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Microsoft Advertising Sandbox returns 404

Mojtaba Sayari 0 Reputation points
2026-04-30T08:36:59.3466667+00:00

I’m a developer working on a client’s platform and wanted to integrate the Microsoft Ads API. I attempted to follow the instructions in the provided article to create a sandbox account, which would allow me to develop and test the functionalities easily. However, when I accessed the sandbox URL, I faced a 404 error and received an incorrect SSL certificate.

I’m not sure if I’m on the right track. Could you please help me with this?

Here’s the article URL: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/advertising/guides/sandbox?view=bingads-13

The very first step creating a sandbox account goes to this 404 URL: https://sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com/

This server could not prove that it is sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com; its security certificate is from *.azureedge.net. This may be caused by a misconfiguration or an attacker intercepting your connection.

When I ignore the SSL issue and skip it, it displays a 404 error.

I have also tried https://secure.sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com/. the result is the same!

Microsoft Advertising | Accounts, profiles, and login | Account access
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  1. Q&A Assist
    2026-04-30T08:37:18.4133333+00:00
    AI generated content. This question contains an answer created with AI from Q&A Assist. Learn more

    The sandbox environment is separate from production and has its own set of supported endpoints and credentials. The correct entry point for working with Microsoft Advertising sandbox today is the secure sandbox URL, not the sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com host that is returning 404 and a mismatched certificate.

    Use these endpoints and steps instead:

    1. Sign up and sign in to sandbox
      • Go to the Microsoft Advertising secure sandbox site: https://secure.sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com/ (from the Sandbox and Get Started guides).
      • Create or use a sandbox customer as described under Initial Customer Sign Up:
        • Either:
          • Create a Microsoft account (MSA) with an outlook.com email address and complete the Create Account flow, or
          • Use Sign up with Google and complete the Google OAuth flow.
        • On the Create Account form, choose Skip payment information for Go Live.
    2. If an outlook.com MSA is needed for OAuth
      • If the sandbox customer was created with an outlook-int.com or other non‑outlook domain, invite an outlook.com user from within the sandbox UI:
        1. In the sandbox UI, go to Settings → User management → Invite user.
        2. Enter an outlook.com email only (other domains will remain in “pending” and never send).
        3. The invited user follows the email link, creates an MSA with an outlook.com address if needed, then signs back in at https://secure.sandbox.bingads.microsoft.com/.
    3. Get API access for sandbox
      • Use the sandbox‑specific credentials and helpers:
        • Universal sandbox developer token: BBD37VB98.
        • Own application ID (client ID) is still required; for C# samples, the public “Tutorial Sample App” client ID 00001111-aaaa-2222-bbbb-3333cccc4444 can be used in sandbox.
      • OAuth endpoint remains login.microsoftonline.com, but tokens and calls must target sandbox web service addresses.
    4. Best practices and limitations
      • Sandbox and production use separate credentials and WSDL/web service addresses.
      • Sandbox capacity is lower; do not use it for stress or capacity testing and avoid more than one thread.
    5. If the 404/SSL issue persists
      • Since sandbox may be down for maintenance with or without notice, or there may be a transient configuration issue on that legacy host, use the secure sandbox URL and API endpoints documented in the Sandbox and Get Started guides.
      • For persistent access issues or if the secure sandbox URL also fails, raise the problem via Microsoft Q&A (tag advertising-api) or contact Microsoft Advertising Support, providing environment details and exact URLs used.

    References:

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