Copilot  

How to Deploy Copilot Agents Using Copilot Studio – Step-by-Step for Beginners

Introduction

In today’s blog, we’re diving into a very practical topic — How to deploy a Copilot Agent using Copilot Studio.

We’re not going to create a new agent here. This post is purely focused on how to take an existing agent and deploy it for end users, whether in Microsoft Teams, Copilot for Microsoft 365, or other channels.

Think of this like the last-mile delivery for your AI assistant. You've built the bot — now it's time to deliver it to your team and make it live.

Let’s begin, step-by-step

Prerequisites

Before we start, please make sure of the following.

  • You already have an agent created in Copilot Studio.
  • You have the appropriate permissions to publish the agent.
  • Your organization has Copilot and Teams access.
  • You are either an owner of the agent or have contributor rights.

Step 1. Open Your Existing Agent in Copilot Studio.

  1. Go to https://copilotstudio.microsoft.com
    Copilot
  2. Under “My agents”, select the agent you want to deploy.
    My agents
  3. Once the agent is loaded, verify the following tabs.
    • Overview: Agent name, description, and objective
    • Knowledge: Make sure data sources are working
    • Topics: All conversation topics tested
    • Test chat: Optional, but handy if you want to double-check logic
      Test chat

We’re assuming this part is done already.

Step 2. Open the Deployment Section.

  1. On the right side menu, click on “Publish”
    Publish
  2. Note. You can define the authentication method based on the type of agent behavior. I will create a separate article for specific to that.
    Agent
  3. You’ll now see two primary options.
    • Test and Publish
    • Channels

Let’s walk through both of them in the next steps.

Next step

Step 3. Final Testing Before Publishing.

Even if your agent was tested earlier, it’s good to do a final test.

  1. Click “Test your copilot” in the top right corner
  2. Try a few sample questions like:
    • “What is the leave policy?”
    • “How to file an expense?”
    • “Show me the travel guidelines PDF.”
  3. If the bot responds correctly, you’re good to go.
  4. Now click the “Publish” button – this makes the latest version available for deployment.

Tip. Publishing doesn’t make it public—it just makes the latest version available for selected channels.

Step 4. Add Deployment Channel.

Now comes the real action — deploying to Microsoft 365 Copilot or Microsoft Teams.

Option 1. Deploy to Microsoft 365 Copilot.

  1. Go to the “Channels” tab
  2. Select Teams & Microsoft 365 Copilot
  3. Click Add channel → You’ll see a modal with deployment settings.
    Channel
  4. Then the team channel was added.
    Added
  5. We can add it manually as a zip package if you want to maintain some version control. Click Availability options.
    Zip package
  6. Fill in the required details( Edit Details option to change anything needed).
    • Display name (for end users)
    • Short description
    • Select icon (optional)
      Select icon
  7. Click “Next” and then “Publish.”
  8. Click Availability options
    Availability options
  9. Now, the agent is ready to be discovered from Copilot in Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, etc.
  10. Click shows everyone in the team’s org.
    Teams
  11. And then submit for approval.
    Approval
  12. Then,
    Yes
  13. Now, Teams Admin can see the agents in the Teams Admin Center.
    Teams Admin Center

Note. Admins may have to approve this deployment through the Microsoft 365 Admin Center.

Microsoft 365 Admin Center

By default, it is blocked. Teams Admin has to publish it.

Teams Admin

Click Publish.

Click Publish

That’s it, published successfully.

Once done,

  • Users can go to Teams → Apps → Search your bot name
    Apps
  • Click add,
    Click Add
  • They can pin the Copilot agent or start chatting directly
    Copilot agent

Pro Tip. Use Teams App Studio (or Teams Admin Center) to pre-install the bot for departments like HR or Sales.

Step 5. Understand the Governance Flow

If your bot doesn’t show up immediately, don’t panic!

What Happens After Publishing?

  • The agent goes into Pending Approval (unless org policies allow auto-publish)
  • Microsoft 365 or Teams Admins must review and approve
  • Once approved, your Copilot agent becomes discoverable

Talk to your IT team or Copilot admins and share the deployment link with them.

💬 Why Are We Doing This?

Let’s pause for a second and ask a very logical question.

Why deploy the agent?

Reason Benefit
Make AI useful Agents aren’t helpful if no one can access them
Team productivity Give employees a 24/7 AI assistant inside Teams
Non-tech adoption Easy for business users to use, no training needed
Secure deployment Copilot Studio ensures compliance and access control

Conclusion

That’s it, folks!

If you’ve built an agent in Copilot Studio, don't just stop there — deploy it. Otherwise, it’s like building an app and keeping it locked on your laptop.

With just a few clicks, you can publish the agent to Copilot or Teams and make it useful for your organization.

💬 Have you deployed your agent yet? What challenges did you face? Drop your questions in the comments — let’s learn and grow together! 🚀

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