Accepting Private Offers on Azure Marketplaces: A Step-by-Step Guide for Procurement Teams

Azure Marketplace private offers (sometimes called Private Plans or Private Deals) allow a software publisher to provide custom rates or terms to a specific customer’s Azure billing account. Accepting an Azure private offer is a two-step process: first, an authorized person in your organization accepts the offer (agreeing to the custom contract terms) and then a user with the appropriate Azure subscription access purchases/subscribes to the offer. Procurement teams often handle the acceptance step (since it’s a legal/financial agreement), while the actual subscription might be completed by an IT administrator – but a procurement manager can also do both if they have the right permissions. Below we cover prerequisites and both phases of the process.

Before You Begin (Azure)

Make sure the following prerequisites are in place for Azure private offers:

• Azure Account Roles: Identify who in your organization has the correct Azure role to accept the private offer terms.

  • For customers on a Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) (often organizations who signed up via the Azure portal), the user accepting the private offer needs to be a Billing Account Owner or Billing Account Contributor on the billing profile.

  • For those on an Enterprise Agreement (EA), the user must be an Enterprise Administrator on the enrollment . In either case, to actually purchase (subscribe) to the offer, the user needs to have Owner or Contributor access on the target Azure Subscription where the product will be provisioned. Ensure you have the right people lined up (or the same person assigned both roles) to complete both steps. (See table below for a summary of roles.)

    Azure Agreement Type	Who Can Accept the Offer
    Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA)	Billing Account Owner or Billing Account Contributor
    Enterprise Agreement (EA)	Enterprise Agreement Administrator (Enrollment Admin)

    Tip: If you’re unsure about your permissions, Azure provides a private offer eligibility report that can be run to check if you have the necessary roles to accept or purchase the offer. It’s a good practice for procurement to coordinate with your Azure admin team to ensure the right access before proceeding.
    
    

• Correct Account Context: Log in to the Azure portal with an account that has the above role(s), and be in the correct directory and billing account context. The private offer will be tied to a specific billing account (for MCA) or enrollment (for EA). If you have access to multiple organizations or tenants, double-check that you’ve selected the one where the private offer was sent. The offer must also be associated with a public plan that’s available in your region/market; the publisher should have made it available to your market, but if something is amiss (offer not visible), verify that your Azure billing account’s country/region matches the offer’s market.

• Subscription for Purchase: Identify the Azure Subscription ID that you plan to use for the purchase (this is where the charges will accrue and where any resources will be deployed). Ensure that the person who will do the purchase has Owner/Contributor on that subscription (as noted above). If you are both the billing admin and the subscription owner, you can do both steps seamlessly.
  
  

• Internal Approval: Ensure you have any required internal approvals for this purchase and that the terms have been vetted by legal/finance. Accepting the private offer will create a binding agreement with the publisher under your Microsoft contract.

With everything in place, you can proceed to accept and then purchase the offer.

Accepting the Private Offer (Azure)

1. Navigate to Azure Marketplace: Log in to the Azure Portal (portal.azure.com) with your account. In the Azure Portal home or menu, go to Marketplace. If you don’t see it immediately, use the search bar at the top to search for “Marketplace” and select the Marketplace service (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). This opens the Azure Marketplace interface where you can find offers.
   
   

2. Open Private Offer Management: In the Marketplace blade, look at the left-hand menu under Management. Click on Private Offer Management (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). This section is specifically for handling private offers extended to your organization.

   (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn) Screenshot: The Azure Marketplace interface with Private Offer Management highlighted in the left navigation. This is where all private offers available to your organization are listed.
   
   

3. Locate the Private Offer: In the Private Offer Management dashboard, you will see a list of private offers (if any have been extended to your account) along with their status (e.g., Pending, Accepted, etc.). If there are many offers, use the filter options at the top (Filter by name, Status, Publisher, Prepared by) to find the specific offer by name or publisher. Once you identify the correct private offer in the list (match it by the offer name provided by the seller or in the notification email), click the View + accept button next to that offer to begin the acceptance process.

   (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn) Screenshot: A private offer listed on the Private Offer Management page with a blue View + accept button. Clicking this will open the offer details for review and acceptance.
   
   

4. Review Offer Details: After clicking “View + accept,” you’ll be taken to the private offer’s detail page. Here, review all the information carefully:

   • Legal Entity: Confirm that the Legal entity name (the name of the company or account to which the offer applies) is correct for your organization.

   • Plans and Products: The page will list the specific plans or products included in this private offer (for example, it might show a software plan name or SKU that is being offered privately). If multiple components are included (e.g., a base plan and add-on plans), they will all be listed.

   • Private Offer Pricing: Check the pricing details for each plan. The prices shown are your private offer prices, which should reflect the discounts or custom rates negotiated. Ensure these match what you expect (e.g., a certain percentage off the retail price or a fixed special price)

   • Custom Terms: If the publisher provided any custom legal terms or amendments, they would be indicated on this page. These could be additions to the standard terms. Review any such terms with care (they might be in a section or an attached document).

   • Validity Period: Note the Start and End dates for the offer’s pricing. The private offer pricing might be valid only for a set period (for example, from now until a certain date). Also note the Expiration date of the offer itself – this is the deadline to accept. You must accept before this date or the offer will expire.

   • Additional Info: There may be other info such as who prepared the offer (the publisher’s info) and an offer ID. Verify everything looks in order.

   Compare these details against your internal records of the negotiated deal. If something doesn’t match (for example, price or term is different), do not accept yet – instead, clarify with the seller. If all looks good, you can proceed.

   (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn) Screenshot: Example of an Azure private offer details page. It shows the offer name, prepared by (publisher), validity dates, included plans with their prices, and an Accept Private Offer button at the bottom.
   
   
   

5. Accept the Offer Terms: To accept the private offer, click the Accept Private Offer button (usually at the bottom of the offer detail page) (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). A confirmation dialog will appear, explaining that by accepting, you are agreeing to the terms and that this action will make the offer available for purchase. Confirm to proceed. This acceptance step is essentially signing the contract for the negotiated terms with the publisher. Important: The user performing this step must have the appropriate billing account role as discussed (otherwise the Accept button may be disabled or you’ll get an error). Once you click accept and confirmation is done, the offer’s status will change to indicate it has been accepted.
   
   
   

6. Confirmation of Acceptance: After accepting, you should see some indication that the offer was accepted successfully. You might be redirected back to the Private Offer Management dashboard. The offer should now show a status like Accepted, pending purchase (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). (It can take a short while – typically 15 to 60 minutes – for Azure’s systems to update the status to “Accepted” and allow the purchase to proceed (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). Usually it’s quick, but don’t be alarmed if it’s not instant.) The key point is that the offer is now locked in for your account, but you haven’t bought anything yet – no charges have occurred and no software is deployed. The next step is to actually subscribe/purchase the offer’s product under your Azure subscription.

   (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn) Screenshot: Back on the Private Offer Management page, the offer now shows as Accepted (green check) and “Pending purchase” in the status column. This indicates the terms have been accepted and the offer is ready for the final purchase step.
   

Purchasing the Private Offer (Azure)

Once an offer is accepted, it’s time to purchase/subscribe to the product so that it becomes active in your Azure subscription. This usually involves selecting a subscription and confirming the plan (similar to buying any Marketplace product, but at your private price).

📒  Note: If the offer has a future start date, then the purchase button will be enabled on that future date only.

1. Initiate Purchase from Private Offer Management: In the Azure Portal, still on the Private Offer Management page, locate the offer that you just accepted (you may need to refresh the page to see updated status). The offer should now be listed as status Accepted. Expand the offer entry if needed (click the arrow to reveal the plans under it). You’ll see that each plan included has a Purchase button available. Click Purchase for the plan or product you want to subscribe to. (If multiple plans are listed, you might have to purchase each one or a specific one depending on how the offer is structured – often there’s one main plan to purchase.)
   

2. Review and Subscribe: After clicking Purchase, Azure will bring up the Marketplace purchase interface for that private plan. This looks similar to purchasing a public marketplace offer. Click Review + Subscribe (or it might go directly to a review page) to review the subscription details one more time, then click Subscribe to confirm the purchase. During this step, you will choose the Azure Subscription (from your available subscriptions) that will be billed for this product. Ensure you select the correct subscription per your organization’s guidance (often a central IT subscription or the one designated for this software). The pricing shown should reflect your private offer price. Proceed through the prompts to finalize the subscription.
   
   
   

3. Complete the Subscription Process: Once you hit Subscribe, Azure will begin the deployment/registration of the product. This might be instantaneous for SaaS (since it’s just a listing subscription), or it may involve setting up some resources for things like Virtual Machine offers. You’ll get a confirmation in the portal when the subscription/purchase is complete (for instance, it might say “Subscription succeeded” or similar). After this, click Configure Account Now if Azure presents that option. For many SaaS offers, Azure will give a button to configure or set up your account with the ISV (Independent Software Vendor). This typically opens a frame or link to the ISV’s site where you might need to create an account or input a token to link your Azure purchase.
   
   
   

4. Provide Additional Details (If Required): If the software or service requires additional information to provision, you will be prompted. For example, you might need to fill out a sign-up form with user information for the vendor to provision licenses, or choose a region or resource group for a software deployment. This step will vary by product. Ensure you complete any required fields so the vendor knows who to provision the service for (some private offers via Azure still require you to finalize registration on the vendor side). After completing any forms, submit them as directed.
   
   
   

5. Verify the Purchase on Azure: After subscribing, you have effectively purchased the software. You can verify that the private offer subscription is active by checking the Private Offer Management page (the offer might move to a “Purchased” status or similar) and by checking the Marketplace subscriptions or All resources (if it’s something that creates a resource) in the Azure portal. You should also see the charges appear under that Azure subscription’s billing (Cost Management + Billing section) at the private offer rate. The billing might show up in the next invoice or billing cycle for that subscription. It’s a good idea to keep a record of the private offer (perhaps take a PDF of the offer details page) for your procurement files, as it outlines the agreed pricing and terms.

Tips and Considerations (Azure)

• Understanding Roles & Workflow: Azure’s separation of accepting vs purchasing is designed as a safeguard (so that, for example, a billing admin can accept terms but not accidentally deploy a service, and an IT admin can deploy but might not alter billing agreements). As a procurement professional, coordinate with your technical team to decide who will perform each step. If you have the access to do both, ensure you switch roles (in the portal context) appropriately – first operate at the billing account context for acceptance, then ensure you have selected the correct Azure subscription for the purchase.
  
  

• Time Window for Purchase: After acceptance, the private offer becomes available for purchase typically for a set period (often the same validity period of the offer). In the Azure portal, once accepted, the status Accepted, pending purchase indicates you can proceed. It’s best to complete the purchase soon after acceptance to start using the product. If there’s a delay of more than an hour in the offer showing as available to purchase, try refreshing the page or check back later (Step 2 - Accept the private offer - Marketplace customer documentation | Microsoft Learn). The offer should eventually allow purchase; if not, contact Microsoft support or the publisher.
  
  

• Failed Acceptance or Purchase: If you encounter errors when clicking accept or purchase, they are likely due to permission issues or missing prerequisites. Use the Check eligibility link (often shown on the Private Offer Management page) to see if your account is missing a role . If you don’t have the right access, involve the correct billing administrator or subscription owner. Additionally, ensure that the private offer’s underlying public plan is available in your region – if not, it could cause issues (the publisher should have taken care of this). Microsoft’s documentation and the publisher can help troubleshoot any specific error messages.
  
  

• Billing and Invoicing: The charges for the private offer will appear on your regular Azure bill for the subscription used. There isn’t a separate one-time invoice at the moment of acceptance (unlike AWS where acceptance triggers a charge). Azure will bill it as part of the subscription’s usage, either as a one-time charge or as recurring charges, depending on the offer’s structure (for example, if it’s an annual SaaS subscription, you might see a one-time charge for the year, or monthly charges at the negotiated rate). Ensure your finance team is aware of how it will appear (often under the product name or publisher name in the invoice). You can typically find the invoice section in Azure Cost Management to see the charge after it’s processed.
  
  

• Record Keeping: After completing the purchase, consider downloading proof of the transaction. For instance, you could capture the Offer details page (which shows the terms you accepted) and save the confirmation emails. These serve as the contract record with the vendor. Azure might not send a separate email for the acceptance (the publisher might). The Azure portal does show the “Accepted offer” under billing > “Transactions” possibly. Keeping these records helps in case of any disputes or for renewal discussions.
  
  

• Renewals and Extensions: If the private offer is a time-limited deal (say 1 year of discounted price), diarize the end date. The pricing will revert to normal after the end date  unless you negotiate an extension or a new private offer. Publishers can extend private offers or create follow-on offers, but that would require a new acceptance and purchase flow at that time. Stay in touch with the vendor as the term end approaches.