azure-cost

Azure Cost Management Skill

Unified skill for all Azure cost management tasks: querying historical costs, forecasting future spending, and optimizing to reduce waste.

When to Use This Skill

Activate this skill when user wants to:

• Query or analyze Azure costs (how much am I spending, show my bill, cost breakdown)
• Break down costs by service, resource, location, or tag
• Analyze cost trends over time
• Forecast future Azure spending or project end-of-month costs
• Optimize Azure costs, reduce spending, or find savings
• Find orphaned or unused resources
• Rightsize Azure VMs, containers, or services
• Generate cost optimization reports

Quick Reference

| Property | Value | |----------|-------| | Query API Endpoint | POST {scope}/providers/Microsoft.CostManagement/query?api-version=2023-11-01 | | Forecast API Endpoint | POST {scope}/providers/Microsoft.CostManagement/forecast?api-version=2023-11-01 | | MCP Tools | azure__documentation, azure__extension_cli_generate, azure__get_azure_bestpractices | | CLI | az rest, az monitor metrics list, az resource list | | Required Role | Cost Management Reader + Monitoring Reader + Reader on scope |

MCP Tools

| Tool | Description | Parameters | When to Use | |------|-------------|------------|-------------| | azure__documentation | Search Azure documentation | query (Required): search terms | Research Cost Management API parameters and options | | azure__extension_cli_generate | Generate Azure CLI commands | intent (Required): task description, cli-type (Required): "az" | Construct az rest commands for cost queries | | azure__get_azure_bestpractices | Get Azure best practices | intent (Required): optimization context | Inform query design with cost management best practices | | azure__extension_azqr | Run Azure Quick Review compliance scan | subscription (Required): subscription ID, resource-group (Optional): resource group name | Find orphaned resources and cost optimization opportunities | | azure__aks | Azure Kubernetes Service operations | varies by sub-command | AKS cost analysis: list clusters, get node pools, inspect configuration |

💡 Tip: Prefer MCP tools over direct CLI commands. Use az rest only when MCP tools don't cover the specific operation.

Routing

Read the user's request and follow the appropriate workflow below.

| User Intent | Workflow | Example Prompts | |-------------|----------|-----------------| | Understand current costs | [Cost Query Workflow](cost-query/workflow.md) | "how much am I spending", "cost by service", "show my bill" | | Reduce costs / find waste | [Cost Optimization Workflow](cost-optimization/workflow.md) | "optimize costs", "find orphaned resources", "reduce spending" | | Project future costs | [Cost Forecast Workflow](cost-forecast/workflow.md) | "forecast costs", "end of month estimate", "how much will I spend" | | Full cost picture | All three workflows combined | "give me the full picture of my Azure costs" |

Important: When optimizing costs, always present the total bill and cost breakdown alongside optimization recommendations.

Scope Reference (Shared Across All Workflows)

| Scope | URL Pattern | |-------|-------------| | Subscription | /subscriptions/<subscription-id> | | Resource Group | /subscriptions/<subscription-id>/resourceGroups/<resource-group-name> | | Management Group | /providers/Microsoft.Management/managementGroups/<management-group-id> | | Billing Account | /providers/Microsoft.Billing/billingAccounts/<billing-account-id> | | Billing Profile | /providers/Microsoft.Billing/billingAccounts/<billing-account-id>/billingProfiles/<billing-profile-id> |

💡 Tip: These are scope paths only — not complete URLs. Combine with the API endpoint and version.

Part 1: Cost Query Workflow

For the full cost query workflow (scope selection, report types, timeframes, dataset configuration, API calls, pagination, guardrails, examples, and error handling), see:

📄 [Cost Query Workflow](cost-query/workflow.md)

Part 2: Cost Optimization Workflow

For the full cost optimization workflow (prerequisites, best practices, Redis/AKS-specific analysis, Azure Quick Review, resource discovery, cost queries, pricing validation, utilization metrics, and report generation), see:

📄 [Cost Optimization Workflow](cost-optimization/workflow.md)

Part 3: Cost Forecast Workflow

For the full cost forecast workflow (scope selection, time period rules, dataset configuration, forecast-specific options, API calls, response interpretation, guardrails, and error handling), see:

📄 [Cost Forecast Workflow](cost-forecast/workflow.md)

Data Classification

• ACTUAL DATA = Retrieved from Azure Cost Management API
• ACTUAL METRICS = Retrieved from Azure Monitor
• VALIDATED PRICING = Retrieved from official Azure pricing pages
• ESTIMATED SAVINGS = Calculated based on actual data and validated pricing

Best Practices

• Always query actual costs first — never estimate or assume
• Always present the total bill alongside optimization recommendations
• Validate pricing from official sources — account for free tiers
• Use REST API for cost queries (more reliable than az costmanagement query)
• Save audit trail — include all queries and responses
• Include Azure Portal links for all resources
• For costs < $10/month, emphasize operational improvements over financial savings
• Never execute destructive operations without explicit approval

Common Pitfalls

• Assuming costs: Always query actual data from Cost Management API
• Ignoring free tiers: Many services have generous allowances
• Using wrong date ranges: 30 days for costs, 14 days for utilization
• Not showing the bill: Always present cost breakdown alongside optimization recommendations
• Cost query failures: Use az rest with JSON body, not az costmanagement query

Safety Requirements

• Get approval before deleting resources
• Test changes in non-production first
• Provide dry-run commands for validation
• Include rollback procedures

SDK Quick References

• Redis Management: [.NET](cost-optimization/sdk/azure-resource-manager-redis-dotnet.md)