Question 1

What exactly is a billable unit?

Accepted Answer

One distinct user with an Atlas Ink signature applied to their mailbox during a calendar month is one unit. A unit is always $1. A user with no applied signature that month costs nothing, however many templates exist, and within Atlas Ink a user is never more than one unit per month. The End User Portal is metered separately, so a user active in both products in the same month is two units.

Question 2

Do I need Atlas AVD to run Atlas Ink?

Accepted Answer

No. You can run Atlas Ink standalone: deploy managed signatures into your own Azure subscription on the free Community plan and prepay units, without ever buying a paid Atlas AVD plan. It is also included with every Atlas AVD plan, from Community through Atlas AVD, if you already run the platform.

Question 3

What does it cost per user?

Accepted Answer

Usage is billed in units: one unit per active user, per month (one distinct user with a managed signature applied to their mailbox during the calendar month). A unit is always $1. Units are prepaid and billed via Stripe, purchased in-product through the plan selection. There is no separate Azure Marketplace meter, so usage never lands on your Azure invoice.

Question 4

Does the signature reach classic desktop Outlook, Apple Mail, or the Gmail app?

Accepted Answer

By default, Atlas Ink covers every Outlook surface (Outlook on the web, new Outlook, and Outlook for iOS & Android) on both new mail and replies, by pushing each user's own compose signature onto their mailbox, with Atlas never in the mail path. That push can't reach classic desktop Outlook or non-Outlook clients (Apple Mail, the Gmail app, and the like), because those don't read the Exchange mailbox signature store. To cover them, Atlas Ink offers an opt-in server-side stamping tier: a mail-flow rule in your own Exchange Online appends the signature on every send from any client. It's included with Atlas Ink on the Azure commercial cloud at no extra charge (stamped users meter exactly like pushed users), requires explicit admin consent and the Exchange Administrator role, and is not available to GCC or GCC High. It's the explicit trade for leaving the push-only posture: no customer mail ever flows through Atlas on either tier, but for stamped users Atlas does modify mail in transit; a stamped signature appends at the bottom of the thread on replies, and S/MIME-signed or encrypted mail is delivered unstamped.

Question 5

Can Atlas Ink run in GCC High or Azure Government?

Accepted Answer

Not yet. Atlas Ink runs in Azure commercial today and fails closed for sovereign clouds, and for GCC tenants too. GCC, Azure Government and GCC High are on the roadmap, and are priced exactly the same as commercial: usage billed in units, one unit per active signature user, per month, always $1 per unit.

Question 6

Is there a free trial, and does Atlas Ink cost anything during it?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Atlas Ink usage is free for the length of your trial. No active-signature users are billed until the trial converts. Every trial starts from the Atlas AVD offer and runs 30 days with full access, Atlas Ink included; when it ends, keep Ink by choosing any paid plan or by staying on the free Community plan with prepaid units.

Question 7

What happens to deployed signatures if I don't subscribe after the trial?

Accepted Answer

They stay where they are. Atlas never removes signatures on its own when a trial ends: a managed signature lives on the mailbox, so it remains in place until an admin removes it. If you don't want to keep them, remove them from Atlas Ink before the trial ends (each mailbox goes back to the signature it had before) or remove them in Microsoft 365 at any time.

Question 8

If I cancel a paid subscription, what happens to the signatures already deployed?

Accepted Answer

Nothing is taken away. A managed signature lives on the mailbox itself, so cancelling leaves every signature in place until an admin removes it; Atlas simply stops updating and enforcing them. To clear them, remove them from Atlas Ink before your subscription ends (each mailbox goes back to the signature it had before) or remove them in Microsoft 365 at any time.

Atlas Ink: Email Signatures in Your Azure Tenant