Azure Pricing Overview
Understand the cost structure of Microsoft Azure services. This documentation provides detailed information on pricing models, cost management tools, and strategies to optimize your Azure spending.
Key Pricing Concepts
- Pay-as-you-go: Pay only for what you use.
- Reserved Instances: Commit to a 1- or 3-year term for significant savings on compute services.
- Azure Hybrid Benefit: Use your existing on-premises Windows Server and SQL Server licenses to save on Azure.
- Spot Virtual Machines: Leverage unused Azure capacity for significant cost reductions on interruptible workloads.
- Free Tier: Explore a set of Azure services that are free for 12 months, plus popular services that are always free.
Compute Pricing Examples
Below are examples for common virtual machine series. For exact pricing, please use the Azure Pricing Calculator.
| VM Series | vCPU | Memory (GiB) | Estimated Monthly Cost (USD) | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| B-series (Burstable) | 1 | 1 | $10 - $25 | Learn More |
| Dsv3-series (General Purpose) | 2 | 8 | $40 - $60 | Learn More |
| Esv3-series (Memory Optimized) | 4 | 32 | $80 - $120 | Learn More |
| Fsv2-series (Compute Optimized) | 8 | 16 | $90 - $140 | Learn More |
Note: Costs are estimates and vary based on region, commitment, and specific configuration.
Storage Pricing
Azure offers various storage options with different pricing models:
- Azure Blob Storage: Cost-effective object storage for unstructured data. Pricing depends on storage tier (Hot, Cool, Archive) and data operations.
- Azure Disk Storage: High-performance disk storage for Azure VMs. Pricing is based on disk type (e.g., Standard HDD, Standard SSD, Premium SSD) and size.
- Azure Files: Cloud-based file shares accessible via SMB and NFS protocols. Pricing is per GB stored.
Networking Pricing
Networking costs are typically associated with data transfer. Key services include:
- Bandwidth: Data transfer in and out of Azure regions.
- Azure ExpressRoute: Dedicated private connections to Azure.
- Azure Load Balancer: Cost effective load balancing services.
Check the Networking Pricing Details for more information.
Cost Management and Optimization
Azure provides tools to help you manage and optimize your cloud spend:
- Azure Cost Management + Billing: Monitor, allocate, and optimize your costs. Set budgets and receive alerts.
- Azure Advisor: Provides recommendations for cost savings, performance, security, and reliability.