Cloud Storage & Egress Cost Calculator

Compare monthly object storage, API operations, and bandwidth egress costs across AWS S3, Cloudflare R2, Google Cloud Storage, Backblaze B2, and Wasabi.

Workload Parameters

Live Pricing
5.0 TB
GB
2.0 TB
GB
k req
k req
Most Cost-Effective Monthly Total (Backblaze B2)
$29.99/ month
Save $3078 / yr vs AWS

Storage Fee

$29.94

Egress Fee

$0.00

API Operations

$0.04

Annual Run-Rate

$359.82

Side-by-Side Multi-Cloud Cost Breakdown

Cloud ProviderStorageEgressAPI OpsMonthly TotalAnnual Run-Rate
Amazon S3 Standard
$115.00$171.00$0.45$286.45$3437.40
Cloudflare R2Zero Egress
$74.85$0.00$0.40$75.25$903.06
Google Cloud Storage (Standard)
$99.90$240.00$0.45$340.35$4084.20
Backblaze B2Lowest CostZero Egress
$29.94$0.00$0.04$29.99$359.82
Wasabi Hot Cloud StorageZero Egress
$34.50$0.00$0.00$34.50$414.00

S3-Compatible API Migration

Cloudflare R2, Wasabi, and Backblaze B2 support standard AWS SDK endpoints (boto3, aws-sdk-js). You can redirect object storage traffic by modifying the endpoint URL without changing application logic.

Cloud Object Storage Billing Architecture & The Egress Tax

Total monthly cloud storage expenses are divided across three independent dimensions: at-rest data capacity ($/GB), internet egress bandwidth transfer ($/GB), and HTTP operational API requests ($/1k PUTs and GETs).

1. Multi-Dimensional Cloud Storage Cost Equation
Total Monthly Spend=(Storage GB × Rate)+(Egress GB × Rate)+
PUT Requests1,000
× PUT Rate
+
GET Requests1,000
× GET Rate
2. Annual Migration Savings Formula
Annual Savings ($)=(AWS S3 Monthly Bill − Alternative Monthly Bill)×12 Months
Step-by-Step Calculation Breakdown (5 TB Storage + 2 TB Egress)
Step 1: Compute AWS S3 Standard Costs ($0.023/GB Stored, $0.09/GB Egress)
Storage = 5,000 GB × $0.023 = $115.00
Egress = (2,000 GB − 100 GB Free) × $0.09 = $171.00
AWS S3 Monthly Total = $115.00 + $171.00 = $286.00 / month
Step 2: Compute Cloudflare R2 Costs ($0.015/GB Stored, $0.00 Egress)
Storage = (5,000 GB − 10 GB Free) × $0.015 = $74.85
Egress = 2,000 GB × $0.00 = $0.00 (Zero Egress)
Cloudflare R2 Monthly Total = $74.85 / month
Step 3: Calculate Annual Net Savings
Annual Savings=($286.00 − $74.85) × 12=$2,533.80 / Year (74% Reduction)

2026 Cloud Object Storage Comparison Matrix

ProviderStorage (/GB)Egress (/GB)Free TierPrimary Strength
Cloudflare R2$0.015$0.00 (Zero Egress)10 GB / moWeb assets, video streaming, S3 API compatibility
Backblaze B2$0.006$0.01010 GB / moCold backups, disaster recovery, long-term archival
Wasabi Hot Cloud$0.0069$0.00 (Zero Egress)—Surveillance video, enterprise hot storage tiers
Amazon S3 Standard$0.023$0.090100 GB EgressDeep AWS IAM, Lambda, Athena & SageMaker ecosystem

Frequently Asked Questions

What are cloud egress fees and why are they so expensive?
Cloud egress fees are the bandwidth charges incurred whenever data is downloaded or transferred out of a cloud provider's data center to the public internet or another cloud. Major hyperscalers (AWS, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure) charge between $0.08 and $0.12 per gigabyte of egress, which often accounts for 50% to 70% of an organization's total cloud storage bill.
How does Cloudflare R2 offer zero egress fees?
Cloudflare operates its own global Anycast edge network with extensive private peering agreements with global ISPs. Because Cloudflare does not pay transit fees on the vast majority of its network traffic, it eliminates data transfer egress fees entirely for R2 object storage, charging only $0.015/GB for stored data.
Are alternative object storage providers (R2, Backblaze B2, Wasabi) S3-compatible?
Yes. Cloudflare R2, Backblaze B2, and Wasabi all implement full Amazon S3-compatible REST API endpoints. You can use standard AWS SDKs (boto3, aws-sdk-js, aws-cli, rclone, Cyberduck) simply by updating the endpoint URL and access/secret credentials without modifying application code.
What is the difference between Class A (PUT) and Class B (GET) operations?
Class A operations (PUT, POST, LIST, COPY) create or modify objects and are priced at roughly $0.005 per 1,000 requests. Class B operations (GET, HEAD) retrieve or inspect objects and are priced much lower at roughly $0.0004 per 1,000 requests. High-traffic web apps with millions of image loads should evaluate GET request costs or front storage with a caching CDN.
When should an enterprise choose AWS S3 over cheaper alternatives?
AWS S3 remains standard when workloads require deep ecosystem integration with native AWS services (AWS Lambda, Athena, SageMaker, Redshift, EMR), fine-grained IAM roles, multi-region replication, or advanced compliance features (Object Lock, S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval).
How can developers minimize object storage expenses?
Key optimization strategies include: 1. Routing public media downloads through Cloudflare R2 or Wasabi to eliminate egress fees; 2. Placing an edge caching CDN in front of S3 to absorb repeated GET requests; 3. Implementing S3 Lifecycle rules to automatically transition stale files to Cold Archive; 4. Enabling gzip or Brotli compression before uploading textual payloads.

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