Merge pull request #284424 from bandersmsft/understand-cost-mgt-data-historical

MCM - Update understand-cost-mgt-data for historical data prices

Author: prmerger-automator[bot]

articles/cost-management-billing/costs/understand-cost-mgt-data.md

@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ titleSuffix: Microsoft Cost Management
 description: This article helps you better understand data included in Cost Management. It also explains how frequently data is processed, collected, shown, and closed.
 author: bandersmsft
 ms.author: banders
-ms.date: 06/04/2024
+ms.date: 08/12/2024
 ms.topic: conceptual
 ms.service: cost-management-billing
 ms.subservice: cost-management
@@ -13,7 +13,7 @@ ms.reviewer: micflan
 
 # Understand Cost Management data
 
-This article helps you better understand Azure cost and usage data included in Cost Management. It explains how frequently data is processed, collected, shown, and closed. You're billed for Azure usage monthly. Although billing cycles are monthly periods, cycle start and end dates vary by subscription type. How often Cost Management receives usage data varies based on different factors. Such factors include how long it takes to process the data and how frequently Azure services emit usage to the billing system.
+This article helps you better understand Azure cost and usage data included in Cost Management. It explains how frequently data is processed, collected, shown, and closed. You receive a bill for your Azure usage each month. Although billing cycles are monthly periods, cycle start and end dates vary by subscription type. How often Cost Management receives usage data varies based on different factors. Such factors include how long it takes to process the data and how frequently Azure services emit usage to the billing system.
 
 Cost Management includes all usage and purchases, including commitment discounts (that is, reservations and savings plans) and third-party offerings, for Enterprise Agreement (EA) and Microsoft Customer Agreement (MCA) accounts. Microsoft Online Services Agreement (MOSA) accounts only include usage from Azure and Marketplace services with applicable commitment discounts applied but don't include Marketplace or commitment discounts purchases. Support and other costs aren't included. Costs are estimated until an invoice is generated and don't factor in credits. Cost Management also includes costs associated with New Commerce products like Microsoft 365 and Dynamics 365 that are invoiced along with Azure.
 
@@ -161,7 +161,14 @@ Costs shown in Cost Management are rounded. Costs returned by the Query API aren
 
 ## Historical data might not match invoice
 
-Historical data for credit-based and pay-in-advance offers might not match your invoice. Some Azure pay-as-you-go, MSDN, and Visual Studio offers can have Azure credits and advanced payments applied to the invoice. The historical data shown in Cost Management is based on your estimated consumption charges only. Cost Management historical data doesn't include payments and credits. Historical data shown for the following offers might not match exactly with your invoice.
+Historical data for credit-based and pay-in-advance offers might not match your invoice. Some Azure pay-as-you-go, MSDN, and Visual Studio offers can have Azure credits and advanced payments applied to the invoice. The historical data (closed month data) shown in Cost Management is based on your estimated consumption charges only. For the following listed offers, Cost Management historical data doesn't include payments and credits. Additionally, price changes might affect it. *The price shown on your invoice might differ from the price used for cost estimation.*
+
+For example, you get invoiced on January 5 for a service consumed in the month of December. It has a price of $86 per unit. On January 1, the unit price changed to $100. When you view your estimated charges in Cost Management, you see that your cost is the result of your consumed quantity * $100 (not $86, as shown in your  invoice).
+
+>[!NOTE]
+>The price change might result in a a price decrease, not only an increase, as explained in this example.
+
+Historical data shown for the following offers might not match exactly with your invoice.
 
 - Azure for Students (MS-AZR-0170P)
 - Azure in Open (MS-AZR-0111P)