Microsoft offers buyouts to 60,000 staff: what the voluntary exit means
Web StoryWatch this story in 15 seconds →Key takeaways
- Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 staff on October 26, 2026, according to reports.
- The offer covers select teams in the United States, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom.
- No worker must take the offer. It is voluntary, time-limited, and tied to a severance-like package.
The news came from reports by Business Insider and Bloomberg, according to TechCrunch. A buyout is an offer of money to leave a job by choice. Microsoft offered voluntary buyouts to around 60,000 employees on October 26, 2026.
No worker is forced to leave under this plan. Workers who take it leave with support and pay. Workers who refuse it stay in their jobs.
What happened
Microsoft told staff about the plan on Monday. The company calls the plan the Voluntary Exit Offer. Reuters reported the time-limited offer on October 26, 2026.
The number 60,000 comes from news reports, not from Microsoft itself. Microsoft did not confirm the number when Reuters asked about it. That detail matters for readers who see the number online.
Reuters cited Business Insider and a company spokesperson for the report. TechCrunch also cited Business Insider and Bloomberg for the same number. The reports agree on the scale of the offer.
The offer is large by any measure. Engadget reported that Microsoft employs about 223,000 people in total. On that count, 60,000 staff is more than one quarter of the workforce.
But the offer does not mean 60,000 people will leave. It means 60,000 people can choose to leave. The final number will depend on how many accept.
Who can take the offer
The offer covers staff at vice president level and below. That is the senior rank just below the top leaders. It also covers staff at level 70 and below in Microsoft job grades.
Only staff on participating teams can take it. Not every team in the company is part of the plan. Microsoft said some teams offer the exit deal and some do not.
The offer covers four countries in total. Those countries are the United States, Canada, India, and the United Kingdom. Staff in other countries are not part of this offer.
Eligible staff will get details of their own offer by email. The offer terms are close to a standard severance package, TechCrunch reported. Severance is pay and benefits given to a worker who leaves a job.
Amy Coleman leads people issues at Microsoft as chief people officer. She sent a note to staff about the offer on Monday. Her note said the offer gives staff more choice about their next step.
Who is left out
Some teams are not part of the offer at all. Reuters reported that marketing, commercial business, and security units are excluded. That means staff in those units cannot take the deal.
Some data center staff are also excluded, TechCrunch reported. Data centers are large buildings full of computers that run online services. Some sales and marketing staff are excluded too.
Key teams named in the reports include AI experiences and Copilot. Copilot is Microsoft's AI helper for work tasks. Finance, human resources, Xbox, and Windows plus Devices are also named.
Xbox makes games and game consoles for Microsoft. Windows plus Devices covers the Windows system and hardware. These teams are among those hit by the offer.
The split shows a clear pattern in the plan. Teams tied to AI and core products face the offer. Teams tied to sales, marketing, and security do not.
Why Microsoft is doing this
Microsoft says the move is about change and choice. The company wants more ways for staff to shape their next step. That is the message in Coleman's staff note.
The wider reason is cost and AI, according to the reports. Microsoft is spending huge sums on AI and data centers. Engadget reported nearly $175 billion of AI spending in 2026 alone.
Engadget also reported nearly 90 large data centers opened this year. Those buildings need huge sums to build and run. Cutting staff costs helps pay for that build-out.
This link is key to the story. Microsoft is hiring and building for AI at high speed. At the same time, it is shrinking parts of its older workforce.
The same tension runs through the AI market sell-off. Investors now ask hard questions about AI spending and returns. Microsoft's move fits that wider mood of caution.
What happened earlier this year
This is not Microsoft's first voluntary exit plan this year. Earlier in 2026, Microsoft offered buyouts to older staff near retirement age. About 8,750 workers were eligible for that earlier plan.
More than 30 per cent of those eligible workers accepted, TechCrunch reported. That means most eligible workers chose to stay. The new plan may follow the same pattern.
Microsoft has also cut jobs in other ways this year. Engadget noted fresh job cuts in the Xbox division this year. Other teams have faced cuts too.
The new offer is different from a layoff in one key way. A layoff forces a worker out of a job. A buyout lets a worker choose to leave with a package.
That choice is why Microsoft calls the plan voluntary. It also helps the company avoid forced cuts in these teams. Staff who want a change can take the money and leave.
What happens next
Eligible staff must now weigh a personal choice. They can take the package and leave Microsoft. They can also stay and keep their current job.
Money is only one part of that choice. Staff must also think about their next job. They must think about health cover and family costs too.
Microsoft has not given a closing date in the reports reviewed. The offer is time-limited, but no deadline was stated. Staff should check their own offer email for dates.
The final take-up number will be watched closely. If few staff accept, Microsoft may try other cost cuts. If many accept, the company will shrink fast in these teams.
The story also matters for the wider tech job market. Microsoft is one of the largest tech employers in the world. Its moves often set a pattern for other firms.
For now, the key facts are clear and simple. Around 60,000 staff have a choice to make. The choice is theirs, and the clock is now running.
The Anthropic IPO filing shows the same AI boom from the other side. Anthropic raised huge sums while Microsoft trims staff costs. Both stories show how fast AI is reshaping tech jobs.
Chip demand is also part of the AI story. ASML stock earnings show how AI demand drives chip tool sales. Microsoft's data center build feeds that same demand chain.
Related stories
Apple plans two October launches: smart home hub, OLED MacBook Pro
Apple set October 13 for a smart home launch with a new hub, Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini, then October 27 for OLED MacBook Pro models
How to Check If Your Phone Supports eSIM in 30 Seconds
Dial *#06# and look for an EID number to confirm eSIM support in under 30 seconds. This guide also walks through the iPhone and Android
eSIM vs iSIM: what is the difference?
An eSIM is a dedicated chip on the phone's board, while an iSIM lives inside the processor itself. Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen