Is your startup part of Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub and stuck on the $25K Azure credit tier? You're not alone. Many startups find themselves wondering how to unlock the next level of Azure credits ($50K) before their initial credits expire. The key factor is something called the Azure Engagement Score – a metric that tracks how actively you’re using Azure and how strong your partnership with Microsoft is​. In this blog post, we'll share our experience and tips on improving that score to secure your next credit boost. We'll cover what the Engagement Score is (and clear up common confusion around it), what steps we took to demonstrate our Azure usage, how escalating to a Microsoft program manager made all the difference, and the lessons we learned along the way. By the end, you'll have a clearer game plan for leveling up your credits in Azure’s Founders Hub.

What is the Azure Engagement Score (and Why Does It Matter)?

Azure Engagement Score is essentially a measure of how actively your startup is building on Azure. Microsoft uses this score to gauge your growing partnership with them – the more you build and use Azure services, the stronger your engagement​. This score becomes visible for startups who have larger credit offers (typically $25,000 or more in Azure credits) and is used as a criterion when deciding if you qualify for additional credits and program extension.

For startups with an initial $25K Azure sponsorship, about 45 days before your credits expire, Microsoft will automatically review your account to decide if you get the next tier of credits​. To pass this review and avoid a denial, you need to meet all the program’s criteria – including completing the verification checklist tasks (like adding a team member, uploading a demo video, etc.) and having a “strong” Engagement Score​. If you qualify, your account is automatically granted the next $50K in credits and an extension in the program​

Sounds straightforward, right? In theory, yes – but in practice, the Engagement Score has caused a lot of confusion for founders. One startup founder on Microsoft’s Q&A forum shared their frustration: they met all the advertised prerequisites to move to the next level, yet were told their Azure Engagement score “required improvement” even though no actual score was visible to them and the guidance on how to improve it was very vague​. In fact, for the first few months of your membership, the Founders Hub portal might just display “No score available,” which leaves many startups in the dark. (Microsoft confirms that the Engagement Score isn’t calculated for the first three months after you’re accepted or move to a $25K offer – it only starts showing up in month four​). By the time that automatic review is approaching, some startups suddenly discover they’re flagged with an insufficient engagement score – a stressful red flag situation if you’re only weeks away from credit expiration.

Why does this score matter so much? Because even if you’ve only spent a fraction of your $25K credits, failing to demonstrate enough Azure engagement can prevent you from receiving the next $50K. Microsoft wants to see that you’re not just passively holding credits, but actively using Azure to build your solution. (In fact, one of the requirements to move from $25K to $50K is that you consume at least 50% of your initial credits​ – a clear sign that you need to be using Azure, not saving the credits for a rainy day.) The Engagement Score encapsulates not just how much you spend, but how you use Azure – are you exploring multiple services? Deploying resources regularly? Essentially, it reflects your commitment to the Azure ecosystem.

However, the lack of transparency around the score’s calculation can leave founders guessing what to do next. If you’re seeing a low engagement indicator (or no score at all) and your credit end-date is drawing near, you might feel stuck. That’s exactly where we were – but we managed to turn it around. Here’s how.

First Steps: Showing Our Commitment to Azure

When we realized our Engagement Score might not be “strong” enough, our first instinct was to double down on using Azure. The logic was simple: if the score improves the more you build on Azure, let's build more, and quickly!

Some of the immediate steps we took included:

• Spinning up a “Build with AI” environment in GitHub Codespaces: We dove into the Build with AI tab in Founders Hub and launched a brand-new development environment using GitHub Codespaces. This allowed us to prototype with some of the latest Azure AI offerings (such as OpenAI GPT-4 and other models) and even deploy them in new Azure regions we hadn’t used before. The idea was to show breadth in our Azure usage – trying out cutting-edge AI services and different geographic regions, signaling that we were exploring the platform's capabilities fully. (Microsoft actually encourages this kind of exploration; they suggest trying AI features, revisiting your infrastructure, and exploring new tools as ways to deepen your Azure engagement​)
• Reviewing and expanding our Azure infrastructure: We took a hard look at our current Azure resources and asked, “What more can we do here?” In our case, we scaled up some services to handle more load and experimented with additional Azure services that we hadn’t used in our architecture before. This included setting up extra monitoring with Azure Monitor and playing with Azure Functions for some backend tasks. We wanted Microsoft’s systems to see continuous, varied activity in our Azure account.
• Checking off all verification tasks: In parallel, we ensured that every item in the Founders Hub verification checklist was completed. We already had most of these done (business email verified, custom domain verified, team member added, demo video submitted, etc.), but it’s worth double-checking these basics. These tasks might not directly raise your Engagement Score, but they are required for the next level and show that your startup is actively engaged in the program.

By taking these steps, we hoped our Engagement Score would climb out of danger. However, we learned an important lesson: last-minute surges in activity might not instantly change your score. The Engagement Score is measured over time (remember, it only appears after 3 months of usage history​), and it likely looks at consistent usage patterns, not just one-week spikes. After all our efforts – spinning up new AI projects and expanding our Azure footprint – we still weren’t sure if the score was good enough. The portal’s score indicator didn’t show any immediate change, and with the auto-review date approaching, we couldn't afford to simply hope for the best.

That's when we realized we needed to do more than just use Azure quietly. We needed to talk to Microsoft and make sure our situation was understood. It was time to escalate.

The Game Changer: Escalating to an Azure Program Manager

Since the Engagement Score lacked transparency, we decided to reach out for help. We opened a support ticket through the Founders Hub portal, explaining our concern: our credits were nearing expiration, and we were worried that our Engagement Score might not reflect our actual usage and commitment. In the support request, we detailed all the things we were doing on Azure and asked if there was anything more we could do to ensure we qualify for the $50K credits.

Initially, we received a fairly standard response — basically reiterating the criteria (use 50% of credits, complete the checklist, keep using Azure, etc.) and advising us to continue improving our engagement. This was information we already knew (and steps we had already taken)​. We realized we were essentially getting the “standard script.” Time was running out, so we needed to move past the first-tier support. We replied to the ticket and politely requested an escalation. Specifically, we asked if a Microsoft for Startups program manager could review our case.

That escalation turned out to be the critical move. Soon after, we received an email from a Microsoft startup program manager – we'll call her Nandhini S. – who introduced herself as an Azure program manager and directly addressed our concerns. She acknowledged our usage of Azure and then asked us for a bit more information to help manually re-evaluate our eligibility for the credit extension. Essentially, Microsoft wanted to see additional evidence that our startup is making progress and is serious about the partnership. Here’s an excerpt from the email we received:

Email from Microsoft for Startups Program Manager (Nandhini S.):

Hello [Startup Team],Thank you for reaching out and outlining the work you've been doing on Azure. To help us further assess your eligibility for the next level of credits, could you please provide some additional documentation about your startup? In particular:- Funding and traction: Any details on your startup’s funding (recent investment rounds, accelerators, or grants) or notable traction. For example, a link to your Crunchbase or Pitchbook profile would be helpful.​

- Customer or user evidence: Metrics that show growth, such as number of app downloads or active users, or any paying customers you have. If you have a press release or news article discussing your user base or partnerships, please share that as well.​

- Case studies or press: Links to any published case studies about your product, or press coverage that highlights your startup (especially where Microsoft/Azure is mentioned).​

Once we have this information, we’ll be able to conduct a final review of your account. Let’s aim to get these details in the next few days so we can ensure there’s no gap in your Azure sponsorship.

Best regards,

Nandhini S.

Program Manager, Microsoft for Startups

As you can see, the program manager was looking for proof that our startup is viable and growing – not just that we were burning through Azure credits. This makes sense. Microsoft wants to invest its cloud credits in startups that are likely to succeed (and potentially become long-term Azure customers). In fact, in the Founders Hub guidelines, they explicitly mention that you should submit proof of things like funding, customer traction, or partner affiliations as part of showing your company’s long-term potential​. If an account review finds “no evidence of funding, customers, and/or partnerships,” that’s a common reason for being denied an upgrade in credits​. Nandhini’s email was essentially giving us a chance to provide that evidence proactively.

We promptly gathered the requested documents and information. We put together a brief package that included: a PDF of our latest investor update (highlighting funds raised and key growth metrics), a link to our Crunchbase profile showing our seed round funding, a recent press release about our product launch and user adoption numbers, and a couple of customer testimonials/case studies we had published. We also reiterated the list of Azure services we were using and how they powered our product, just to reinforce our engagement on the platform.

By escalating to a program manager, we turned what would have been an opaque, automated process into a human conversation. This allowed us to go beyond the raw usage numbers and make the case for our startup more holistically.

Outcome: Request Approved and $50K Credits Unlocked

A week or so after we submitted the additional documentation, we got the news we were hoping for: our request was approved! Our Azure credits were topped up to the next $50,000 tier, and our sponsorship was extended for another year. 🎉

In the end, our Engagement Score presumably met the threshold – but it likely took both our increased Azure usage and the manual review with supporting documents to push it over the line. The program manager’s intervention ensured that our actual efforts didn't go unnoticed by the algorithm or automated check. In our case, being proactive made all the difference between getting a denial and securing a significant boost in resources for our startup.

Looking back, a few lessons learned became clear:

• Start engaging early: Don’t wait until month 4 (or the last few weeks) to start using your Azure credits actively. From day one, deploy resources, test out various Azure services, and spend those credits on building your product. Consistent usage over time is what the Engagement Score measures. If you only use a small portion of your credits or use Azure very lightly, it’s a red flag that you may not need the extra $50K – so show that you do need and value Azure by using it.
• Complete all program tasks: This is straightforward but worth reiterating. Make sure you've done everything in the Founders Hub checklist: verify your domain, add a team member, upload a product demo video, etc.​ These are baseline requirements and will likely be checked during the automatic review. For example, if you forgot to provide a demo video or didn’t add any team members, it could hold up your advancement. We had these done, but we’ve heard of others missing out due to an incomplete profile.
• Use a breadth of Azure services (if relevant): The more Azure tools you integrate (in a meaningful way), the more it signals deeper engagement. If you’ve only been using Virtual Machines, consider exploring an Azure Database service or an AI service. If your app can benefit from some AI, try Azure’s AI offerings or the OpenAI service. If you need analytics, maybe spin up Azure Synapse or Power BI. Microsoft’s suggestions to improve engagement include revisiting your infrastructure, trying AI features, and even pairing with an Azure engineer for advice​. Not only can this improve your score, it might actually strengthen your product by leveraging more of what Azure offers.
• Don’t hesitate to get Microsoft involved: Perhaps the biggest takeaway – if you’re worried about your eligibility, reach out to Microsoft support before the decision point. Open a ticket, explain your situation, and ask questions. If the responses aren’t clear or satisfactory, request an escalation. Getting a real person, like a program manager, to review your case can shed light on what’s missing. In our scenario, we would not have known that providing funding and user metrics could influence the decision. It was the manager who guided us to supply that info, which turned out to be crucial.
• Have your startup’s story and proof ready: Treat the credit level-up like an investor pitch or grant application. Be ready to show that your startup is moving forward. Keep your Crunchbase profile up to date, maintain a one-pager with your latest stats, and save any media coverage or case studies about your company. That way, if you’re asked for evidence of traction, you can respond quickly with solid documentation. This proved invaluable for us – we could quickly hand over links and files that demonstrated our momentum (user growth, funding, press, etc.), which addressed any concerns on Microsoft's side​.

Conclusion

Moving from $25K to $50K in Azure credits through the Founders Hub can feel daunting when you're unsure about something as opaque as the Azure Engagement Score. But as we've learned, the process becomes much more manageable when you tackle it from two angles: technical engagement and human engagement.

1. Technical engagement: Go forth and use Azure to its fullest. Build, experiment, and utilize the services that make sense for your startup. Don't hold back on using your credits – the program is designed for you to use them to accelerate your development. The more you build on Azure (consistently over time), the higher your chances of organically improving your Engagement Score​ and meeting Microsoft's expectations for the next tier.
2. Human engagement: At the same time, engage with the Microsoft for Startups team. If your renewal date is approaching and things look iffy, take initiative. Contact support or your startup program liaison. Share your concerns and ask for guidance. Microsoft genuinely wants to see you succeed (it’s in their interest, too), and as our story shows, they might even green-light your credits if you can demonstrate your startup’s progress and commitment. Sometimes all it takes is a conversation with the right person and providing a bit of extra proof that you’re on a growth trajectory.

For startups currently in the Founders Hub: consider this a friendly nudge. Check your Founders Hub dashboard, look at your credit expiration date and any Engagement Score indicator. If it's showing as weak or you’re not sure where you stand, start acting now. Ramp up your Azure usage in a smart way, and reach out to Microsoft for any clarification. Don’t wait for the 45-day review to discover a problem – be proactive and turn that review into a non-event by already having everything in order.

In our case, a combination of building more on Azure and actively communicating with Microsoft turned a potential red flag into a green light. We’re now forging ahead with an extra $50K in Azure credits, which is powering the next stage of our startup’s journey.

Your startup could be next. Use Azure, show your work, and speak up when you need help. By doing so, you’ll maximize your chances of leveling up in the program and continuing to leverage the fantastic resources that Azure’s Founders Hub provides. Good luck, and see you at the next level!​