Examine the Prompt Coach agent

  • 3 minutes

Microsoft 365 Copilot's prebuilt Prompt Coach agent helps you write clearer, more effective prompts. Whether you're just getting started or you want to improve your prompt-writing skills, Prompt Coach helps you express what you need in a way Copilot can follow more reliably. It offers suggestions, examples, and explanations to help you improve how you ask questions or give instructions.

You don't need to be technical to benefit from Prompt Coach. It explains why certain prompts work better, helps you revise vague or complex inputs, and shows you how to ask better questions to get more useful responses from Copilot.

Screenshot of the prebuilt Prompt Coach agent in Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat.

Prompt Coach is especially helpful for:

  • Rewriting unclear or underperforming prompts to be more specific or action-oriented.
  • Learning prompt patterns that work well for different types of tasks, such as writing, data analysis, and brainstorming.
  • Troubleshooting prompts when Copilot doesn't give the results you expected.
  • Exploring new ways to ask for help in natural language.
  • Building your confidence in using Copilot more effectively across Word, Excel, Teams, and more.

Whether you're trying to write faster, analyze data, or save time, Prompt Coach can help you improve the instructions you give Copilot. Think of it as a helper for prompt design rather than a tool that performs the task itself.

Sample prompts when working with Prompt Coach

Here are a few examples to help you get started with Prompt Coach:

  • Prompt improvement
    • "Here's what I asked Copilot. Can you help me improve it?"
    • "Copilot didn't give me the right chart. What should I change in my prompt?"
    • "Make this prompt more specific: ‘Summarize the report.'"
  • Prompt suggestions by task
    • "What's a good way to ask Copilot to help me write a performance review?"
    • "Suggest a prompt to analyze sales trends from this Excel file."
    • "How should I ask Copilot to draft a customer-facing email using content from this document?"
  • Prompt coaching and education
    • "Why didn't this prompt work the way I expected?"
    • "Show me examples of prompts for generating meeting summaries."
    • "Teach me how to structure prompts for data insights."
  • Prompt templates
    • "Give me templates for prompts I can reuse in project planning."
    • "Suggest five prompts I can try when I'm stuck writing a proposal."
    • "What's a prompt pattern for asking Copilot to create visuals from data?"

Limitations of the Prompt Coach agent

Prompt Coach is a helpful guide, but there are a few things to keep in mind:

  • It can't run your prompt for you. Prompt Coach helps you improve prompts, but it doesn't execute them. Once your prompt is refined, you still must use it with another Copilot agent like Analyst, Researcher, or Visual Creator.
  • It doesn't know your exact task or system context. Prompt Coach can give generalized improvements and suggestions, but results may vary depending on what files, tools, or apps you're working in.
  • It isn't a substitute for domain expertise. If you're working in a highly specialized area such as legal or technical writing, Prompt Coach can help with structure and clarity, but you should still review for accuracy and nuance.
  • It assumes best intent. Prompt Coach doesn't fact-check prompt content. Instead, it focuses on making your instructions to Copilot clearer and more actionable.