How to Use Copilot in OneDrive

Updated 14 November 2026 · Standard formula, shown below

Copilot in OneDrive is an AI assistant that helps you work with your files without downloading them. You can ask it to summarize a long document, compare two versions, extract key points, or answer questions about a file’s contents. This guide walks through how to access Copilot in OneDrive, what you can ask it to do, and how to get the best results.

What You’ll Need

A Microsoft 365 subscription that includes Copilot (Microsoft 365 Copilot or Copilot Pro).
OneDrive for work or school (Copilot in OneDrive is not available on personal Microsoft accounts).
Files stored in OneDrive that are supported by Copilot (see list below).
An internet connection and a modern web browser (Edge, Chrome, or Safari).

Step-by-Step

Sign in to OneDrive – Go to onedrive.com and sign in with your work or school account that has Copilot enabled.
Open the file you want to work with – Navigate to the file in your OneDrive library. Copilot works with Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheets, PDFs, and text files. Click the file to open it in the preview pane.
Find the Copilot button – In the preview pane, look for the Copilot icon (a small sparkle or chat bubble) in the toolbar at the top. If you don’t see it, check that your file type is supported and that your administrator has enabled Copilot.
Click the Copilot button – This opens a chat panel on the right side of the screen. The panel shows suggested prompts like “Summarize this file” or “Extract key points.”
Type your prompt or pick a suggestion – You can click a suggested prompt or type your own question. For example, “Give me a bullet list of the main arguments” or “What are the action items in this document?”
Review the response – Copilot will generate an answer based on the file’s content. The response appears in the chat panel. You can copy the text, or click “Copy” to paste it elsewhere.
Refine your question – If the answer isn’t what you need, ask a follow-up. For example, “Can you make it shorter?” or “Focus on the budget section.”
Use the “Compare” feature (for two files) – If you want to compare two documents, select both files in your OneDrive list (hold Ctrl or Cmd and click), then click the Copilot icon. Choose “Compare” and Copilot will highlight differences and similarities.
Ask about multiple files at once – You can also select several files and ask Copilot to summarize them together, like “Summarize these three PDFs into one overview.”
Close the chat panel – When you’re done, click the X on the panel. Your conversation is saved for a short time, so you can return to it later if needed.

Common Mistakes

Using a personal OneDrive account – Copilot in OneDrive is only available for work or school accounts. If you’re using a personal @outlook.com or @hotmail.com account, you won’t see the Copilot button.
Opening the file in a separate app – Copilot in OneDrive works in the preview pane. If you open the file in Word or PowerPoint, you’ll get Copilot in that app, which is different. For OneDrive-specific features like comparing files, you need to use the preview pane.
Asking for information not in the file – Copilot can only answer based on the file’s content. It won’t know about external facts or your personal context. For example, “What’s the company’s revenue?” will only work if that number is in the document.
Expecting real-time data – Copilot doesn’t fetch live data from the internet unless you explicitly enable web search (which is not available in OneDrive Copilot). It works with the static content of your files.
Uploading unsupported file types – Copilot won’t work with image files, audio, or video. Stick to text-based formats.

Tips

Be specific in your prompts – Instead of “Tell me about this,” ask “List the three main risks mentioned in the report.” Specific prompts yield better answers.
Use the suggested prompts – Microsoft has pre-built prompts that are optimized for common tasks. They often work better than free-form questions.
Ask for a summary first – If you’re working with a long document, start with “Summarize this file” to get an overview, then drill down with follow-up questions.
Compare files before merging – The compare feature is great for spotting differences between two versions of a contract or report. Use it before you finalize any edits.
Copy responses to your clipboard – When you get a useful answer, click the copy icon to save it. The chat history is temporary, so don’t rely on it staying there.
Check your file permissions – Copilot can only access files you have permission to view. If you can’t open a file, Copilot won’t be able to either.

Troubleshooting

Copilot button doesn’t appear – First, make sure you’re signed in with a work or school account. If you are, check with your IT admin – they may have disabled Copilot for your organization. Also, try a different browser or clear your cache.

Copilot says “This file type isn’t supported” – Convert the file to a supported format. For example, if you have an old .doc file, save it as .docx. For PDFs, ensure they are text-based, not scanned images. If the PDF is scanned, run OCR (optical character recognition) first.

Copilot gives an error about permissions – You might not have edit or view permissions on the file. Ask the owner to share it with you with at least “view” access.

Copilot is slow or unresponsive – Close other browser tabs, refresh the page, and try again. If it persists, wait a few minutes – Microsoft’s servers may be busy.

Copilot’s answer is wrong or off-topic – Rephrase your question. For example, instead of “What’s the main point?” try “What is the thesis statement in the introduction?” Also, check that the file you selected is the one you intended – you might have multiple files with similar names.

Copilot doesn’t understand a scanned PDF – Scanned PDFs are images. You need to run OCR to convert them to searchable text. In OneDrive, you can open the PDF and use the “Insert > Text” feature (if available) or use a separate OCR tool before uploading.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Is Copilot in OneDrive free?
A: No, it requires a Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription or Copilot Pro. It’s not available with free Microsoft accounts.

Q: Can I use Copilot on my mobile phone?
A: Yes, the OneDrive mobile app supports Copilot for some tasks, but the full experience (like comparing files) is best on a desktop browser.

Q: Does Copilot work with Excel files?
A: Yes, but it’s limited to summarizing data and answering questions about the spreadsheet’s content. It cannot perform calculations or modify formulas.

Q: How long does Copilot remember my chat?
A: Your conversation is stored temporarily (usually a few hours) so you can continue where you left off. After that, it’s cleared.

Q: Can Copilot edit my files?
A: No, Copilot in OneDrive only reads and analyzes. To make changes, you need to open the file in the respective Office app and use Copilot there.

Q: What file types are supported?
A: Word (.docx), PowerPoint (.pptx), Excel (.xlsx), PDF (text-based), and plain text (.txt). Older formats like .doc may not work.

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