Cloud Storage Monthly Cost Estimator
Estimate cloud storage monthly costs with complete explanations. Compare major providers and optimize storage expenses. Free calculator.
Quick Answer
Monthly Cost = Storage GB × Price per GB + Transfer Costs + Request Costs. AWS S3: ~$0.023/GB/month, Google Cloud: ~$0.020/GB/month. Essential for cloud budgeting, provider comparison, and cost optimization strategies.
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Estimate With Full ToolWhat is Cloud Storage Cost Estimation?
Cloud storage cost estimation calculates monthly expenses for storing data in cloud services like AWS S3, Google Cloud Storage, or Azure Blob Storage. Costs include storage fees based on data volume, plus charges for data transfer and API requests.
How Cloud Pricing Works
Cloud providers charge based on storage tiers (frequently accessed vs. archival), data transfer out (egress), and API operations. Storage costs decrease with volume, while transfer costs vary by region and provider. Understanding this structure helps optimize costs.
Cost Optimization Strategies
Optimize costs by using appropriate storage tiers, implementing lifecycle policies, leveraging CDNs for transfer reduction, and choosing regions strategically. Different providers excel in different use cases, making comparison essential.
Cloud Storage Cost Formulas
Monthly Cost = Storage Cost + Transfer Cost + Request Cost
Storage Cost = Storage GB × Price per GB
Transfer Cost = Transfer GB × Price per GB
AWS S3 Standard: $0.023/GB/month + $0.09/GB transfer
Google Cloud Standard: $0.020/GB/month + $0.12/GB transfer
Azure Blob Hot: $0.018/GB/month + $0.10/GB transfer
Request Pricing: ~$0.004 per 10,000 requests
Archive Storage: ~90% cheaper than standard tiers
Step-by-Step Example
Example: 1TB storage with AWS S3
Step 1: Storage: 1000 GB × $0.023 = $23.00 per month
Step 2: Transfer: 500 GB × $0.09 = $45.00 per month
Step 3: Requests: 10,000 × $0.004 = $0.04 per month
Step 4: Total monthly cost: $23.00 + $45.00 + $0.04 = $68.04
Step 5: Annual cost: $68.04 × 12 = $816.48
Step 6: Cost per GB: $68.04 ÷ 1000 = $0.068 per GB/month
Example: Provider comparison for 500GB
Step 1: AWS S3: 500 × $0.023 = $11.50 storage + transfer
Step 2: Google Cloud: 500 × $0.020 = $10.00 storage + transfer
Step 3: Azure Blob: 500 × $0.018 = $9.00 storage + transfer
Step 4: Backblaze B2: 500 × $0.006 = $3.00 storage + transfer
Step 5: Compare: Backblaze 73% cheaper than AWS
Step 6: Consider features vs cost tradeoffs
These examples show how costs vary between providers and usage patterns. Budget providers like Backblaze offer significant savings, while major providers provide more features and better integration with other cloud services.
Who Should Use This Calculator?
Developers
Estimate cloud costs for applications
IT Managers
Plan cloud infrastructure budgets
Startup Founders
Compare providers and optimize costs
Data Engineers
Budget data lake and analytics storage
Frequently Asked Questions
Is cloud storage cheaper than on-premise?
For small to medium workloads, cloud storage is often cheaper due to no upfront hardware costs. For large-scale storage (100TB+), on-premise may become more cost-effective, though requires significant initial investment and maintenance.
How can I reduce cloud storage costs?
Use appropriate storage tiers (hot, cool, cold), implement lifecycle policies to move old data to cheaper storage, use data compression, leverage CDN caching, choose optimal regions, and consider multi-cloud or hybrid approaches.
What's the difference between storage tiers?
Hot storage (Standard) offers immediate access at higher cost. Cool storage (Infrequent Access) has slightly higher latency but lower cost. Cold storage (Archive) is cheapest but has retrieval delays and additional costs for access.
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