Integrations
Business Central AI agent integration for orders, stock and quotes
A Business Central AI agent integration lets an agent answer customers, dealers and your own team with order, stock and customer data from Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, and prepare a sales quote for approval. Below we cover how that relates to Copilot, the Business Central agents and the MCP server, and how the connection works.
Short answer
Yes. An AI agent connects to Business Central through the standard API v2.0, as a Microsoft Entra application with its own permission sets. It reads customers, items with their stock, sales orders and invoices, and can prepare a sales quote or order, which waits for approval by default. Copilot and the Business Central agents work inside Business Central; a BeeManaged agent also works on your website and WhatsApp.
What is a Business Central AI agent integration?
It is a connection through the Business Central API that lets an AI agent read your administration and, where you allow it, prepare documents. A dealer asks whether 40 pieces are in stock; the agent reads the item in Business Central and answers, or prepares a sales quote for your team.
The standard API v2.0 covers, among others, customers, items, sales quotes, sales orders, sales invoices, purchase orders and vendors, with reading, creating and updating. Stock is a read-only field on the item. For fields the standard API does not offer, you build a custom API in an extension.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Business Central API v2.0 (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: custom APIs (learn.microsoft.com)
What do Copilot and the agents in Business Central do?
Copilot is included in the Business Central online licence at no extra cost, with features such as bank reconciliation assist and record summaries. The Sales Order Agent turns customer emails into sales quotes and orders, with review of every outgoing message, and the Payables Agent turns vendor invoices into drafts. Those agents are billed in Copilot Credits.
The agents work from a Microsoft 365 mailbox, for users inside Business Central. They do not answer customers on your website or WhatsApp, and they do not combine Business Central with your CRM or service desk. That is the part a BeeManaged agent adds.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Copilot in Business Central (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: Sales Order Agent (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: consumption billing for agents (learn.microsoft.com)
Does Business Central have an MCP server?
Yes. The Business Central MCP server has been generally available since April 2026, for Business Central online. By default it gives read-only access; an administrator switches on create, update or delete per API in the server settings. Every operation runs with the signed-in user's identity and permissions.
- Microsoft names Visual Studio Code with GitHub Copilot and Copilot Studio as clients, and other MCP clients such as Claude and ChatGPT.
- Clients other than Microsoft's need their own app registration in Microsoft Entra ID with delegated permission.
- Every call runs as a signed-in Business Central user. Microsoft also mentions websites as a channel, but the agent around it, customer verification and approval rules are things you build and manage yourself.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: Business Central MCP server (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: configure the MCP server (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: MCP server generally available (release plan) (learn.microsoft.com)
Copilot, the MCP server or a managed agent: which fits?
Use Copilot and the Business Central agents for work inside Business Central, such as quotes from customer emails and purchase invoices. The MCP server suits one person querying Business Central from their own AI assistant. Choose a managed agent when customers or dealers ask on your website or WhatsApp, or when the answer also needs your CRM or service desk.
| Copilot and agents in Business Central | MCP server | Managed agent from BeeManaged | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Your users in Business Central; customers by email via the Sales Order Agent | Users with their own AI assistant, or agents you build on it | Website visitors, customers, dealers and your team |
| Systems | Business Central | Business Central, via your AI assistant | Business Central plus CRM, website, WhatsApp and email |
| Write actions | Quotes and orders with review of outgoing messages; invoice drafts | Read-only by default; writing per API, set by an administrator | Quotes and orders through an approval queue by default |
| Management | Microsoft and your administrator | You | BeeManaged, with monitoring and audit log |
| Cost | Copilot included; agents in Copilot Credits | Business Central licence per user plus your AI assistant; Microsoft's licensing guide names Copilot Credits for MCP use | From €0.35 per conversation; internal agents in consultation |
What does an AI agent do with Business Central in a manufacturing or trading company?
It answers the questions your sales and customer service now look up by hand, and prepares the next document. Five examples below, each reading Business Central through the API; documents wait for approval by default.
| Process | Question or trigger | What the agent reads or does | What comes back |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stock question | Dealer: can you deliver 40 pieces of item 4711 this week? | Reads the item and its stock | Quantity in stock, or a handover to sales |
| Order status | Customer: where is my order? | Verifies the asker, reads the sales order | Status of their own order |
| Quote request | Visitor asks a price for 200 pieces | Asks the details, prepares a sales quote | A draft quote for your team to approve |
| Customer questions from sales | Account manager: what did this customer order this year? | Reads sales orders and invoices | An overview with sources |
| Invoice question | Customer: can I get a copy of invoice 1023? | Verifies the customer, reads the sales invoice | The invoice details, or a handover to finance |
How does the Business Central API connection work technically?
The agent uses API v2.0 with service-to-service authentication: an app registration in Microsoft Entra ID that gets the API.ReadWrite.All permission and is then added in Business Central on the Microsoft Entra Applications page, with its own permission sets. The application account needs no user licence and cannot be given the SUPER permission set.
- Base URL per environment: api.businesscentral.dynamics.com/v2.0/{environment}/api/v2.0, for production and sandbox environments.
- Limits per user, also for service-to-service apps: 6,000 requests per five-minute sliding window, above which the API returns 429, and 5 requests processed at the same time, with further requests queued. One response holds at most 20,000 records.
- Webhooks report changes to entities such as customers, items and sales orders. A subscription expires after three days and is renewed by the integration.
- We give the application account only the permission sets a process needs; documents go to the approval queue in app.beemanaged.com by default.
- Data location: a Dutch environment runs in Microsoft's Europe geography. According to Microsoft, Business Central online uses Azure Front Door, which is not in scope of the EU Data Boundary. Our agents and data run in the EU, with no training on your data.
Sources
- Microsoft Learn: service-to-service authentication (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: API endpoint structure (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: operational limits (learn.microsoft.com)
- Microsoft Learn: webhooks (subscriptions) (learn.microsoft.com)
How we set it up, in four steps
01
Choose one process
For example stock and order questions from dealers, with your rules for who may see which customer's data.
02
Connect with minimal rights
Your administrator registers the app in Entra ID and adds it in Business Central with only the permission sets the process needs; we test in a sandbox environment.
03
Go live with approval
Quotes and orders wait in the approval queue until a colleague approves, or go in directly where you ask for that per action.
04
Monitor and improve
Conversation review, audit log and a monthly report with the themes that came up, then the next process.
Pricing for a Business Central agent
Customer-facing agents cost from €0.35 per conversation. Setup is quoted up front (development €175 per hour), monitoring and the dashboard cost €250 per month, and a consultation package is €1,750. Internal agents are custom work, priced in consultation. Your Business Central licences stay as they are; the application account needs no user licence, but employees who see Business Central data through an internal agent need their own licence.
For reference: Business Central Essentials costs €69.30 and Premium €95.30 per user per month, annual billing, excluding VAT (Microsoft Netherlands, October 2026).
Sources
- Microsoft Netherlands: Business Central pricing (Dutch) (microsoft.com)
- Microsoft: Dynamics 365 Licensing Guide (go.microsoft.com)
When don't you need BeeManaged for Business Central?
If your customers mainly send requests by email and you want quotes from them inside Business Central, the Sales Order Agent covers that. If one person wants to query Business Central from an AI assistant, the MCP server does it. BeeManaged makes sense when customers or dealers ask on your website or WhatsApp, or when the answer also needs your CRM or service desk.
Updated · As of October 2026 · Author Roy Rutten, AI architecture and development
Frequently asked questions
Can an AI agent read stock and orders from Business Central?
Yes, through the standard API v2.0. The agent reads items with their stock, sales orders and invoices, with only the permission sets you give its application account.
Can the agent create quotes or orders in Business Central?
The API supports it. We start read-only, and quotes or orders wait in the approval queue until a colleague approves them, unless you agree otherwise per action.
Does Business Central have an MCP server?
Yes, generally available since April 2026 for Business Central online. It is read-only by default and runs with the signed-in user's permissions.
Do we need an extra Business Central licence for the agent?
Not for the agent itself: according to Microsoft, an application account for service-to-service access needs no licence, gets its own permission sets and cannot have SUPER. Customers and dealers count as external users and need no licence. Employees who see Business Central data through the agent do need a Business Central licence of their own, according to Microsoft's licensing guide.
Does this work with Business Central on-premises?
This page describes Business Central online. Copilot, the agents and the MCP server are online only. For on-premises we look at the web services available in your version.
What does it cost?
Customer-facing agents cost from €0.35 per conversation, setup is quoted up front and monitoring with the dashboard costs €250 per month. Internal agents are custom work, priced in consultation.
Want to know what an agent can do with your Business Central?
Plan a conversation. We look at one process with you and tell you whether Copilot, the MCP server or a managed agent fits best.