How Long Do Cloud Credits Last?

Cloud credit lifespan depends on both the provider and the source of the credits. As a general rule, promotional and program credits carry a fixed expiry date — most commonly 12 months from the date they are issued. After that date, any unused balance is forfeited, so the practical advice is always to plan your usage around the expiry window rather than treating credits as indefinite.

AWS credits issued through programs like AWS Activate typically last 12 months, though some startup tiers grant up to two years. Google Cloud free-trial credits ($300) expire after 90 days or when the balance is spent, whichever comes first, while larger GCP program credits usually run 12 months. Microsoft Azure free credits ($200) expire after 30 days on the free trial, with larger sponsorship credits following their own 12-month schedule. Each provider shows the exact expiry in the billing or credits section of the console.

For pre-loaded credit accounts purchased from a marketplace, the credits remain valid until the stated expiry date or until you exhaust the balance — whichever happens first. This is why we always list the remaining validity window on each account, so you know exactly how much time you have to deploy workloads against the balance. If you buy an account with, say, ten months of validity remaining, you should structure your projects to consume the credit within that period.

To get the most from credits before they lapse, front-load the workloads that benefit most — long-running training jobs, data processing, staging environments, and any compute you would otherwise pay retail for. Avoid leaving large balances idle near the expiry date. If you anticipate needing more runway, it is more economical to buy a fresh discounted account than to let credits expire and revert to full pay-as-you-go pricing.