When is a colder tier worth it?

When you rarely read the data. The break-even retrieval volume shown is where the retrieval charges eat the storage saving; above it the colder tier costs more.

Why is my bill dominated by requests?

Many small objects. Request charges are per operation regardless of size, so a million tiny objects can cost more in requests than in storage.

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Object Storage Cost Calculator

Object storage cost across tiers, with the retrieval charge included. A colder tier is only cheaper if you rarely read the data, and the break-even retrieval volume is the number that decides it.

Also called: s3 cost calculator, blob storage pricing.

Monthly cost

$10,952.00

$10,952.00 a month: $10,752.00 storage, $0.00 retrieval and $200.00 requests. On the standard tier it would be $10,952.00, so this tier saves $0.00 on storage but adds $0.00 in retrieval. The standard tier has no retrieval charge, which suits data read regularly.

Storage

$10,752.00

Retrieval

$0.00

Requests

$200.00

On the standard tier

$10,952.00

Storage saved by the tier

$0.00

Retrieval at which the tier stops paying

$0.00

On tier choice

The standard tier has no retrieval charge, which suits data read regularly.

On prices

Prices are inputs, not constants. Provider pricing changes continuously, so take the current rate from the provider calculator rather than relying on a default here.

How this is calculated

Method and background

How this is calculated

Cold tiers trade a lower per-gigabyte monthly rate for a retrieval charge and often a minimum storage duration. That makes them cheaper for backups and archives and more expensive for anything read regularly. The break-even shown is the monthly retrieval volume at which the retrieval charges consume the storage saving, and retrieving above it means the colder tier is costing more. Request charges matter for workloads with many small objects, where they can exceed the storage cost entirely.

a cheaper storage tier trades a lower monthly rate for a retrieval charge, so access frequency decides

s: Stored GB
r: Retrieved GB

Method and limits

What it assumes

No minimum storage duration penalty, which several archive tiers apply.

What it deliberately does not model

Archive tiers have minimum storage durations and early deletion charges.
Retrieval from archive can take hours, which is a service constraint rather than a cost one.
Lifecycle transition requests are themselves charged.

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Frequently asked questions

When is a colder tier worth it?: When you rarely read the data. The break-even retrieval volume shown is where the retrieval charges eat the storage saving; above it the colder tier costs more.
Why is my bill dominated by requests?: Many small objects. Request charges are per operation regardless of size, so a million tiny objects can cost more in requests than in storage.