> Azure OpenAI
Azure OpenAI (Microsoft Foundry) serves the GPT family per 1M tokens in three priced deployment scopes — Global, Data Zone (EU/US, +10%) and Regional (up to 27 regions): GPT-5.6 Sol $5/$30 (short context, Global), Terra $2/$12, Luna $0.20/$1.20, gpt-oss-120b $0.15/$0.60. Batch (−50%) and PTU reservations (from $1/PTU/hr Global) sit under the same account; new Azure accounts carry a $200/30-day trial credit.
// pros
- The full GPT line under an enterprise wrapper: GPT-5.6 Sol/Terra/Luna, the 5.5 and 5.4 series (272K context), Codex models, Sora 2 video and GPT-Image — one Azure subscription.
- Three deployment scopes with explicit prices — Global, Data Zone (EU/US) and Regional (up to 27 regions) — making data residency a priced choice, not a sales call.
- Batch API at 50% of Global standard pricing, plus PTU reservations from $1/PTU/hr (Global, 15-PTU minimum) for predictable throughput.
- Open-weight access on the same bill: gpt-oss-120b at $0.15/$0.60 per 1M — the cheapest large open model on Azure.
- New Azure accounts get a $200 credit for 30 days — a real trial window before any commitment.
// cons
- Data-Zone and Regional scopes add 10–20% to every token (e.g. Sol output $30 Global → $33 Data Zone) — compliance convenience has a per-token price.
- Prices are published as estimates and FX-converted — the invoice follows Azure's monthly spot rate, not the list page.
- Long-context variants are separate SKUs with separate prices (Sol long: $10/$45) — context length changes unit economics, not just limits.
- Beyond the 30-day new-account credit there is no standing free tier — production use is pay-as-you-go.
For orgs with Azure commitments, the cheapest way to buy OpenAI models with residency guarantees: Global scope for development, Data Zone where compliance requires it, Batch for anything offline — and budget from the FX-converted invoice, not the list prices.
written by Mike Fleming, Uprouter editorial · verified against official sources September 16, 2026
Value taken from the provider’s own published free-tier terms, expressed in USD.
note: New Azure accounts: $200 credit for 30 days (stated on the Azure OpenAI pricing page; Azure-wide, applicable to Azure OpenAI — verified 2026-09-16). No standing free tier beyond it.
| Plan | Type | Monthly | Input /1M | Output /1M | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay-as-you-go | payg | — | Free | $0.0000 | Cheapest tracked model rate (OpenRouter-normalized). |
| GPT-5.6 Sol (Global) | payg | — | $5.00 | $30.00 | — |
Pricing normalized from public sources — always verify with the provider.
// model prices
| Model | Input /1M | Output /1M | Context |
|---|---|---|---|
| gpt-5.6-luna | Free | $0.0000 | 1.1M |
| GPT-4o-mini | Free | $0.0000 | 128k |
| GPT-4o | $0.0000 | $0.0000 | 128k |
| gpt-5.5 | $0.0000 | $0.0000 | 1.1M |
| GPT-6 Astra | $0.0000 | $0.0001 | 1.1M |
$ Does Azure OpenAI have a free tier?
No. Azure OpenAI does not offer a meaningful free tier — entry requires payment (pay-as-you-go or a plan). We mark this explicitly rather than showing a misleading zero.
$ How much does Azure OpenAI cost per 1M tokens?
The cheapest model we track at Azure OpenAI is Free per 1M input tokens and $0.0000 per 1M output tokens. This is normalized from Azure OpenAI's published pricing — verify with the provider before purchasing, since prices change frequently.
$ Is Azure OpenAI safe to use?
Uprouter rates Azure OpenAI as low risk. Low risk: first-party from Microsoft, with a published per-model price table per scope (Global / Data Zone / Regional), batch and PTU pricing (verified 2026-09-16). The two budget caveats are stated up front: prices are FX-converted estimates, and residency scopes add 10–20% to every token. Risk ratings are editorial, evidence-based, and never influenced by affiliate relationships.
Raw community sentiment, shown unblended. Votes never feed into objective data fields like price, risk, or status — and never into sort order.
No published reviews yet — be the first.
// more_informationprice history · live status · risk & confidence · code snippets
price_history
No recorded changes yet.
live_status
current: unknownNo probes recorded yet.
Uprouter runs its own probes; best-effort, not a guarantee. Probe results depend on our network location and cadence — for production, always use the provider’s own status page.
risk_&_confidence
Low risk: first-party from Microsoft, with a published per-model price table per scope (Global / Data Zone / Regional), batch and PTU pricing (verified 2026-09-16). The two budget caveats are stated up front: prices are FX-converted estimates, and residency scopes add 10–20% to every token.
Confidence reflects how much verifiable evidence (official docs, probe history, community reports) backs this entry. Risk is our editorial assessment of operator reliability and terms — not financial advice.
code_snippets
# Azure OpenAI's own API — get a key from their dashboard
curl https://azure.microsoft.com/products/ai-services/openai-service/chat/completions \
-H "Authorization: Bearer THEIR_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"model": "openai/gpt-6-astra",
"messages": [{ "role": "user", "content": "Hello" }]
}'Direct to the provider — Uprouter receives nothing; verify their current pricing before purchasing.
Ranked by neutral similarity signals only — live status, free-tier shape and free-credit proximity. Commercial relationships never influence this list.