The Guide to Managing Miro Licenses and Cutting SaaS Waste

Miro’s licensing model is engineered for overspend. Enterprises face shelfware, surprise license costs, and AI add-ons that quietly inflate spend. Today, Zylo data shows 61% of licenses go unused, and the average company spends $85K annually—with nearly $52K wasted.

The impact is widespread. IT teams lose visibility as employees create unvetted instances. Software Asset Managers struggle to align spend with actual usage. Procurement misses leverage to negotiate fair terms. Without active Miro license management, costs expand quietly and relentlessly.

The challenge is real—but it’s also solvable. Enterprises that bring data, automation, and benchmarks to their Miro environment can reclaim wasted spend, reduce risk, and approach renewals with confidence.

In this article, I’ll cover:

• How Miro’s licensing model creates complexity (and hidden costs)
• The overspend traps most enterprises overlook
• Tactical steps to optimize licenses and eliminate waste
• Renewal and negotiation strategies to cut costs
• Why leading enterprises use Zylo for Miro license management

How Miro’s Licensing Model Creates Complexity (and Cost)

Miro offers collaboration at scale, but its licensing tiers and add-ons are structured in ways that generate unpredictable spend. Understanding the traps built into its model is the first step toward controlling costs.

Free, Starter, Business, and Enterprise Tiers: Features vs. Costs

Miro’s tiered plans range from Free to Enterprise. Here’s how they break down:

• Free Plan ($0):
  • Up to 3 editable boards per team
  • Unlimited users, but no private boards
  • Basic collaboration and template access
  • Use case: small, ad hoc projects or trial usage
  • Risk: easy entry point for shadow IT, no admin controls
• Starter Plan ($8/user/month annually, $10 month-to-month):
  • Unlimited editable boards and private projects
  • Visitor access for public sharing, but guests can only view/comment
  • Lacks SSO and enterprise-grade controls
  • Use case: small teams growing beyond Free but not yet enterprise scale
  • Risk: often forces paid licenses for one-off collaborators
• Business Plan ($16/user/month annually, $20 month-to-month):
  • Adds SSO, unlimited guest editors (can edit without consuming a license)
  • Unlimited workspaces, advanced diagramming and meeting tools
  • Use case: larger teams with security/compliance requirements
  • Risk: higher per-user cost, but often a stepping stone to Enterprise
• Enterprise Plan (~$300/user/year, 50-user minimum, custom pricing):
  • All Business features plus centralized admin, domain control, SCIM provisioning
  • Flexible Licensing Program (auto-scaling licenses with periodic true-up)
  • Enterprise security (data residency, audit logs, SIEM integration)
  • Use case: company-wide rollouts requiring governance and compliance
  • Risk: true-ups and add-ons can inflate renewal costs rapidly

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of Miro’s license tiers:

The problem? Feature requirements, not team size, often force upgrades. For example:

• A small team that needs SSO immediately jumps from $8 to $16 per user.
• External guest editing is free on Business and Enterprise, but requires a paid license on Starter.
• Enterprise’s “flexibility” can backfire when seats scale automatically without governance.

These price jumps add up fast—especially when admins provision “just in case.”

The Guest Access Illusion

Guest access feels like a cost-saver, but without the right guardrails, it introduces both spend and risk.

• Free Plan: Does not include Guest access.
• Starter Plans: Includes Guest access with only view and comment permissions.
• Business & Enterprise Plans: Allow unlimited guest editors—ideal for contractors, executives, or clients who don’t need a license.

The catch? IT loses control if guest access is unmanaged. Sensitive boards may be shared broadly, and rogue guests can create compliance risks. Many companies end up buying licenses for occasional collaborators out of caution, inflating costs unnecessarily.

Flexible Licensing Program (FLP): Convenient But Unpredictable

Enterprise customers gain access to the Flexible Licensing Program (FLP). This model:

• Auto-scales license counts as employees join
• Settles up based on your defined true-up frequency
• Allows unrestricted adoption without upfront fees

FLP license upgrades, which are never automatic, include:

• Full – already upgraded to the highest license type
• Free – auto-upgrades to a full license when creating a board, editing a shared board, invited to edit a board, granted board co-ownership, or added to a space as an Editor.
• Free Restricted – a license upgrade request is sent to an Admin when a user tries to create a board or space, requests edit access, is invited to edit a board, or is assigned board ownership.

While convenient, FLP makes it nearly impossible to predict license counts. Admins often discover ballooning usage at renewal with limited room to negotiate down. Without strict governance, FLP shifts cost control from proactive to reactive.

AI Credits and Add-Ons: Innovation at a Price

Miro AI features (summarization, diagramming, clustering) are metered by credits. Each plan includes monthly credits:

• Free: 10 total credits
• Starter: 25 credits per user
• Business: 50 credits per user
• Enterprise: 100 credits per user (pooled at the org level)

Once teams exceed their monthly credit limit, organizations must buy the Miro AI Add-On to increase it. This is only available for Starter, Business, and Enterprise plans, billed across all licensed users—even if only a few rely on AI.

AI Add-On cost:

• Charged per licensed user across the subscription once credits are exceeded
• Can add thousands of dollars annually, even if only a handful of teams use AI heavily
• Applies as a blanket charge; light users subsidize heavy adopters

This consumption-driven pricing mirrors broader SaaS trends: innovation is monetized incrementally, and IT leaders must track yet another variable to prevent overruns.

The Hidden Costs Enterprises Overlook

Miro’s pricing structure isn’t just about per-seat licenses. In my experience, the real financial impact comes from hidden and often unmonitored costs—costs that accumulate quietly until renewal. Look out for:

• Unused and underutilized licenses
• Shadow IT purchases
• Unpredictable true-ups and add-on fees
• Compliance and risk

1. Unused and Underutilized Licenses

Zylo data shows that the majority of Miro licenses go unused, driving thousands of dollars of waste every year for a typical company.

• For IT managers, this means wasted budget that could have funded higher-priority initiatives.
• For Software Asset Managers, it increases FLP true-up and compliance risks.
• For Procurement, it erodes negotiating leverage at renewal.

Automated license reclamation and ongoing monitoring are the only reliable ways to eliminate this waste.

2. Shadow IT Purchases

Departments and individuals frequently buy Miro Starter or Business plans on credit cards. With 83% SaaS purchasing decentralized across the business, IT and Procurement often have no visibility until spend appears on expense reports.

The risks:

• Fragmented contracts and duplicate subscriptions
• No central governance or license alignment
• Compliance and security blind spots

This is a growing problem. IT loses control, SAM can’t validate usage, and Procurement misses enterprise pricing opportunities.

3. Unpredictable True-Ups and Add-On Fees

Enterprise Miro customers enrolled in the Flexible Licensing Program (FLP) face quarterly or annual true-ups. Seat counts expand automatically as new employees join, and there’s rarely an easy way to scale back mid-contract.

4. The Compliance and Risk Premium

Every unmanaged license or guest creates security exposure. Gartner predicts organizations without centralized SaaS visibility are 5X more likely to experience a cyber incident or data loss. For IT leaders accountable for access controls, the cost of a breach dwarfs the license savings conversation.

Why These Costs Go Unnoticed

The reason enterprises overlook these expenses is simple: lack of visibility and accountability. SaaS Management is spread across IT, SAM, and Procurement. Each sees part of the problem, but without a unified system of record, no one has the full picture.

Miro License Management and Optimization in 5 Steps

The complexity of Miro’s licensing model doesn’t mean cost control is out of reach. Enterprises can reclaim wasted spend and reduce risk by focusing on practical, repeatable actions. I recommend these tactics for effective Miro license management and optimization:

1. Rightsizing licenses based on usage data
2. Automating license reclamation workflows
3. Governing guest access and shadow IT
4. Monitoring add-on spend (AI, integrations)
5. Aligning renewal strategy with accurate data

1. Rightsize Licenses with Usage Insights

Start with visibility into how employees use Miro. Miro’s admin dashboards provide visibility into activity, but it’s often just a partial view that does not include spend, owner, and other app-related data.

Steps to take:

• Track active vs. inactive users with usage data, not assumptions.
• Identify downgradable users (e.g., occasional collaborators who don’t need full seats).
• Reassign unused licenses before purchasing more.

This ensures every license is tied to genuine usage, not “just in case” provisioning.

2. Automate License Reclamation

Automating license reclamation reduces waste and saves time. 

Steps to take:

• Connect Miro to your identity provider (e.g., Okta, Azure AD) to remove licenses automatically during offboarding.
• Set rules to reclaim licenses after inactivity thresholds (e.g., 30–60 days without login).
• Build workflows that recycle reclaimed seats for new hires instead of purchasing more.

By regularly reclaiming licenses, you close the loop and prevent idle licenses from piling up. This is especially important during FLP true-up periods. It’s easy for users to be silently auto-upgraded, hitting you with a larger-than-expected bill.

3. Govern Guest Access and Shadow IT

Guest access is one of the easiest ways to reduce license bloat, but only if managed correctly. Shadow IT subscriptions compound the challenge.

Steps to take:

• Default to guests for external contractors, vendors, and clients instead of assigning paid licenses.
• Audit who is using paid licenses vs. guest access regularly.
• Consolidate rogue Starter or Business plans into the managed enterprise contract to avoid fragmented spend.

Clear policies and enforcement prevent waste while maintaining collaboration flexibility.

4. Monitor AI Credits

While all Miro plans include AI credits, your spend can balloon quickly and unpredictably if you don’t monitor usage.

Steps to take:

• Track adoption of AI features and by team.
• Compare AI credit usage against your contracted credit allotment,
• Review add-on ROI quarterly; scale back if usage doesn’t justify spend.

This prevents small add-on charges from snowballing into enterprise-level costs.

5. Align Renewal Strategy with Data

The best time to capture savings is at renewal, but only if you walk in with facts, not vendor estimates.

Steps to take:

• Run license audits at least 90 days before renewal.
• Flag inactive or downgradable users and reduce license counts accordingly.
• Prepare a negotiation package with license utilization trends and internal benchmarks.

By treating renewals as a proactive process, Procurement and IT gain leverage to negotiate lower rates and right-size commitments.

Renewal and Negotiation Playbook for Miro

Miro’s renewal process is designed to maximize vendor revenue. For effective Miro cost management, enterprises need to approach renewals with the same discipline they bring to audits. Here’s a tactical playbook to follow:

1. Align IT, SAM, and Procurement
2. Start early
3. Benchmark pricing
4. Push back on Enterprise pricing and terms

Step 1: Align IT, SAM, and Procurement

• IT provides usage visibility and risk analysis.
• SAM ensures compliance and documents license positions.
• Procurement leads vendor discussions with data-backed arguments.

Why it matters: A unified front avoids the common vendor tactic of bypassing one function to push approvals elsewhere.

Step 2: Start Early (90–120 Days Before Renewal)

• Run a full usage audit of all licenses and add-ons.
• Identify inactive or downgradable users and document potential seat reductions.
• Flag hidden costs (e.g., AI Add-On adoption) to quantify true spend.

Why it matters: Entering renewal conversations with accurate utilization data ensures you control the narrative—not the vendor.

Step 3: Benchmark Pricing

• Compare your current per-user rates against internal benchmarks and third-party data.
• Ask peers or leverage a SaaS Management Platform (SMP) for external benchmarks.
• Document gaps between your pricing and published or market rates.

Why it matters: Published pricing rarely reflects enterprise deals. Without benchmarks, you negotiate in the dark.

Step 4: Push Back on Enterprise Pricing and Terms

• Question true-up policies in the Flexible Licensing Program (FLP). Ask for caps or limits on automatic seat growth.
• Negotiate discounts for volume or long-term commitments—but only if usage data justifies it.
• Push for “true-down” clauses to protect against headcount reductions.

According to Miro’s website, “eligible non-profits will receive a 30% discount on any Miro plan. It may be combined with our standard annual discount (20%) on Starter and Business plans, which gives 44% off the purchase.”

Why it matters: FLP and rigid contracts create one-way cost escalations. Protecting flexibility prevents budget surprises.

Why Leading Enterprises Use Zylo for Miro License Management

Managing Miro licenses effectively requires more than spreadsheets or native admin dashboards. Zylo brings structure, automation, and intelligence to Miro license management through direct product capabilities that eliminate waste and simplify renewals.

Direct Integration with Miro

Zylo offers a direct integration with Miro, giving IT, SAM, and Procurement leaders the visibility they can’t get from spreadsheets or static reports. 

With Zylo’s Miro direct integration, IT and SAM leaders gain visibility into:

• Users and activity: who is actively using Miro, and who holds licenses without logging in
• License type: whether a user is assigned a paid seat or is on a free tier
• Boards created, accessed, and shared: detailed visibility into collaboration patterns and potential risk exposure

Outcome: A comprehensive, real-time view of Miro usage that uncovers waste, strengthens governance, and informs smarter renewal strategies.

Automated License Reclamation

With Zylo Workflows, the license reclamation becomes automated. Unused or inactive licenses are flagged and reclaimed, then recycled to new users instead of driving new purchases.

• Reclaim seats after set inactivity thresholds
• Flag licenses not deprovisioned during employee offboarding
• Survey users before revoking access

Outcome: Continuous reduction of shelfware without burdening IT with manual audits.

License Optimization Insights

Zylo Insights transform raw usage data into clear, actionable recommendations. By analyzing Miro’s user activity, license types, and board sharing patterns, Zylo pinpoints exactly where cost and risk can be reduced.

With Insights, you can:

• Identify inactive paid licenses and reassign or downgrade them to free users
• Spot misuse of guest access or over-assignment of paid licenses to one-off collaborators
• Track board creation trends to understand adoption and align licensing with actual demand

Outcome: Data-driven optimization and stronger governance, ensuring every Miro license delivers value and compliance.

Renewal Readiness

Zylo transforms renewals from reactive events into proactive strategies. With usage data, cost benchmarks, and shelfware analysis in one place, Procurement teams enter vendor negotiations prepared.

• Access renewal timelines with automated alerts
• Generate reports quantifying waste and optimization opportunities
• Equip Procurement with evidence to push back on FLP true-ups

Outcome: Stronger negotiation leverage, lower renewal counts, and reduced per-seat costs.

Cut Waste with Miro License Management

Miro isn’t going to make license management easy. Its model profits when enterprises overspend. Hidden shelfware, flexible licensing, and costly add-ons are built into the system. Without visibility and control, budgets quietly bleed while risk increases.

Enterprises that bring data, automation, and benchmarks to their Miro environment change the game. With Zylo’s direct integration, automated license reclamation, and renewal insights, organizations finally gain the leverage to cut waste and negotiate from a position of strength.

Stop paying for unused Miro licenses. Learn more about Zylo’s License Management solution and request a demo today to see how much you can save before your next renewal.

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