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Azure Co-Sell with Microsoft: A Simple Overview

Ana Medina
Updated

This article explains how Azure Co-Sell works, what each co-sell status means, and when you can actively collaborate with Microsoft sellers. It’s written to clarify common confusion around visibility vs. opportunity sharing.

 

What is Azure Co-Sell?

Co-selling is any collaborative sales motion between you and Microsoft (or other Microsoft partners) to help close customer deals.

This collaboration can include:

  • Building joint demand
  • Sales planning with Microsoft sellers
  • Sharing and working on sales leads
  • Partner-to-partner selling
  • Selling through Microsoft Marketplace

Co-selling happens around solutions (offers) that support Microsoft technologies. These can include:

  • IP-based software (SaaS, VM, containers, applications)
  • Services that support Microsoft platforms

 

 

What is a Co-Sell Opportunity?

A co-sell opportunity is a deal where:

  • A customer need is identified
  • Microsoft sellers, partners, or both collaborate
  • The opportunity is tracked in Microsoft’s internal sales systems

Co-sell opportunities can take several forms:

  • Co-sell with Microsoft sales teams – joint selling with Microsoft sellers
  • Partner-to-Partner (P2P) – collaborating with another Microsoft partner
  • Private deal – sharing an opportunity you’re already working on so Microsoft can track it
  • Solution Assessment (SA) – working with vetted partners to assess customer needs

 

 

Azure Co-Sell Statuses (This Is the Key Part)

Azure uses progressive co-sell statuses. Each status unlocks different capabilities.

1. In-market  🛒

What it means:

  • Your offer is live in Microsoft Marketplace
  • No co-sell requirements have been met yet

What you can do:

  • Your offer can be sold via Marketplace

Limitations:

  • Microsoft sellers don’t see your solution as co-sell ready
  • You can’t submit or share co-sell opportunities

 

 

2. Co-sell Ready  👀

What it means:

  • Your solution meets Microsoft’s co-sell-ready requirements
  • Microsoft sellers can discover your solution internally

What you can do:

  • Be visible to Microsoft sales teams
  • Be pulled into deals initiated by Microsoft sellers

Important limitation:

  • You cannot submit co-sell referrals
  • You cannot proactively share opportunities with Microsoft

👉 Co-sell ready = seller visibility, not opportunity sharing.

 

 

3. Azure IP Co-Sell Eligible  🚀

This is the highest Azure co-sell status and the most important milestone.

What it means:

  • You are co-sell ready and
  • Your offer is IP-based and meets additional Microsoft requirements

What you can do:

  • Submit co-sell referrals
  • Proactively share opportunities with Microsoft sellers
  • Collaborate fully on deals tracked in Microsoft systems
  • Align deals with customer Azure Consumption Commitments (MACC)

This status is required if you want to actively engage Microsoft sellers on opportunities you originate.

 

 

Benefits by Status (Quick Comparison)

Capability In-market Co-sell Ready Azure IP Co-sell Eligible
Marketplace listing ✅ ✅ ✅
Visible to Microsoft sellers ❌ ✅ ✅
Submit co-sell referrals ❌ ❌ ✅
Share opportunities with Microsoft ❌ ❌ ✅
MACC alignment ❌ ❌ ✅

 

 

Which Offer Types Can Reach Azure IP Co-Sell Eligibility?

Only IP-based offers are eligible:

  • Azure Application
  • Azure Container
  • Azure Virtual Machine
  • Software-as-a-Service (SaaS)

The offer’s solution type must be IP, and it must be actively platformed on Azure.

 

 

Requirements to Become Co-Sell Ready (Summary)

To reach co-sell ready, you must:

  • Have a Partner ID and active Partner Center account
  • Complete your business profile
  • Publish a live offer in Microsoft Marketplace
  • Provide sales contacts per geography
  • Upload required co-sell documents (one-pager, pitch deck)

Additional notes:

  • Professional services offers require a solution partner designation
  • Business Applications offers require ISV Success enrollment

 

 

Additional Requirements for Azure IP Co-Sell Eligibility

After becoming co-sell ready, you must also:

  1. Meet the revenue threshold
    • $100,000 USD in Azure Consumed Revenue or Marketplace billed sales (last 12 months)
  2. Pass Microsoft technical validation
    • Solution must be primarily platformed on Azure
    • Must meet Marketplace and Azure technical standards
  3. Provide a reference architecture diagram
    • Required for most offer types
  4. Be transactable on Microsoft Marketplace
    • Customers must be able to purchase the offer directly

🚀  Learn more! Click here for more on IP Co-Sell Eligibility.

 

 

Co-Sell Solution vs Marketplace Offer

  • Marketplace Offer
    • The sellable listing customers purchase
    • Configured by offer type (SaaS, VM, etc.)
       
  • Co-Sell Solution
    • A Marketplace offer that is enabled for co-selling
    • Includes additional co-sell collateral
    • Reviewed by Microsoft and assigned a co-sell status

Only co-sell solutions appear in Microsoft’s internal seller catalogs.

 

 

Key Takeaways

  • Publishing an offer does not automatically enable co-selling
  • Co-sell ready provides visibility, not opportunity sharing
  • Azure IP co-sell eligibility is required to submit and share co-sell opportunities
  • IP-based, transactable offers unlock the full Microsoft co-sell motion

If you’re unsure where your offer stands or what’s required next, Labra can help guide you through each step.

 

🚀  Learn More! Click here for the official Azure Marketplace Co-sell documentation.

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