Free cash flow
Microsoft Free cash flow increased by 168.7% to $15.80B in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric declined by 22.1%, from $20.30B to $15.80B. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows an upward trend with a 6.3% CAGR. This is a positive signal — higher values indicate stronger performance for this metric.
Analysis
How to read this metric
An increase suggests strong operational efficiency and the ability to self-fund future innovation or return capital to shareholders, while a decrease may indicate heavy capital expenditure cycles or declining operational profitability.
Detailed definition
Free cash flow represents the cash generated by a company after accounting for cash outflows to support operations and m...
Peer comparison
High-growth semiconductor and AI infrastructure peers typically prioritize reinvestment, so free cash flow margins are often compared against R&D intensity and capital expenditure requirements of industry rivals.
cf_free_cash_flowHistorical Data
| Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q4 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $16.26B | $18.73B | $8.62B | $20.05B | $17.76B | $16.92B | $4.90B | $17.83B | $19.83B | $20.67B | $9.12B | $20.97B | $23.32B | $19.26B | $6.49B | $20.30B | $25.57B | $25.66B | $5.88B | $15.80B |
| QoQ Change | — | +15.2% | -54.0% | +132.7% | -11.4% | -4.7% | -71.0% | +264.0% | +11.2% | +4.2% | -55.9% | +129.9% | +11.2% | -17.4% | -66.3% | +212.9% | +26.0% | +0.4% | -77.1% | +168.7% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +9.2% | -9.7% | -43.1% | -11.0% | +11.7% | +22.2% | +86.1% | +17.6% | +17.6% | -6.8% | -28.9% | -3.2% | +9.6% | +33.3% | -9.3% | -22.1% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Microsoft's free cash flow?
- Microsoft (MSFT) reported free cash flow of $15.80B in Q1 2026.
- How has Microsoft's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Microsoft's free cash flow decreased by 22.1% year-over-year, from $20.30B to $15.80B.
- What is the long-term trend for Microsoft's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Microsoft's free cash flow has grown at a 6.3% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $56.12B to $71.61B.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.