# Quick response

> A Copilot Chat mode that answers immediately, meant for everyday lookups and drafting that do not need deeper reasoning.

**Category:** Copilot

**Quick response is the mode for questions that don't need long thought.** You find it in the mode selector under the message box in Copilot Chat, next to [Think Deeper](/glossary#think-deeper). It answers straight away, which suits the syntax of a formula, a one-line message or a quick rewrite. Left on Auto, Copilot picks between Quick response and Think Deeper for you, based on the question.

Whichever mode answers, Copilot often grounds its reply in web results with citations, so **check the sources** before you repeat anything time-sensitive. If a quick answer falls short, ask the same question again on Think Deeper: it costs you about ten seconds more. When the task is a real research or data job, neither mode fits and you open [Researcher](/glossary#researcher) or Analyst instead.

## At work

"What's the syntax for VLOOKUP?" and "Draft a one-line Teams message saying the report is a day late" are Quick response asks. Weighing whether to push a client deadline is not.

## Often confused with

Think Deeper. Both answer inside the chat, but Quick response replies at once, while Think Deeper takes up to around ten seconds to reason through multi-step or ambiguous questions.

## Related terms

- Think Deeper
- Web grounding
- Microsoft 365 Copilot Chat
- Researcher

## See it in a lesson

[Copilot modes and grounding](/en/learn/copilot/getting-started/modes-and-grounding)

## Further reading

- [Overview of Microsoft Copilot Chat (Microsoft Learn)](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/copilot/overview): How Quick response, Think deeper and Auto work in Copilot Chat.
- [How grounding works with a work or school account (Microsoft Support)](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/how-grounding-works-with-a-work-or-school-account-a3ccafb3-7fd3-4d51-bbd2-4245a7a1ef16): How Copilot pulls in web results and cites its sources.

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Last updated: 14/10/2026  
Source: Rollo Academy glossary