Most of the hands-on labs in this repo require an Azure subscription. When you deploy an Azure resource such as an Azure Web App, a virtual machine, or a storage account, the cost of those resources is billed against the subscription. Costs vary widely based on the type of resource, the length of time the resource is deployed, and how that resource is used. For example, virtual machines (VMs) are billed on an hourly basis, and the cost per VM depends on the VM size and whether the VM is a Windows VM or a Linux VM. Storage accounts are generally billed based on the volume of data stored in them and the amount of data retrieved (data egress), but other factors such as replication options, the storage services used, and the storage tiers that are selected impact the cost, too. For a detailed overview of the costs associated with Azure storage, see Azure Storage Overview Pricing.
Each lab in this repository includes a cost rating that ranges from 0 to 3 dollar signs:
- Zero dollar signs means the lab incurs no cost because it doesn't require an Azure subscription or utilizes Azure services with free tiers
- $ means that the cost of the lab is minimal — generally a few dollars or less
- $$ means that the cost of the lab is higher, and is generally reserved for labs that require VMs and other resources that are billed by the hour
- $$$ means that the cost is relatively high because you are deploying compute clusters or other resources that incur multiple per-hour charges
The cost rating is based on how much you will be charged for a lab if you fail to delete the resources that you deployed. None of the labs costs more than a few dollars if you spend an hour or two working it and delete it at the end. You can delete everything you deployed during a lab by deleting the resource groups you created. Deleting a resource group deletes all the resources inside it and stops all charges for those resources. This is especially important for $$$ labs, because compute clusters can cost anywhere from a few dollars to thousands of dollars per day and can quickly exhaust the funds available in your subscription.
Azure pricing changes frequently. For a given resource (or set of resources), you can use the Azure Pricing Calculator to estimate the cost. It's a great tool for quantifying the cost of various Azure resources over a week, a day, or even a month, and something that Azure architects and developers rely on as they design and implement cloud-based applications.