Microsoft for Startups: wait it out or cut my losses?

I’ve spent months in Microsoft for Startups, and I’m frustrated enough to question whether continuing is worth it. I’d appreciate advice from founders who have navigated its credit milestones.

Here’s the timeline:

- August: Support told us we had seven qualifying workloads. We planned our Azure usage around that guidance. Microsoft later confirmed that information was wrong: only three resources had exceeded $1 in consumption that month.

- September: Azure Cost Management showed eight workloads with more than $1 in consumption, but Support reported five qualifying workloads, with the required 60-consecutive-day qualification period starting September 11, 2026. They have not explained the difference between those counts, nor the start date which doesn't match when the resources went live.

- Now: Under the corrected timeline, we expect to run out of existing credits before reaching the next milestone. I requested a program-manager review and a way to submit formal feedback about the incorrect guidance and its impact. I still haven’t heard back.

After months in the program, nobody has been able to give us a clear, account-specific explanation of which workloads count, which don’t, or why the qualification count differs from what we see in Cost Management. I understand that spending more than $1 may not be the only requirement—but what additional requirements are our workloads failing?

The repeated explanation is that progression is automated and Support cannot override it. “It’s automated” does not explain the calculation or address the consequences of incorrect support advice.

I’m not upset that credits come with conditions. I’m upset that we relied on incorrect information, cannot independently verify our progress, and are spending time chasing basic explanations instead of building the business. At this point, I would struggle to recommend the program to another founder.

Has anyone successfully resolved a situation like this? Would you wait it out to see whether the next credits materialize, potentially spending your own money in the meantime—or consider this a failed experiment, cut your losses, and move on?