Top 10 M365 Copilot Prompts - With Deep Explanations, Pros & Cons

The follow are the top 10 M365 Copilot prompts to utilize:

1. "Summarize this…"

Example: "Summarize this document into 5 bullet points, highlighting risks, decisions, and required next steps."

Why it’s powerful

Summaries are one of Copilot’s strongest capabilities. Microsoft explicitly highlights “Get the gist” as a core prompt category for M365 Copilot.

Pros

• Extremely fast way to digest long documents, emails, or meeting transcripts.
• Can tailor the summary (bullets, executive tone, risks-only, etc.).
• Reduces cognitive load and speeds up decision-making.

Cons

• If the source material is unclear or poorly structured, the summary may miss nuance.
• Requires you to specify what type of summary you want (action items, risks, decisions, etc.) for best results.

2. "Catch me up…"

Example: "Catch me up on all unread emails from the past 3 days and list urgent items separately."

Why it’s powerful

Microsoft lists "Catch up on a meeting" and "Stay informed" as core Copilot workflows.

Pros

• Saves hours of inbox or meeting recap time.
• Helps you re-enter work after PTO or a busy day.
• Can filter by sender, topic, or urgency.

Cons

• If your inbox is extremely large, the recap may be too high-level.
• Copilot may surface items you don’t consider “urgent” unless you define criteria.

3. "Draft a first version…"

Example: "Draft a first version of a project proposal for leadership. Use a confident tone and include an executive summary, timeline, and budget assumptions."

Why it’s powerful

Copilot excels at first drafts — Microsoft’s prompt guidance emphasizes using clear action verbs like draft and specifying tone and audience.

Pros

• Eliminates blank-page syndrome.
• Produces structured, professional drafts quickly.
• Easy to refine with follow-up prompts.

Cons

• Drafts may sound generic unless you provide context.
• Requires human editing for accuracy and nuance.

4. "Analyze this data…"

Example: "Analyze this Excel sheet and identify trends, anomalies, and the top 3 insights for leadership/"

Why it’s powerful

Copilot in Excel can interpret datasets, find patterns, and generate insights — a major time-saver for non-analysts.

Pros

• Great for quick insights without writing formulas.
• Can generate charts, pivot tables, and explanations.
• Helps validate your own analysis.

Cons

• Works best with clean, well-labeled data.
• May misinterpret ambiguous column names or inconsistent formats.

5. "Create an outline…"

Example: "Create an outline for a 10‑slide PowerPoint on our Q3 performance, including key metrics, wins, and risks."

Why it’s powerful

Microsoft’s prompt guidance shows that outlining is a high‑value use case for Copilot in Word and PowerPoint .

Pros

• Gives you a structured starting point.
• Ensures your content flows logically.
• Saves time before building slides or documents.

Cons

• Outlines may be too generic unless you specify audience and purpose.
• You may need to refine the structure manually.

6. "Rewrite this…"

Example: "Rewrite this email to be more concise, professional, and action‑oriented."

Why it’s powerful

Copilot is excellent at rewriting for tone, clarity, and audience — a core prompt category ("Help me craft clear, confident communications") in Microsoft’s gallery .

Pros

• Improves clarity and professionalism instantly.
• Can adjust tone (friendly, assertive, executive, empathetic).
• Great for sensitive or high‑stakes communication.

Cons

• May over‑polish or change your voice.
• Requires you to specify tone or style for best results.

7. "Find related content…"

Example: "Find related documents, emails, or Teams messages connected to the Q4 budget review."

Why it’s powerful

Microsoft highlights "Help me find related documents" as a core Copilot workflow.

Pros

• Saves time searching across SharePoint, OneDrive, Outlook, and Teams.
• Helps you discover forgotten or hidden files.
• Useful for onboarding or taking over a project.

Cons

• Results depend on your organization’s file naming and structure.
• May surface too many items if your query is broad.

8. "Extract action items…"

Example: "Extract all action items, owners, and deadlines from this meeting transcript."

Why it’s powerful

Meeting‑note extraction is one of Copilot’s most promoted features, especially in Teams, where it can identify decisions and tasks automatically .

Pros

• Turns messy transcripts into actionable lists.
• Reduces manual note‑taking.
• Helps ensure accountability.

Cons

• If speakers are unclear, Copilot may misassign owners.
• Requires you to review for accuracy.

9. "Compare…"

Example: "Compare these two proposals and highlight differences in cost, scope, and risk."

Why it’s powerful

Comparison prompts are widely recommended in Copilot best‑practice guides because they force structured, analytical output.

Pros

• Saves time reviewing long documents.
• Produces side‑by‑side tables.
• Great for decision‑making.

Cons

• Comparisons depend on how similar the documents are.
• May miss subtle qualitative differences.

10. "Prepare me for…"

Example: "Prepare me for tomorrow’s meeting with the vendor. Summarize past conversations, open issues, and negotiation points."

Why it's powerful

This aligns with Microsoft’s "Prepare" and "Understand" prompt categories in the Copilot gallery .

Pros

• Gives you a briefing packet instantly.
• Helps you walk into meetings informed and confident.
• Pulls context from emails, chats, and documents.

Cons

• If your organization’s data is scattered, the briefing may be incomplete.
• Requires you to verify sensitive or high‑stakes details.

Comparison Table: Which Prompt Should You Use When?

Prompt	Best For	Strength	Weakness
Summarize this	Long docs/emails	Fast clarity	May miss nuance
Catch me up	Inbox/meetings	Saves hours	Needs criteria
Draft a first version	Writing	Eliminates blank page	Generic without context
Analyze this data	Excel	Quick insights	Needs clean data
Create an outline	Docs/slides	Strong structure	May need refinement
Rewrite this	Emails/docs	Tone control	Can over‑polish
Find related content	Research	Saves search time	Broad results
Extract action items	Meetings	High accuracy	Needs review
Compare	Decisions	Clear differences	Misses subtlety
Prepare me for	Meetings	Great briefings	Data‑dependent