Guides / How service credits work
How service credits work
A service credit is what an agreement says a vendor gives back when a service misses its uptime target. This guide quotes four agreements and shows where they differ. The vendor decides every claim. Not legal advice.
What the agreements say a credit is
These are the credit clauses, copied word for word.
Microsoft: Exchange Online
“Service Credit” is the percentage of the Applicable Service Fees credited to you following Microsoft’s claim approval.
Service Level Agreement for Microsoft Online Services, dated 1 November 2026, last checked 12 November 2026.
“Applicable Service Fees” means the total fees actually paid by you for a Service that are applied to the Applicable Period in which a Service Credit is owed.
Service Level Agreement for Microsoft Online Services, dated 1 November 2026, last checked 12 November 2026.
Google Workspace
“Days of Service added to the end of the Service term (for offline billing customers), or monetary credit equal to the value of days applied to a future invoice (for online billing customers), for the applicable Covered Service(s) that did not meet the Google Workspace SLA”
Google Workspace Service Level Agreement, dated 31 August 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
“Google Workspace Essentials Service Credit. If Customer orders Google Workspace Essentials edition directly from Google, any Service Credits that may be due to Customer will be issued in the form of monetary credits (and not additional Service days) that will be applied to Customer's next invoice.”
Google Workspace Service Level Agreement, dated 31 August 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
Atlassian Cloud
“If Atlassian confirms a failure to meet the Service Level Commitment, Atlassian will apply the Service Credit, which will be calculated as described in Appendix B, against a future payment due from Customer for the affected Cloud Product, provided that Customer’s account is fully paid up, without any overdue payments or disputes. No refunds or cash value will be given for unused Service Credits. Service Credits may not be transferred or applied to any other Atlassian account or Product. The aggregate maximum Service Credit applied to an invoice will not exceed 100% of the amount invoiced for the affected Cloud Product in that invoice billing period (which, since Service Credits are applied to future payments, is not the month in which the affected Cloud Product was unavailable).”
Atlassian Cloud Service Level Agreement, dated 30 April 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
“Notes:* Percentage of the monthly fees attributed to the affected Eligible Cloud Product. The percentage of monthly fees attributable to an Eligible Cloud Product when purchased together with other Products under one SKU will be determined by Atlassian.”
Atlassian Cloud Service Level Agreement, dated 30 April 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
GitHub Enterprise Cloud
“Service Credit” is the percentage of the Applicable Service Fees credited to Customer following GitHub’s claim approval.
GitHub Online Services SLA, dated 1 June 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
“Applicable Service Fees” means the total fees paid by Customer for a Service that are applied to the Applicable Period in which a Service Credit is owed.
GitHub Online Services SLA, dated 1 June 2026, last checked 13 November 2026.
The tiers in each agreement
The size of the credit depends on how far uptime fell. The tiers below come from the vendor files this site checks against each agreement.
Swipe sideways to see every column.
| Agreement | Uptime counted over | Credit tiers |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft: Exchange Online | calendar month | uptime below 99.9%: 25 % of the fee; uptime below 99%: 50 % of the fee; uptime below 95%: 100 % of the fee |
| Google Workspace | calendar month | uptime below 99.9%: 3 days of service; uptime below 99%: 7 days of service; uptime below 95%: 15 days of service |
| Atlassian Cloud | calendar month | uptime below 99.9%: 10 % of the fee; uptime below 99%: 25 % of the fee; uptime below 95%: 50 % of the fee |
| GitHub Enterprise Cloud | calendar quarter | uptime below 99.9%: 5 % of the fee; uptime below 99.5%: 10 % of the fee; uptime below 99%: 25 % of the fee |
What to take from this
- Read the credit clause in your own agreement. It says how the credit is applied.
- The agreements above talk about fees, invoices or days of service. Check whether yours does the same before you count on money back.
- The credit is not automatic. Each agreement above asks you to make a request, and the Microsoft, GitHub and Atlassian clauses say the vendor approves or confirms it.
Sources
- Service Level Agreement for Microsoft Online Services, dated 1 November 2026, read 12 November 2026
- Google Workspace Service Level Agreement, dated 31 August 2026, read 13 November 2026
- Atlassian Cloud Service Level Agreement, dated 30 April 2026, read 13 November 2026
- GitHub Online Services SLA, dated 1 June 2026, read 13 November 2026
- Microsoft Partner Center: request a credit, dated 16 June 2026, read 12 November 2026
Quotations are copied word for word from the agreement named under each one. Text outside a quotation is this site's reading. A vendor decides every claim. This is not legal advice.