I want to try a basic azure sql database and have tried several times through the the get started button...

Question

I want to try a basic azure sql database and have tried several times through the the get started button...

Tony Warr 0

The 'get started' states that I am not eligible for a free account and points me to a pay-as-you-go account and then after taking a payment (£0), now twice says I am not eligible for that either. I am not aware that I have used Azure before. Is there a clear way to set this up for simple development?

Tony Warr 0 Reputation points

2026-03-06T16:11:17.09+00:00

The answer provided by the AI system repeats what I had done and directs me to contact support when the error occurs... which... brings me back to this system.
Pilladi Padma Sai Manisha 6,580 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-03-06T20:29:59.7133333+00:00

Hi Tony Warr

Thanks for the clarification. If you receive a message saying you are not eligible for both the Free Account and the Pay-As-You-Go subscription, it usually means the Microsoft account has already been associated with an Azure subscription in the past, even if it was only created briefly or not actively used. In that case, the system blocks creating another subscription under the same offer.

You can check this by going to https://portal.azure.com > Subscriptions and verifying whether a subscription already exists but may be disabled or expired. If one is listed, you may be able to reactivate it or create resources under it instead of creating a new subscription.

If no subscription appears in the portal, try signing in to the Azure Account Center (https://account.azure.com/subscriptions) to confirm whether any subscriptions are linked to the account.

If the account truly has no active subscriptions but the portal still blocks creation, this indicates an eligibility flag on the account that must be reviewed by the Azure subscription/billing team. Since this forum cannot access account details, the correct path is to open a subscription support request here: https://azure.microsoft.com/support/create-ticket/

As an immediate workaround for development, you can also create the Azure subscription using a different Microsoft account that has not previously been used with Azure.

Let us know if you need guidance checking the existing subscriptions or setting up Azure SQL once the subscription is active.
Manoj Kumar Boyini 11,600 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-03-09T20:24:18.03+00:00

Hi Tony Warr

I hope you had a chance to review the information shared earlier, and I hope this information has been helpful! If you still have questions, please let us know what is needed in the comments so the question can be answered.
Tony Warr 0 Reputation points

2026-03-10T10:45:53.2333333+00:00

Hi Manoj, the first link purely takes me to the Welcome to Azure screen offering me free trial etc which is what doesn't work. The second link takes me to a page which says the functions have moved... if I follow the 'costing & billing' link, then I get to a page which seems to suggest I have no subscriptions.

I will try to open a support request as per your last link.

However a point to make is that the Azure portal won't even let me set up a pay-as-you-go account

1 answer

Your answer

Tony Warr 0 Reputation points

2026-03-06T16:11:17.09+00:00

The answer provided by the AI system repeats what I had done and directs me to contact support when the error occurs... which... brings me back to this system.
Pilladi Padma Sai Manisha 6,580 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-03-06T20:29:59.7133333+00:00

Hi Tony Warr

Thanks for the clarification. If you receive a message saying you are not eligible for both the Free Account and the Pay-As-You-Go subscription, it usually means the Microsoft account has already been associated with an Azure subscription in the past, even if it was only created briefly or not actively used. In that case, the system blocks creating another subscription under the same offer.

You can check this by going to https://portal.azure.com > Subscriptions and verifying whether a subscription already exists but may be disabled or expired. If one is listed, you may be able to reactivate it or create resources under it instead of creating a new subscription.

If no subscription appears in the portal, try signing in to the Azure Account Center (https://account.azure.com/subscriptions) to confirm whether any subscriptions are linked to the account.

If the account truly has no active subscriptions but the portal still blocks creation, this indicates an eligibility flag on the account that must be reviewed by the Azure subscription/billing team. Since this forum cannot access account details, the correct path is to open a subscription support request here: https://azure.microsoft.com/support/create-ticket/

As an immediate workaround for development, you can also create the Azure subscription using a different Microsoft account that has not previously been used with Azure.

Let us know if you need guidance checking the existing subscriptions or setting up Azure SQL once the subscription is active.
Manoj Kumar Boyini 11,600 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-03-09T20:24:18.03+00:00

Hi Tony Warr

I hope you had a chance to review the information shared earlier, and I hope this information has been helpful! If you still have questions, please let us know what is needed in the comments so the question can be answered.
Tony Warr 0 Reputation points

2026-03-10T10:45:53.2333333+00:00

Hi Manoj, the first link purely takes me to the Welcome to Azure screen offering me free trial etc which is what doesn't work. The second link takes me to a page which says the functions have moved... if I follow the 'costing & billing' link, then I get to a page which seems to suggest I have no subscriptions.

I will try to open a support request as per your last link.

However a point to make is that the Azure portal won't even let me set up a pay-as-you-go account

Answer 1

Hello Tony Warr,

Thank you for reaching out to the Microsoft Q&A forum.

it sounds like your Microsoft account is already flagged as having been used with Azure before—even if you don’t remember it—so it won’t let you get a new Free Trial or Pay-As-You-Go offer. Here’s what you can try:

Check for Existing Subscriptions • Go to the Azure portal (https://portal.azure.com) and click “Subscriptions” in the left-hand menu. • If you see any subscriptions (even disabled or expired ones), you can often re-activate them or create resources under them.

Verify in the Azure Account Center • Sign in at https://account.azure.com/subscriptions and look for any linked subscriptions that might not show up in the portal.

Open a Billing Support Ticket • If no subscription appears but you still get eligibility errors, you have an “eligibility flag” on your account. The only way to clear that is via the billing team. • Create a support request here: https://azure.microsoft.com/support/create-ticket/

Workaround: Use a Different Microsoft Account • As a quick workaround, you could sign up with another Microsoft account that’s never been used with Azure.

Once you have an active subscription, here are a couple of easy ways to spin up a free or low-cost Azure SQL database for development:

• Azure SQL Free-Tier Offer (up to 10 free DBs per subscription) – Browse to the Azure SQL hub: https://aka.ms/azuresqlhub – Click “Try for free” or “Apply offer” on the Create SQL Database page – Follow the wizard; you’ll see “Estimated Cost/Month: $0” on the cost summary card when the free tier is applied

• Quickstart via ARM Template – Use the “Deploy to Azure” button in this Quickstart to stand up a single database in minutes: https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/azure-sql/database/single-database-create-arm-template-quickstart

• Portal-based Creation – In the portal, click “Create a resource” → Databases → Azure SQL Database – Pick your subscription, resource group, give it a name, and pick the free/serverless tier – Review + Create

Hope that helps get you started. Once you’ve got a live subscription and your first SQL DB, ping us if you need firewall rules, connection strings, or anything else!

Reference Documentation

Manage Subscriptions in the Azure Portal: https://portal.azure.com/#blade/Microsoft_Azure_Billing/SubscriptionsBlade
Azure Account Center – Subscriptions: https://account.azure.com/subscriptions
Create a Support Ticket: https://azure.microsoft.com/support/create-ticket/
Deploy SQL DB via ARM Template: https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/azure-sql/database/single-database-create-arm-template-quickstart
Azure SQL Free-Offer Details: https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/azure-sql/database/free-offer?view=azuresql
Create a Single Database via Portal Quickstart: https://docs.microsoft.com/azure/azure-sql/database/single-database-create-quickstart
Azure SQL Hub “Try for free”: https://aka.ms/azuresqlhub

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I want to try a basic azure sql database and have tried several times through the the get started button...

1 answer

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