(image from microsoft.com)
By Richard H. Levey
Microsoft is discontinuing its “Ads for Social Impact” grant program. Under the program, Microsoft awarded grants – credits for free digital advertising – to cover the first $1,000 of a monthly advertising schedule. The grants were given to selected nonprofits primarily in the 501(c)(3) space. The money could be applied toward advertising on properties throughout the Microsoft Search Network or the Microsoft Audience Network.
The last of the Ads for Social Impact grants will be awarded on November 30, 2025, and nonprofits will have 45 days in which to use up their grants.
The Microsoft Ads for Social Impact program launched in June 2022. Nonprofits had the option of purchasing additional advertising credits, effectively making the grants a supplementary payment. Under the terms of the program, nonprofits receiving the $1,000 grants could contribute $800 of their own money, triggering additional advertising credits from Microsoft that brought the value of the credits to $3,000 per month.
A signup screen for the Ads for Social Impact page accessed on October 6 briefly flashed on screen which read, in part, “The pilot is currently paused for grants on Microsoft’s advertising network. We appreciate your patience as we continue to refine the program and product to support onboarding more nonprofits.”
That screen was quickly replaced with a page touting the company’s grants and discounts from Microsoft 365. According to verbiage on that page, “Microsoft is committed to providing relevant, affordable, and innovative cloud and AI solutions to help nonprofits tackle the world’s biggest challenges.”
According to an email grant recipients received from Microsoft Advertising which referenced in several online accounts of the program’s wind-down, at the end of their grant period participants must actively pause their campaigns if they do not wish to be charged full freight for their advertising schedule. “If your campaigns remain active, your current payment method on file will be charged for any additional spend,” the Microsoft Advertising team wrote in its email.
While the Ads for Social Impact program is ending, along with some of the subsidized Microsoft 365 and Office 365 programs announced earlier this year, Microsoft is continuing to offer select nonprofits discounts on some of its technology and solutions, including Azure, Dynamics 365, and Microsoft 365 and Microsoft 365 Copilot.
