Extra SharePoint Storage

Each Office 365 Extra File Storage license adds only 1 GB, so set the add-on quantity to the number of gigabytes required—for example, 1,000 licenses for approximately 1 TB—rather than adding a single license. ^1^

Correct and verify the existing add-on

1. Sign in to the Microsoft 365 admin center with the appropriate billing administrator permissions.
2. Go to Billing → Your products.
3. Open the existing Office 365 Extra File Storage subscription.
4. Check its status and purchased quantity:
   • 1 unit = 1 GB
   • 500 units = approximately 500 GB
   • 1,000 units = approximately 1 TB
5. If the quantity is lower than intended, modify the existing subscription quantity to the required number of gigabytes. There is no need to purchase a different add-on if this subscription is active and eligible.
6. Return to Billing → Your products and confirm that the new quantity is active, not pending, expired, or associated with another subscription.

Office 365 Extra File Storage is added to the tenant’s pooled SharePoint storage allocation. Microsoft permits purchasing additional SharePoint storage in 1-GB increments. ^2^

Verify that SharePoint received the capacity

1. Open the SharePoint admin center.
2. Select Active sites.
3. At the top of the page, review storage used and total storage.
4. Allow 24–48 hours for recent storage changes to appear in SharePoint reporting. ^3^

Also check SharePoint admin center → Settings → Site storage limits:

• With Automatic storage management, sites draw from the central tenant pool.
• With Manual management, the tenant capacity can increase while an individual site remains constrained by its existing site limit. To raise it, go to Active sites → select the site → General → Storage limit → Edit. ^4^

If the quantity is correct but capacity remains unchanged

• CSP or Volume Licensing purchase: Office 365 Extra File Storage cannot be purchased or modified directly from Microsoft when the base subscription was bought through a Cloud Solution Provider or Volume Licensing. Contact the reseller or licensing representative and ask them to confirm that the increased quantity was provisioned against the correct tenant. ^3^
• Direct Microsoft purchase: If the add-on shows the intended active quantity but the SharePoint total still has not changed after the reporting window, open a Microsoft 365 support request and provide:
  • The add-on name and active quantity
  • The purchase/order date
  • The total storage shown under SharePoint admin center → Active sites
  • A redacted screenshot of Billing → Your products
• Tenant already read-only: If Confirm purchase appears after completing the purchase, selecting it can temporarily remove read-only mode for up to 14 days while capacity is applied. It is available only once in a 365-day period. ^5^

For commercial tenants needing variable capacity, Microsoft 365 SharePoint Storage is also available as a pay-as-you-go option, but it is currently in public preview and is unavailable for Education, GCC, and Microsoft 365 operated by 21Vianet tenants. It requires an Azure subscription and appropriate Azure and Microsoft 365 administrator roles. ^3^

References

1. As a small business, how do I maximize my storage space - Microsoft Q&A
2. SharePoint storage planning
3. Add more OneDrive and SharePoint storage to your Microsoft 365 subscription
4. Manage site storage limits in SharePoint in Microsoft 365
5. SharePoint limits