Cost Management

The Rising Cost of Microsoft 365 Storage October 28, 2026 Spending is becoming less predictable as storage consumption triggers separate charges across overages, backup, archive,...more Azure: Know Reservations Updated: October 19, 2026 Azure reservations allow customers to reduce Azure costs in exchange for a one- or three-year...more Risks Increase Dramatically with Employees Using Shadow AI October 17, 2026 AI tools based on large language models are increasingly used by staff as a quick...more Understanding Copilot Studio Harnesses and Their Costs September 22, 2026 An AI harness is a layer between an agent or an AI application and the...more Microsoft IQ Enables Enterprise Intelligence, But at What Cost? September 21, 2026 Enterprise intelligence is shifting from stored information to metered services consumed by AI. Microsoft IQ...more GitHub Copilot Brings Another AI Consumption Unit to Track September 14, 2026 Microsoft has revised the metered usage units for GitHub Copilot and added a new “Max”...more The Hidden Costs of M365 Copilot September 10, 2026 Microsoft injected unpredictable consumption costs into user subscription licensing with Copilot Cowork, and there’s more...more Avoid Overspending on GitHub Copilot With Governance and Training August 16, 2026 GitHub Copilot’s billing scheme employs a Per-User license plus metered usage based on what a...more Most Azure Reservation Exchanges End in 2027  August 7, 2026 Most key Azure reservations purchased after Feb. 2027 can no longer be exchanged once purchased....more Cut Service Consumption Costs with Pre-Purchase Plans August 7, 2026 There are now four Pre-Purchase Plans that provide savings over PAYG on consumption-based services, such...more SharePoint Embedded: Document Management Without SharePoint Updated: March 9, 2026 SharePoint Embedded provides storage in Microsoft 365 with built-in document management for custom apps but...more And Acquisition for All: Microsoft 365 Self-Service Purchase March 2, 2026 Microsoft makes several services available for direct purchase by end users to promote adoption, circumventing...more Top Reasons to Use SQL Server 2025 and a Few Reasons to Avoid It January 14, 2026 SQL Server 2025 reached general availability in Nov. 2025 and offers compelling changes that should...more Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC) Brings Discounts, Negotiation Leverage Updated: October 23, 2025 Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment is an agreement to spend a specified amount on Azure, typically...more How to Assign Microsoft 365 User Licenses July 10, 2025 Microsoft 365 licenses must be assigned to users before they can use the services. The...more Azure NetApp Files NAS Service Targets Large-Scale Use Updated: June 28, 2025 The new Azure NetApp Flexible Tier could help with large-scale lift-and-shift scenarios. Throughput is priced...more

Available Azure Reservations Updated: October 15, 2026 Microsoft’s Units for Metered AI Consumption Costs September 14, 2026

  Licensing Reference Agent 365 Agent 365 provides a central registry of most types of AI agents; a single control...more   Licensing Reference Copilot Credits Copilot Credits are Microsoft’s usage-based consumption unit for many Microsoft Copilot and agent scenarios.   Licensing Reference GitHub AI Credits GitHub AI Credits are a consumption unit used for GitHub Copilot usage charges.   Product Reference Azure Support Plans Paid Azure support plans provide both break-fix support and guidance to developers and operations staff...more   Licensing Reference SQL Server A server-based product that provides database management, integration services, reporting, analysis services, and machine learning...more   Licensing Reference Microsoft Graph Most Graph capabilities are included with M365 and Entra licenses, but some APIs, services, and...more   Licensing Reference OneDrive OneDrive is licensed through User SLs and is included in M365 and O365 plans.   Product Reference Cost Management Microsoft Cost Management is a free service that can help track, budget, forecast, generate alerts...more   Licensing Reference Copilot Cowork Copilot Cowork requires the M365 Copilot license but breaks the per-seat pricing model   Licensing Reference App Service Azure App Service has three purchasing models that dictate the level of infrastructure isolation, networking...more   Licensing Reference Service Bus Azure Service Bus is purchased as a metered Azure service.   Licensing Reference SQL Managed Instance A multitenant relational database service based on the latest version of SQL Server, designed for...more   Licensing Reference Cost Management Microsoft Cost Management is a free service that can help track, budget, forecast, alert on,...more   Licensing Reference Azure Savings Plans Azure savings plans allow organizations to specify the amount of VM compute resources that will...more   Licensing Reference Azure Prepayment Azure Prepayment (formerly Azure Monetary Commitment), like Microsoft Azure Consumption Commitment (MACC), is an agreement...more   Product Reference SharePoint Embedded SharePoint Embedded is document management infrastructure for custom apps.

Copilot   Purview   Licensing   Foundry