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Annotations add context to events or data points within Cost Reports or Segment Reports. An annotation includes a date and a comment, and is useful for explaining infrastructure changes, deployment events, billing updates, or other context that helps teammates understand a cost change. Annotations can be created manually from a report, or automatically when certain alert types fire:
Annotation TypeHow It Is CreatedWhere It Appears
Manual annotationA user adds it from a report chart or the Annotations sidebar.On the selected Cost Report or Segment Report.
Cost Alert annotationA Cost Alert is triggered.On the Cost Report associated with the alert event.
Budget Alert annotationA Budget Alert is triggered.On the Cost Report associated with the budget alert.

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Add an Annotation

You can add annotations directly from the chart on a Cost Report or Segment Report, or from the Annotations sidebar.
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From any report chart or graph, hover over the chart’s bars or line and select the date point you want to annotate.
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The Annotations sidebar is displayed on the right side of the screen. Your username is displayed as well as the date that corresponds with the selected date point on the chart. Enter a comment for the annotation.
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To save the annotation, click the arrow icon on the bottom right of the comment box.
Add Annotation From Graph
When you manually create an annotation, a corresponding issue is also created.

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View and Edit Annotations

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To view an annotation, from the top right of any Cost Report or Segment Report, click the Annotation icon (looks like a word bubble).
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The Annotations sidebar is displayed, with the most recently added annotation at the top of the list. A vertical line is also displayed on the report chart or graph for dates that have an existing annotation.
3
To edit the annotation, click the ellipses (…) on the top right of the annotation, then select Edit.
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Select a new date from the date picker and/or edit the text in the comment field.
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To save the annotation, click the arrow icon on the bottom right of the comment box.
Clicking an annotation marker (the vertical line) on the report chart scopes the Annotations sidebar to that day, making it easier to find the annotations tied to a specific point in time. Clear the day filter to return to the full list.

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Hide Annotations

1
From the top right of any Cost Report or Segment Report, click the Annotation icon (looks like a word bubble).
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From the top right of the Annotations pane, click the Annotations Settings icon (looks like a gear).
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You can toggle an annotation’s visibility in the Chart Display section.
Hiding Annotations

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Delete an Annotation

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To delete an annotation, from the top right of any Cost Report or Segment Report, click the Annotation icon (looks like a word bubble).
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The Annotations sidebar is displayed. Click the ellipses (…) on the top right of the annotation, then select Remove > OK.
Instead of deleting an annotation, consider resolving the annotation, as described below.

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Resolve an Annotation

1
To resolve an annotation, from the top right of any Cost Report or Segment Report, click the Annotation icon (looks like a word bubble).
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The Annotations sidebar is displayed. Click the ellipses (…) on the top right of the annotation, then select Mark as Resolved.
To unresolve an annotation, repeat the previous steps, but instead, select the Unresolve option.

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View Resolved Annotations

By default, reports hide resolved annotations from the annotations list and chart or graph.
1
To view resolved annotations, click the Annotation icon at the top right of the screen.
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From the Annotations sidebar, click the filter icon (next to the New button), then click Show Resolved. Resolved annotations are displayed in both views.

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Share an Annotation

1
To share an annotation with a teammate, from the top right of any Cost Report or Segment Report, click the Annotation icon.
2
The Annotations sidebar is displayed. Click the ellipses (…) on the top right of the annotation, then select Copy Link. A link is added to your clipboard, which you can use to share with a teammate.

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View Corresponding Issues

When you manually create an annotation, a corresponding issue is also automatically created. Budget Alert annotations also have a corresponding issue. Cost Alert annotations are linked to the Cost Alert instead, so their menu shows Go to Cost Alert rather than Go to Issue.
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To open the corresponding issue, click the ellipses (…) on the top right of the annotation.
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Then, select Go to Issue.
View of issue created by an annotation
For manual annotations, the issue is automatically created with the Annotation category label attached and a link to the annotated report. The issue’s title defaults to the report name and annotation’s date. You can use the comment function in the issue to also comment on the annotation. When an annotation is resolved, the corresponding issue will become a closed issue. Unresolving an annotation reopens the corresponding issue.

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Cost Alert Annotations

When a Cost Alert is triggered, an annotation is added to the corresponding Cost Report. This happens even if you do not configure external notification delivery through email, Slack, Microsoft Teams, or Jira. Cost Alert annotations show details about the alert event, such as the alert title, the grouping that triggered the alert, the change amount, and the comparison interval. From the annotation menu, select Go to Cost Alert to view or edit the alert configuration. See Cost Alerts for details on how to set up Cost Alerts.
If Jira delivery is configured for the Cost Alert, the annotation also includes a link to the Jira issue. If Jira delivery is not configured, no Jira issue is created, but the Cost Alert annotation still appears on the report.

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Budget Alert Annotations

When a Budget Alert is triggered, an annotation is added to the corresponding Cost Report. See the Budget Alerts documentation for details on how to set up Budget Alerts.

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Troubleshooting

The annotation was created by a Cost Alert. Cost Alert annotations are connected to the alert event, so the menu links back to the Cost Alert configuration. If the alert was also delivered to Jira, the annotation includes a separate Go to Jira Issue option.
Cost Alerts can be configured without external delivery channels. When a Cost Alert triggers, Vantage still adds an annotation to the associated Cost Report so the event is visible during report review.
Alert-generated annotations use the date of the cost event that triggered the alert. Cloud providers can update billing data after the original usage date, so an alert may be detected later while the annotation appears on the date the cost change occurred.