Library / Microsoft Copilot & agents
Build your first Microsoft 365 Copilot agent: Agent Builder or Copilot Studio?
When to use Agent Builder, when to move to Copilot Studio, and a step-by-step walkthrough for an IT policy agent.
Two ways to build
| Agent Builder | Copilot Studio | |
|---|---|---|
| Where | Inside Microsoft 365 Copilot | Separate maker portal |
| Best for | Personal or small-team agents | Organisation-wide agents |
| Knowledge | SharePoint, files, web | Many sources, including Dataverse and websites |
| Actions | Limited | Connectors, flows, APIs and multi-step actions |
| Governance | Microsoft 365 admin controls | Environments, analytics and full admin governance |
Start in Agent Builder. When you need actions, approvals or wider publishing, copy the agent to Copilot Studio.
Walkthrough: an IT policy agent
- In Microsoft 365 Copilot, open Agents and choose Create agent.
- Describe it: An agent that answers staff questions about our IT policies, using the IT Policies SharePoint site. Be concise and link to the source policy.
- Check the generated instructions, and add: If the policy doesn’t cover the question, say so and suggest raising a ticket.
- Add knowledge: the SharePoint site or library that holds your policies.
- Add starter prompts, such as Can I use a personal USB drive?
- Test with real questions and refine the instructions.
- Share with a pilot group before rolling out more widely.
Tips
- The agent only sees what each user can already access, so tidy permissions first.
- Keep instructions short and specific, and test with tricky questions.
- Licensing and features change often: check Microsoft Learn before you plan a rollout.
Official docs: Agent Builder and Copilot Studio.