The Microsoft Whiteboard Insider’s Guide
Everything we know about Microsoft Whiteboard in one document: what it costs, its grades, getting a refund, getting help and what else to look at. Read it here, or keep a copy.
Microsoft Whiteboard
The Insider’s Guide
Free collaborative canvas built into Microsoft 365 and Teams
Every plan, grade, refund rule and rival among whiteboard and mind map tools, read from Microsoft Whiteboard’s own pages.
Made by Microsoft Corporation · checked Oct 5, 2026 · toolgpa.com
Contents
- 01WelcomeWhat it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
- 02What it costsEvery plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
- 03What it doesIts main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
- 04Where it standsIts grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
- 05The alternativesThe tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
- 06Quick answersThe questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
- 07About ToolGPAWho made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
ToolGPA put this guide together from Microsoft Whiteboard’s own pages, its app-store listings and our grades. Every fact in it is on Microsoft Whiteboard’s page too, where it is kept up to date. Checked Oct 5, 2026.
Part 01 · Overview
Welcome
What it is, who it suits, its grades and the ten things to know first
3.4
GPA, above 30 of the 30 other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade
Microsoft Whiteboard is a free-form digital canvas for inking, sticky notes and brainstorming, alone or with others in real time. It runs in a browser, inside Microsoft Teams meetings, chats and channels, and as apps for Windows, iOS, Android and Surface Hub. It is free to use with a personal Microsoft account and is switched on by default for most Microsoft 365 work and school tenants.
To get you started, here are 8 things to know about Microsoft Whiteboard, taken from its own pages and our grades.
There's no Mac app, and Copilot needs its own license.
- 1
Best for sketching together in a Teams meeting
Microsoft Whiteboard is a canvas for pens, sticky notes and brainstorming that opens inside Teams meetings, free with a Microsoft account.
- 2
It is free
Microsoft Whiteboard has no paid plan at all. Free with a personal Microsoft account or a Microsoft 365 work or school account. Boards made with a personal account lack collaborative cursors, the laser pointer and a recycle bin.
- 3
It runs on 4 platforms
Web, Windows, iOS and Android.
- 4
Infinite canvas with ink and sticky notes
Pens, a highlighter, an eraser and a lasso sit alongside sticky notes, text, images and shapes, and the canvas works with a mouse, a touchscreen or a pen.
- 5
Whiteboard in Microsoft Teams
A board can be shared in a Teams meeting, chat or channel and stays available afterwards. The meeting organizer can put other participants in read-only mode.
- 6
Templates
More than 60 free templates give a starting structure for exercises such as brainstorming, sprint planning and project development.
- 7
A 3.4 GPA, above 30 of 30
That is against the other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade, on value, the free plan, features, ease of use and platforms.
- 8
Keep it
Microsoft Whiteboard is free, so making your own would save you nothing.
Microsoft Whiteboard at a glance
- Pricing
- Free
- Free plan
- Yes
- Free trial
- None stated
- Runs on
- Web, Windows, iOS, Android
- Made by
- Microsoft Corporation
- Category
- Whiteboards & Mind Maps
- Our grade
- 3.4 GPA, very good
- Store rating
- 4.6 on the App Store, 12,309 ratings
The report card
Best for sketching together in a Teams meeting
Microsoft Whiteboard is a canvas for pens, sticky notes and brainstorming that opens inside Teams meetings, free with a Microsoft account. It's a simple board, with no voting or timer and image-only export, and boards on a personal account lose collaborative cursors, the laser pointer and a recycle bin. There's no Mac app, and Copilot needs its own license.
| Subject | Grade | Comment |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | A | Free, where the rest of this category wants about $8.33 a month. There's nothing to buy with a personal Microsoft account, and at work or school it arrives with your organization's Microsoft 365 tenant. It isn't sold on its own at any price. |
| Free plan and trial | A | The web, Windows, iPhone and Android apps are all free with a Microsoft account, and so are the 60-plus templates, with no cap on boards to walk into. Copilot is the one thing that costs extra, needing its own license. |
| Features | C | The basics of a board: pens, a highlighter, sticky notes, shapes, 60-odd templates and Loop components that stay in sync elsewhere. The listing's gaps are plain, though. Personal-account boards lose collaborative cursors, the laser pointer and the recycle bin, export is an image, and there's no voting or timer. |
| Ease of use | B | 4.6 from 12,309 App Store ratings. It takes a mouse, a finger or a pen, there are templates to start from, and in Teams it's one click to put a board in front of the whole meeting. |
| Platforms and integrations | A | Browser, Windows, iPhone, iPad, Android and Surface Hub, tied into Teams, Loop, OneNote and OneDrive. The hole is Apple and Linux desktops: Microsoft lists no Mac app, so there it runs in a browser or inside Teams. |
An A is worth 4 points, a B 3, a C 2, a D 1 and an F nothing. The GPA is the average of the five.
Who Microsoft Whiteboard is for
- Fits if your meetings are in Teams and you want everyone drawing on one board
- Works for pen users on a Surface Hub or an iPad
Who it is not for
- Skip it if your team isn't on Microsoft 365, because a personal account loses cursors and the recycle bin
- Not for you if you want a desktop app on a Mac or Linux, as Microsoft lists neither
- Too light for detailed diagrams and big workshops, with no voting, no timer and image-only export
- Watch out: at work an admin can switch it off, and Copilot features need a separate license
Good to know
Good for
- Teams meetings where participants sketch on one shared board
- Organizations on Microsoft 365, where it is enabled by default
- Schools: free for students and educators through Microsoft 365 A1
- Pen and touch devices such as Surface Hub and iPad
Worth knowing
- Microsoft lists apps for Windows, iOS, Android and Surface Hub but none for Mac or Linux, where Whiteboard runs in a browser or in Teams.
- Boards made with a personal account are stored in Azure and lack collaborative cursors, the laser pointer, the roster, a recycle bin and retention policies.
- Whiteboard is not sold on its own: work and school use depends on the organization's Microsoft 365 tenant, where an admin can turn it off.
- Copilot features need a separate Microsoft Copilot license.
Part 02 · Pricing
What it costs
Every plan, the free plan, ways to pay less and how prices have moved
Free
No paid plan at all
Microsoft Whiteboard is free to use.
Copilot is the one thing that costs extra, needing its own license.
Free
$0
The web, Windows, iOS and Android apps with a free Microsoft account. Work and school access comes with an organization's Microsoft 365 tenant, not as a separate purchase.
The free plan
Free with a personal Microsoft account or a Microsoft 365 work or school account. Boards made with a personal account lack collaborative cursors, the laser pointer and a recycle bin.
Read from microsoft.com on Oct 5, 2026.
Part 03 · Features
What it does
Its main features, where it runs, what it works with and who makes it
4
Places it runs: Web, Windows, iOS and Android
Free collaborative canvas built into Microsoft 365 and Teams. Here is what it does, as its own site describes it, and what it covers: AI features, real-time collaboration, whiteboard, templates.
Browser, Windows, iPhone, iPad, Android and Surface Hub, tied into Teams, Loop, OneNote and OneDrive.
- Infinite canvas with ink and sticky notes
- Pens, a highlighter, an eraser and a lasso sit alongside sticky notes, text, images and shapes, and the canvas works with a mouse, a touchscreen or a pen.
- Whiteboard in Microsoft Teams
- A board can be shared in a Teams meeting, chat or channel and stays available afterwards. The meeting organizer can put other participants in read-only mode.
- Templates
- More than 60 free templates give a starting structure for exercises such as brainstorming, sprint planning and project development.
- Loop components
- Microsoft Loop components can be placed on a board and stay in sync with the same component in chats, meetings, emails and documents.
- Copilot in Whiteboard
- Copilot suggests ideas as sticky notes, sorts notes into categories and summarizes a board. It requires a Microsoft Copilot license.
- Automatic saving and share links
- Boards save to the Microsoft cloud automatically, a share link invites others to collaborate, and a board can be exported as an image or sent to a OneNote class notebook.
Where it runs
- Web
- Windows
- iOS
- Android
What it works with
- Microsoft Teams
- Microsoft Loop
- OneNote
- OneDrive
Microsoft Whiteboard is made by Microsoft Corporation.
Part 04 · Standing
Where it stands
Its grades against its category, and whether to keep it or make your own
30/30
Other whiteboard and mind map tools it is graded above
Microsoft Whiteboard's GPA of 3.4 is higher than 30 of the 30 other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade.
It stands best on free plan and trial (A, above 27 of 30) and worst on features (C, above 0).
Microsoft Whiteboard has no paid plan.
On features, ease of use and platforms it scores 3.0 out of 4, and no tool on the category's chart scores higher without costing more.
Each grade against the category
Every bar is all 31 whiteboard and mind map tools we grade, cut by the letter each got. Microsoft Whiteboard’s own letter is outlined.
- AValue for moneyAbove 23 of 30
- AFree plan and trialAbove 27 of 30
- CFeaturesAbove 0 of 30
- BEase of useAbove 17 of 30
- APlatforms and integrationsAbove 24 of 30
Price against what you get
Each dot is one of 28 whiteboard and mind map tools. Further left costs less; higher up scores better on features, ease of use and platforms. Microsoft Whiteboard is the marked dot.
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
Keep it, or make your own?
Whether this is something you could build for yourself with an AI app builder, and what you would give up.
Keep it
Microsoft Whiteboard is free, so making your own would save you nothing.
And it is not the kind of software a weekend replaces. It is one of the better ones too: its GPA of 3.4 is higher than 30 of the 30 other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade.
What you could make
- Templates: an app builder makes this well.
What you could not
- An endless canvas that stays smooth with hundreds of things on it.
- Apps for Windows, iOS and Android that stay in step with each other.
- Several people working in it at the same moment.
- AI features, unless you pay a model provider for each request yourself.
What this rests on. Microsoft Whiteboard’s listing: what it does, where it runs, what it plugs into and what it costs. It is a judgement about the kind of software this is. We have not built a replacement for it, and making your own means looking after it too. How we decide, and every tool’s verdict.
Part 05 · Alternatives
The alternatives
The tools it is most often weighed against, side by side
Miro, Mural, FigJam, Lucidspark and Excalidraw
The 5 tools Microsoft Whiteboard is most often weighed against, with where each one differs from it.
- 3.0GPA
Miro
Free plan · from $8/mo
Online whiteboard for team brainstorming, diagrams and planning.
- Only Miro lists a macOS app.
- Miro also covers mind mapping and diagrams.
- 2.6GPA
Mural
Free plan · from $9.99/mo
Online whiteboard with built-in facilitation tools for workshops.
- Only Mural lists a macOS app.
- Mural also covers mind mapping and diagrams.
- 3.0GPA
FigJam
Free plan · from $3/mo
Online whiteboard from Figma for brainstorms, diagrams and meetings.
- Only FigJam lists a macOS app.
- FigJam also covers diagrams.
- 2.4GPA
Lucidspark
Free plan · from $9/mo
Virtual whiteboard for team brainstorming and workshops.
- Only Microsoft Whiteboard lists a Windows app.
- Lucidspark also covers mind mapping.
- 2.6GPA
Excalidraw
Free plan · from $6/mo
Open-source whiteboard for hand-drawn style sketches and diagrams.
- Only Microsoft Whiteboard lists Windows, iOS and Android apps.
- Excalidraw is open source, self-hostable and end-to-end encrypted, according to its own site.
- Microsoft Whiteboard also covers templates.
Part 06 · Questions
Quick answers
The questions people ask about it, each answered in a line or two
13
Questions, each answered in a line or two
The short version of everything above, for when you only need the answer. Each one is told in full in its part of the guide.
Is Microsoft Whiteboard free?
Yes. Microsoft Whiteboard is free to use.
How much does Microsoft Whiteboard cost?
Microsoft Whiteboard lists one plan. Free: $0.
What platforms does Microsoft Whiteboard work on?
Microsoft Whiteboard is available on Web, Windows, iOS and Android.
How is Microsoft Whiteboard rated?
Microsoft Whiteboard's iPhone and iPad app averages 4.6 out of 5 from 12,309 ratings on the App Store in the United States, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
Does Microsoft Whiteboard have a macOS app?
No macOS app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Microsoft Whiteboard is listed for Web, Windows, iOS and Android.
Does Microsoft Whiteboard have a Linux app?
No Linux app was listed when its pages were read on Oct 5, 2026. Microsoft Whiteboard is listed for Web, Windows, iOS and Android.
Is Microsoft Whiteboard open source?
Microsoft Whiteboard is not described as open source on its own site, as read on Oct 5, 2026.
What does Microsoft Whiteboard integrate with?
Microsoft Whiteboard's listing names Microsoft Teams, Microsoft Loop, OneNote and OneDrive.
Who makes Microsoft Whiteboard?
Microsoft Whiteboard is made by Microsoft Corporation.
What are the alternatives to Microsoft Whiteboard?
The closest alternatives to Microsoft Whiteboard in our directory are Miro, Mural, FigJam, Lucidspark and Excalidraw.
How does Microsoft Whiteboard compare with other whiteboard and mind map tools?
Microsoft Whiteboard's GPA of 3.4 is higher than 30 of the 30 other whiteboard and mind map tools we grade.
Is Microsoft Whiteboard good value for money?
ToolGPA grades Microsoft Whiteboard A for value for money. Microsoft Whiteboard has no paid plan.
Could I make my own version of Microsoft Whiteboard?
Microsoft Whiteboard is free, so making your own would save you nothing.
Where this guide comes from
The prices, plans, platforms and features were read from Microsoft Whiteboard’s own pages on Oct 5, 2026, and the grades were given on Oct 10, 2026. Graded from this listing, whose facts were read from Microsoft's own pages on 5 October 2026, and its App Store rating. Microsoft's product page would not load when we went back, so we checked a support page instead. Also tested with a demo account on 2026-05-21.
Every tool we list gets five grades, A to F, each with its reason, and a GPA that averages them. How each is decided is at toolgpa.com/grades. This guide is ToolGPA’s own work; it is not made, paid for or approved by Microsoft Corporation. Prices change, so check microsoft.com before you buy.
- microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/microsoft-whiteboard/online-whiteboard
- microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/microsoft-whiteboard/digital-whiteboard-app
- support.microsoft.com/en-us/whiteboard/sign-up-for-a-new-whiteboard-account
- support.microsoft.com/en-us/whiteboard/getting-started-with-microsoft-whiteboard
- support.microsoft.com/en-us/whiteboard/differences-between-azure-and-onedrive-work-or-school-whiteboards
- support.microsoft.com/en-us/whiteboard/welcome-to-copilot-in-whiteboard
- learn.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/whiteboard/manage-whiteboard-access-organizations
- apps.apple.com/us/app/microsoft-whiteboard/id1352499399
Part 07 · About
About ToolGPA
Who made this guide, what else is on the site, and how to cite it
3,189
Tools graded, in 94 categories
ToolGPA grades software the way a school report grades a pupil: five subjects, a letter for each with the reason written beside it, and a GPA that averages them. Prices, plans and platforms are read from each maker’s own pages and dated, so you always know how fresh a figure is.
Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Every tool on the site has a guide like this one, free to download and pass on. It all lives at toolgpa.com.
3,189
tools graded
94
categories
426
price changes on record
579
apps priced in 12 countries
What else is on toolgpa.com
- Microsoft Whiteboard, kept up to dateEverything in this guide, with prices and grades as they are todaytoolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-whiteboard
- How grades are givenThe rules behind every letter and every GPAtoolgpa.com/grades
- Value chartsWhat each tool costs against what it scores, for every categorytoolgpa.com/charts
- CompareAny two tools side by side, plan by plantoolgpa.com/compare
- Price changesEvery price rise and cut on record, each with its sourcetoolgpa.com/price-changes
- Prices by countryWhat apps cost on the App Store in 12 countriestoolgpa.com/prices-by-country
- Pay lessEvery public discount: yearly billing, students, nonprofitstoolgpa.com/save
- Keep or makeWhich tools are worth paying for, and which you could build yourselftoolgpa.com/keep-or-make
Scan for the live page
Prices and grades as they are today
Quoting this guide?
Please name ToolGPA and link to the live page, so readers can check the figures for themselves:
ToolGPA, "Microsoft Whiteboard: The Insider's Guide", checked Oct 5, 2026. https://toolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-whiteboard
Know someone choosing between whiteboard and mind map tools?
Send them this guide: toolgpa.com/tools/microsoft-whiteboard/guide
ToolGPA elsewhere: youtube.com/@toolgpa
See our other guides
The best-graded whiteboard and mind map tools after Microsoft Whiteboard, each with an Insider's Guide of its own.
- Whiteboards & Mind Maps Insider's GuideEvery one of the 31 whiteboard and mind map tools we grade, compared
- draw.io Insider's GuideFree diagram editor that saves files to storage you choose3.2 GPA
- tldraw Insider's GuideFree online whiteboard with a local desktop app3.2 GPA
- FigJam Insider's GuideOnline whiteboard from Figma for brainstorms, diagrams and meetings3.0 GPA
Choosing software? Every tool graded, every price dated.
Compare tools at toolgpa.com ›Everything in this guide is ToolGPA’s own summary of what Microsoft Whiteboard’s pages, its app-store listings and public reviews said on the dates shown. Grades are our judgement under the rules at toolgpa.com/grades. Every grade, review and ranking on ToolGPA is our own judgement. No company can pay for a grade or change one. Microsoft Whiteboard is a trademark of its owner, and this guide is not made, paid for or approved by Microsoft Corporation. Prices and plans change: check microsoft.com before you buy.