FOCUS data

Is FOCUS Essential for the FinOps Toolkit?
Yes, if you want full functionality and cross-cloud clarity.
The Microsoft FinOps Toolkit is built to ingest and analyze FOCUS-aligned data. It includes:
•    Pre-built Power BI templates
•    Infrastructure-as-Code modules
•    Allocation and unit economics models
Using FOCUS data ensures:
•    Consistent schema across services and time
•    Easier cost attribution and anomaly detection
•    Faster onboarding and portability for FinOps practitioners

Can use Native Cost Management Data Instead?
Technically, yes, but with trade-offs:
•    You’ll need to manually transform actual and amortized datasets to match FOCUS schema
•    You’ll lose out on FOCUS-specific optimizations, like reduced row count and unified cost views
•    Some toolkit modules may not work correctly or require heavy customization
For example, FOCUS merges actual and amortized costs into a single row, resulting in 49% fewer rows compared to native exports.