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PowerApps License Pricing: building with Microsoft SQL Server

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Posted on by Withnail

Having spent an hour researching pricing, I am (yet again with Microsoft) completely confused. 😧

I have office 365 Business Essentials which costs GBP £3.80 per month and this gives me "PowerApps for Office 365". My reading is that this allows you to connect to things like SharePoint Lists and Excel workbooks but not the CDS or any databases.

I believe that, in order to create a canvas app that connects to MS SQL Server (online) for CRUD operations, I have to purchase the PowerApps Plan 2 licence which costs £30.20 per month. Is that correct?

There is a free 3 month period. Can I develop the app in those 3 months and then turn off this licence? 😀 And then turn it back on when I want to update it?

I want two other users to be able to run the app. Can they use their current "PowerApps for Office 365" or do I need a Plan 1 licence for each? (Having now created a trial tenant and then connected to SQL Server, I get this message: "Apps that use this connector will require end users to have at least Power Apps Plan 1." So I think I've answered my own question - can someone confirm?)

Thanks!

The biggest hurdle to developing apps in PowerApps is the pricing / licensing model.

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timl 36,785 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Hi @Withnail

I get how confusing this is.

Plan 1 and 2 licenses no longer exist - they've been superseded by the per app and per user licensing model.

In your case, the cheapest way to use MS SQL Server is to purchase per app licenses at £10/user/month. As you've found out, your other 2 users will also need a license.

You need a license to run and develop your app. So if you develop your app with a trial license and the trial expires, you'll no longer be able to run your app (it won't load).

Feel free to post back if you need any clarification on this.

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Withnail 10 on at

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@timl - thanks so much! That is much clearer, and cheaper! 😀

Just one other thought: we all have Office 365 Business Essentials which includes 'PowerApps for Office 365'. I'd noticed that this was a stripped down version of P1 and P2 licences i.e. without database connectivity. Is it still the case that this is different to the new $10/month licence? Or (hope against hope) have I already got a fully fledged PowerApps licence within Office 365?

BTW, when I try to connect to SQL Server it still says it's a "Premium connection will start a Power Apps Plan 2 trial." 🤔

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timl 36,785 Super User 2026 Season 1 on at

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Hi @Withnail

Unfortunately, Office 365 Business Essentials doesn't include the option to connect to SQL Server.

I think they haven't completely changed the dialogs, which is why we still references to Plan 1 and Plan 2.

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Withnail 10 on at

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Thanks, yes that makes sense.

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