Introduction
If you’ve ever tried to automate Azure cost reporting using Invoke-AzCostManagementQuery, you know it’s not straightforward. The cmdlet’s complexity and sparse documentation can make what seems like a simple task into a challenging endeavor. After spending considerable time decoding its quirks and experimenting with various approaches, I’ve developed a PowerShell-based solution for automated weekly cost reporting.
The Current Solution
This standalone PowerShell script generates comprehensive HTML reports every Monday morning, comparing service costs between weeks. It’s designed to help teams track and understand their Azure spending patterns with minimal setup overhead.
Requirements
- Azure subscription with Cost Management Reader right
- PowerShell Modules
- Az.CostManagement
- Az.Accounts (Minimum 4.0.1 version)
- Three subscription tags configured (Optional):
- Environment
- CostCenter
- Owner
Why Weekly Reports?
The script runs on Mondays, analyzing the previous completed week versus the week before that. This approach ensures we’re always comparing full weeks of data (Monday-Sunday), making trends and anomalies easier to spot.
What You Get
- Week-over-week service cost comparisons
- Daily cost breakdowns
- Visual indicators for cost changes
- Clean HTML output
Looking Forward
This is just the beginning. Future versions will integrate with Azure Automation for improved scheduling and management capabilities. The plan is to enhance the solution with:
- Budget tracking and alerts
- Multi-subscription support
- Email notifications via Azure Communication Services
- Extended cost analytics
