finance, leadership) and need stronger traceability and protection.
• You work with vendors, partners, or external users and need tighter access governance.
• You operate in regulated industries where auditability, compliance, and evidence matter a lot.
• You want to reduce dependency on legacy VPNs and move toward a modern Zero Trust model.

In short: if identity is critical to operate and protect the business, choosing correctly between P1, P2, and Entra Suite directly impacts risk, productivity, and cost.

Introduction: why this decision affects more than it seems

Many companies come to this question with the same feeling: “we know we need to improve security, but we are not sure which license we actually need.” And that is normal. Microsoft’s ecosystem has evolved quickly, some features appear to overlap, and each company starts from a different point.

This guide is written to solve that problem in a practical way without overcomplicating things:

• Clear language focused on real decisions.
• Business examples, not just product descriptions.
• SEO-oriented structure for quick reference.

If you want the short answer: P1 covers the modern base, P2 covers advanced risk and privilege controls, and Entra Suite adds a powerful extra layer for secure access and governance at scale. But the right answer for your organization depends on how users, processes, and risks combine.

1. What changed in 2026 and why there is so much confusion

In practice: in 2026, confusion comes less from “missing licenses” and more from misunderstanding prerequisites and overlaps.

In recent years, Microsoft has consolidated identity, protection, and access capabilities around the Entra family. The result is powerful, but it also requires you to read carefully “what each plan includes” and “what each service requires.”

1.1 What is most often misunderstood

• Believing Entra Suite is “all-inclusive with no conditions.”
• Assuming moving from P1 to P2 always reduces risk if operations do not change.
• Buying in bulk without segmenting by user profile.
• Not reviewing what is already included in Microsoft 365 Business Premium, E3, or E5.

1.2 What should be clear from day one

• There are “base” capabilities and “maturity” capabilities.
• A license alone does not improve security without policy design and governance.
• ROI appears when you license by risk/criticality, not by rigid department blocks.

2. Microsoft Entra ID P1: what it includes and who it fits

In practice: P1 is the recommended baseline for serious enterprise identity in Microsoft 365.

Entra ID P1 is the license that usually marks the jump from “managing users” to “governing access with criteria.” For many companies, P1 is the first meaningful step when they want to scale with security and order.

2.1 What P1 brings to day-to-day operations

• Conditional Access to apply rules by context.
• Group management and basic access lifecycle automation.
• SSO and stronger identity controls for enterprise applications.
• A solid baseline to deploy MFA more intelligently.

2.2 When P1 is usually enough

• SMB or mid-size company with a relatively standard cloud environment.
• Need to strengthen access controls without moving yet into advanced risk analytics.
• Teams with moderate risk and limited exposure to highly privileged accounts.

2.3 P1 limits you should know

• It does not cover everything many organizations consider “advanced adaptive security.”
• If you have many privileged accounts, it may be insufficient for detailed governance.
• It does not replace additional secure network-access capabilities provided by Suite.

3. Microsoft Entra ID P2: when the investment is worth it

In practice: P2 makes sense when real business risk can no longer be controlled well with P1 alone.

Entra ID P2 is designed for organizations that need an extra layer of intelligence and control: detect identity risk, act in real time, and protect high-privilege accounts more strictly.

3.1 What P2 adds vs P1

• Advanced identity protection and risk evaluation capabilities.
• Risk-based access policies to adjust controls by context.
• Stronger governance over privileged identities and critical roles.

3.2 When P2 is worth paying for

• You have high-impact accounts (admins, finance, security, critical operations).
• You face strict audit requirements and need detailed traceability.
• Your business cannot afford a compromised high-privilege account.
• You need to reduce operational risk without blocking user experience.

3.3 When P2 will not solve the problem by itself

• If you do not have clear periodic access review processes.
• If you do not segment policies by profile and criticality.
• If you keep permanent exceptions “because it has always been done this way.”

Put simply: P2 is worth it when operational maturity exists (or there is real commitment to build it). Otherwise, it can become an underused license.

4. Microsoft Entra Suite: what it adds vs P1/P2

In practice: Entra Suite is for companies that want to go beyond identity and cover end-to-end secure access.

Microsoft Entra Suite was designed to bring together secure-access, identity protection, governance, and verification capabilities in one package. In business terms, it usually fits when “controlling sign-ins” is no longer enough and you also need to control how users access private apps, SaaS, and web resources with a more complete Zero Trust approach.

4.1 What typically drives Entra Suite adoption

• Distributed teams and intensive remote work.
• Need to reduce dependency on traditional VPNs.
• Increased regulatory and audit pressure on access controls.
• Environments with many internal and external applications.

4.2 Clear signs it may be right for you

• Your SOC or security team asks for more access visibility and control.
• There is friction between security and productivity (rigid or slow controls).
• You want to unify access criteria across cloud and private resources.

4.3 Watch this before buying Suite

• Do not deploy it “for everyone” by default without justified use cases.
• Remember that in many scenarios there is a P1 baseline prerequisite.
• Design phased deployment to avoid user impact.

5. Full comparison: Entra P1 vs P2 vs Entra Suite

In practice: use this table as a baseline, but always validate against your risk map and application landscape.

This table is not meant to oversimplify, but to help you decide with criteria. In almost every successful project, companies combine licenses by profile: P1 baseline for most users and higher tiers for critical groups.

6. Which license each user type needs

In practice: profile-based licensing reduces spending and improves security at the same time.

6.1 Standard user profile (daily operations)

• Typical recommendation: P1 as baseline.
• Objective: secure access, MFA, context-based policies, and good user experience.

6.2 Critical user profile (finance, legal, leadership, sensitive operations)

• Typical recommendation: P2.
• Objective: stronger identity protection, risk-based detection, and tighter controls.

6.3 Privileged profile (IT admins, security, platform)

• Typical recommendation: P2 (and, depending on architecture, Suite capabilities).
• Objective: minimize critical-role exposure and increase traceability.

6.4 Remote/hybrid profile with private-app access

• Frequent recommendation: evaluate Entra Suite for these user groups.
• Objective: safer, better-governed access to private/SaaS/web resources without excessive friction.

6.5 External profile (partners/vendors)

• Recommendation: define a dedicated external-access policy and associated licensing by scenario.
• Objective: secure collaboration without overexposure.

7. Real company scenarios and license recommendations

In practice: these examples are a starting guide; then they are refined through assessment.

Scenario A: growing SMB (40–150 users)

These organizations usually need speed, simplicity, and a clear security uplift without excessive complexity. The standard approach is a strong P1 foundation, automated assignments, and selective P2 for high-risk profiles.

Recommended approach: P1 baseline + selective P2.

Scenario B: mid-size company (150–800 users) with recurring audits

Here you already see more controls, more processes, and greater exposure. The focus is usually balancing reasonable user experience with compliance evidence.

Recommended approach: broad P1 + P2 for critical/admin profiles + evaluate Suite for sensitive units.

Scenario C: enterprise with hybrid environment, private apps, and distributed teams

In these cases, the challenge is not only identity, but also network access and unified policy. Entra Suite often delivers tangible value if deployed with focus on specific groups and metrics.

Recommended approach: P1/P2 combination + Suite for profiles requiring advanced private/web access.

Scenario D: tenant merger or reorganization process

During tenant transitions, temporary risk and operational complexity usually increase. Well-defined identity and access licensing prevents many migration issues.

Recommended approach: design licensing by waves, with reinforced controls for transition profiles.

8. Indicative costs and budgeting model for 2026

In practice: good budgeting is not finding “the lowest price,” but the best balance between cost and risk.

For initial budgeting, a simple formula is useful:

Estimated monthly cost = (P1 users x P1 price) + (P2 users x P2 price) + (Suite users x Suite/add-on price)

8.1 Quick estimation example

Company with 100 users and this segmentation:

• 70 users with P1
• 20 users with P2
• 10 users with Entra Suite (on top of required baseline)

Using indicative public-reference prices (without channel discounts), this baseline calculation helps compare scenarios and set priorities.

8.2 What usually moves the budget most

• How many truly critical users you define.
• How many privileged accounts you keep active.
• How much remote access to private resources you need to cover.
• What portion is already included in your current Microsoft 365 licenses.

8.3 Purchase recommendation

Do not close a large purchase without these three steps:

1. Real inventory of profiles and risks.
2. Technical/operational pilot with representative users.
3. 12-month total-cost comparison across at least two scenarios.

9. 90-day adoption plan (without slowing operations)

In practice: licensing and deployment in phases reduces friction and avoids costly mistakes.

Phase 1 (Days 1–30): diagnosis and design

• Inventory of users, roles, and applications.
• Risk map by user segment.
• Target licensing model by profile.

Phase 2 (Days 31–60): controlled pilot

• Pilot with representative users (standard, critical, admins, external users).
• Validation of access policies and user experience.
• Adjustments to support, communications, and exceptions.

Phase 3 (Days 61–90): scaled rollout

• Wave-based assignment and automation.
• Incident tracking and adoption KPIs.
• Final cost review and quarterly improvement plan.

This way of working avoids the classic “big bang,” which often causes lockouts, ticket spikes, and user resistance.

10. Common mistakes when licensing Entra (and how to avoid them)

In practice: most overruns come from rushed or poorly segmented decisions.

11. Decision checklist before renewal or purchase

In practice: if you cannot answer this checklist, do not close the purchase yet.

• Do we have user profiles defined by criticality?
• Do we know which features we use today and which we do not?
• Do we have privileged accounts identified and governed?
• Do we have a real map of applications and remote access?
• Have we validated what is already included in our M365 suites?
• Is there a phased rollout and adoption-support plan?
• Have we budgeted at least two alternative scenarios?
• Do we have clear KPIs to measure security and cost improvements?

If most answers are “no,” design comes first. Buying without that preparatory work is usually expensive.

12. KPIs to measure whether your licensing strategy works

In practice: without metrics, you cannot tell whether security improved or you just changed plans.

13. Frequently asked questions about Entra P1, P2, and Entra Suite

14. Official resources and useful links

Official Microsoft sources

• Microsoft Entra licensing (official requirements)
• Microsoft Entra plans and pricing
• Conditional Access licensing requirements
• Identity Protection overview
• ID Governance licensing fundamentals
• PIM subscription requirements
• What is Global Secure Access

MSAdvance internal resources

• Business license supply and sales
• Microsoft 365 Security and Compliance
• Modern Workplace Microsoft 365 service
• Microsoft 365 tenant-to-tenant migration service
• Microsoft 365 licensing guide
• Microsoft 365 licensing tips
• MFA in Entra ID guide
• Entra ID migration: guide and checklist
• Contact

15. Conclusion: which Entra licenses you actually need in 2026

If you want a practical, grounded answer: P1 for a robust identity baseline, P2 for high-risk or highly privileged groups, and Entra Suite when your organization needs to elevate secure-access and governance to a more comprehensive level.

The right decision is rarely “one license for the entire company.” What works is a segmented strategy, reviewed regularly, and rolled out in phases.

If you want, at MSAdvance we can help you turn this content into an actionable plan for your tenant: profile map, licensing proposal, and implementation roadmap.