IndexComparisons
📦 Cloud Storage
Cloud Object Storage Comparison: GCS, Backblaze B2, Cloudflare R2, and AWS S3
Google Cloud Storage (GCS) joins Backblaze B2, Cloudflare R2, and AWS S3 as a hyperscaler option with strong multi-region support, multiple storage classes, and deep integration with Google Cloud services. These providers all offer S3-compatible object storage but differ significantly in pricing models, especially storage costs, egress fees, and ecosystem fit.
Updated pricing snapshot ("hot"/Standard storage)
| Service | Storage price (/TB-month) | Egress to internet | API ops (Class A/B per 1K, approx) | Minimum duration | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backblaze B2 | $6 | Free up to 3x stored/mo, then $0.01/GB | Free quotas; then ~$0.004/10K B | None | Lowest storage; generous egress. |
| Cloudflare R2 | $15 | Zero | ~0.36/M B | None | No bandwidth bills. |
| AWS S3 Standard | $23 | Tiered ~$0.09/GB first 10TB | ~0.4/M B | None | Ecosystem premium. |
| Google GCS Standard | $20-26 (region/dual/multi) | Tiered ~$0.08-0.12/GB worldwide | 0.4/1K B (Standard) | None (Standard) | Multi-region ~10, etc.). |
Feature comparison
| Aspect | Backblaze B2 | Cloudflare R2 | AWS S3 | Google GCS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ecosystem | Standalone; partners (Fastly, Vultr) | Cloudflare Workers/CDN/Zero Trust | Full AWS (Lambda, EC2, Athena) | Full GCP (GKE, BigQuery, AI/ML) |
| Storage classes | Single hot | Single | Many (IA, Glacier, Intelligent) | Standard, Nearline, Coldline, Archive |
| S3 compatibility | Strong | Excellent (99% ops) | Native | Strong |
| Lifecycle mgmt | Basic rules | Basic expiration | Advanced | Advanced, Autoclass |
| Object Lock | Yes (compliance/gov) | Limited | Yes | Yes (via retention) |
| Free tier | First 10GB | 10GB storage, 1M Class A/mo | Limited | 5GB-months Standard |
Core use-case fit
- Backblaze B2: Cheapest for bulk/hot storage with moderate egress (backups, media archives); simple, no vendor lock-in.
- Cloudflare R2: Public-facing assets/images/APIs with high traffic; zero egress saves big on web delivery.
- AWS S3: AWS-centric apps needing advanced analytics, replication, compliance; pay for features/ecosystem.
- Google GCS: GCP workloads (BigQuery, AI, Kubernetes); multi-region needs or tiered classes for cost optimization.
Backblaze wins on raw storage cost, R2 on bandwidth-heavy apps, while AWS/GCS suit enterprise ecosystems with richer tools. For exact costs, use calculators with your workload (e.g., TB stored, TB egress, ops volume).
Last updated on