True Azure Credit Balance

Use Azure portal → Cost Management + Billing → Billing → Usage + charges to determine the actual consumption; treat the Startups credit balance as a summary rather than the detailed usage record.^1^

Check consumption between September 17 and October 19

1. Sign in to the Azure portal using the account associated with the startup sponsorship.
2. Open Cost Management + Billing.
3. Select the relevant billing scope and sponsorship subscription.
4. Open Cost analysis.
5. Set the date range to September 17–October 19.
6. Keep the metric on Actual cost, then:
   • Select Group by → Resource to identify individual resources.
   • Also review Group by → Service name, Resource group, and Subscription.
   • Select Download to export the displayed data to CSV.

Cost Analysis supports filtering by time span, resource type, tags, and other dimensions. New cost data normally takes about 24 hours to appear, so a balance unchanged for more than a month is outside the ordinary reporting interval.^2^

Do not switch to Amortized cost unless you specifically need reservation or savings-plan costs distributed across their term. For normal usage reconciliation, Actual cost reflects costs as accrued toward the invoice.^3^

Download the detailed usage record

For line-item evidence independent of the balance display:

1. Go to Cost Management + Billing → Billing → Usage + charges.
2. Select the relevant billing-period line.
3. Select the download icon.
4. Download the usage file.
5. Filter its usage dates to September 17–October 19 and review the resource, meter, quantity, and cost columns.

The Cost and Usage Details CSV breaks down charges accrued toward an invoice and can be used to identify which resources generated the consumption.^4^

Access depends on the billing arrangement. For example, Microsoft Customer Agreement usage requires a billing-profile Owner, Contributor, Reader, or Invoice manager role; other account types have different billing roles.^5^

Which credit display applies

The applicable startup interface depends on when the company joined:

• Before May 29, 2026: the Microsoft for Startups portal provides a quick remaining-credit snapshot, while the Azure portal provides detailed usage.
• After May 29, 2026: use the Azure portal as the primary usage and program interface.^1^

Also verify that Cost Analysis is scoped to the sponsorship subscription, not another Pay-As-You-Go subscription or billing account.

If the detailed usage is also stale

Because the dates are more than 24 hours apart, open a billing support request if Usage + charges, Cost Analysis, and the downloaded usage file all omit known billable activity:

1. Azure portal → Cost Management + Billing.
2. Select New support request.
3. Choose the affected subscription and a Billing problem type.
4. Describe the issue as credit balance and cost data unchanged from September 17 through October 19.
5. Attach the downloaded CSV and screenshots showing the scope, date range, and unchanged balance.

Azure billing support requests are available without purchasing a technical support plan.^6^

References

1. Understanding Azure Usage and Billing
2. Plan to manage Azure costs
3. Customize views in Cost Analysis
4. Common cost analysis uses
5. View and download your Azure usage and charges
6. Azure Subscription - Microsoft Q&A