Microsoft Purview Records Management
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$10.00 per user per month
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What is Microsoft Purview Records Management
Microsoft Purview Records Management is a records retention and disposition capability within the Microsoft Purview compliance suite. It helps compliance, legal, and IT teams classify content, apply retention labels and policies, and manage defensible deletion or preservation across Microsoft 365 data sources. The product emphasizes policy-based retention, event-based retention, and disposition review workflows integrated with Microsoft 365 services and Microsoft Purview compliance features.
Native Microsoft 365 integration
It applies retention labels and policies directly to content stored in Microsoft 365 services such as Exchange, SharePoint, OneDrive, and Teams. This reduces the need for separate connectors or duplicate repositories for common collaboration and email workloads. Administration and reporting align with the broader Microsoft Purview compliance portal used for adjacent compliance functions.
Policy-based retention controls
It supports retention and deletion rules through retention labels and retention policies, including record and regulatory record declarations. Event-based retention enables retention to start from a business event rather than content creation, which fits common regulatory requirements. Disposition review helps organizations implement controlled deletion with reviewer attestation and auditability.
Scales with enterprise tenancy
It is designed to operate across large Microsoft 365 tenants with centralized policy management. Role-based access control and administrative scoping support separation of duties between compliance, records managers, and IT. The approach aligns with enterprise governance programs that standardize retention across many sites, mailboxes, and teams.
Best for Microsoft data
Coverage is strongest for Microsoft 365 workloads; managing records across non-Microsoft repositories typically requires additional integrations or separate governance processes. Organizations with significant content in third-party collaboration, file storage, or line-of-business systems may need complementary tooling. This can complicate end-to-end retention standardization across the full information estate.
Licensing and feature gating
Capabilities can depend on Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview licensing tiers, which may vary by tenant and region. Some advanced compliance features are not available in all subscriptions, creating planning complexity for global rollouts. Cost and entitlement validation often become part of implementation and ongoing governance.
Complex policy design and change
Retention labels, policies, and exceptions require careful design to avoid conflicting outcomes across locations and workloads. Large-scale changes can require governance processes, testing, and stakeholder coordination to prevent unintended retention or deletion. Records management outcomes also depend on consistent information architecture and user/content lifecycle practices.
Plan & Pricing
| Plan | Price | Key features & notes |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Purview Suite (commercial) | $12.00 per user/month (annual commitment) | Includes Records Management (records declaration, file plan, disposition reviews), Data Lifecycle Management, eDiscovery, Audit, Information Protection. Requires Microsoft 365 E3 / Office 365 E3 + EMS E3 or equivalent prerequisites. Source: Microsoft Purview Suite product pages. |
| Microsoft Purview Suite — Business Premium add-on | $10.00 per user/month (annual), maximum 300 seats; requires Microsoft 365 Business Premium | Brings Microsoft Purview (including automated retention, deletion, and records management policies) to Business Premium customers (up to 300 users). 30-day trial offered on the add-on page. |
Usage-based (pay-as-you-go) details (official Microsoft Purview / Azure Purview pricing page): Pricing model: Pay-as-you-go meters in addition to subscription licensing (mixed model). Free tier/trial: See subscription trial notes above. Example costs (official Microsoft/Azure Purview pricing page):
- Data Lifecycle Management (Premium meter): $6 per 1,000,000 text messages managed per month.
- eDiscovery Premium: $20 per GB processed and stored per month.
- Audit (Standard): $15 per 1,000,000 audit records ingested. Notes: Pay-as-you-go meters apply for certain capabilities (especially non-Microsoft AI apps / external locations); Microsoft applications may be included under qualifying subscriptions. See Azure Purview pricing and Microsoft documentation for licensing boundaries and prerequisites.
Seller details
Microsoft Corporation
Redmond, Washington, United States
1975
Public
https://www.microsoft.com/
https://x.com/Microsoft
https://www.linkedin.com/company/microsoft/
