Head to head
Amazon S3 vs Backblaze B2 pricing compared
Backblaze B2 wins ordinary backup accounts, but Amazon S3 Standard can briefly win for a very small account whose download fits AWS's fixed 100 GB allowance while exceeding B2's 3x storage allowance. Once that fixed AWS allowance is exhausted, B2's lower egress rate restores its lead. Sources: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing, Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing, and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.
Price both against your own workload, including the day you restore.
Worked scenarios
Each scenario states its inputs and every receipt line, so the totals can be checked rather than trusted. The winner is not the same in every one, which is the point of the comparison.
Ten GB archive account with no downloadBackblaze B2 is lower
Stored GB: 10 · Average monthly storage GB: 10 · Internet egress GB: 0 · Class A requests: 0 · Class B requests: 0 · Source deleted, overwritten, moved, or transitioned: no · Billing period: one month · Currency: USD · AWS class: S3 Standard · AWS region: us-east-1
| Meter | Amazon S3 | Backblaze B2 |
|---|---|---|
| storage | $0.2310 GB x $0.023 = $0.23. The account-dependent AWS new-account free tier is not assumed.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedThe first 10 GB of B2 storage is free.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| internet egress and retrieval | not chargedThere is no download, and S3 Standard retrieval is not charged.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| operations, minimums, and fixed fees | does not applyThere are no requests. S3 Standard has no minimum duration, capacity commitment, or separate fixed fee.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| internet egress, retrieval, and operations | does not apply | not chargedThere is no download or request usage, and retrieval has no separate charge.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| duration, capacity minimum, and fixed fees | does not apply | does not applyB2 has no minimum duration, capacity commitment, or separate fixed fee.Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing |
| Total | $0.23 | $0.00 |
Lower bill: Backblaze B2. B2 wins by $0.23 because its ongoing 10 GB storage allowance applies while the account-dependent AWS new-account offer is not assumed. S3/B2 source inputs: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.
Tiny active account inside AWS's fixed egress windowAmazon S3 is lower
Stored GB: 10 · Average monthly storage GB: 10 · Internet egress GB: 80 · Class A requests: 0 · Class B requests: 0 · Source deleted, overwritten, moved, or transitioned: no · Billing period: one month · Currency: USD · AWS class: S3 Standard · AWS region: us-east-1
| Meter | Amazon S3 | Backblaze B2 |
|---|---|---|
| storage | $0.2310 GB x $0.023 = $0.23.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedThe first 10 GB of B2 storage is free.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| internet egress | not charged80 GB is inside the fixed 100 GB monthly AWS allowance.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | $0.50The allowance is 3 x 10 GB = 30 GB. (80 GB - 30 GB) x $0.01 = $0.50.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| retrieval and operations | not chargedS3 Standard retrieval is not charged and this profile has no requests.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedRetrieval and the captured request meters are not charged.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| Total | $0.23 | $0.50 |
Lower bill: Amazon S3. S3 wins by $0.27 because 80 GB is still inside AWS's fixed allowance but is 50 GB above B2's storage-linked allowance. S3/B2 source inputs: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.
Ten GB account after AWS's fixed allowance is exhaustedBackblaze B2 is lower
Stored GB: 10 · Average monthly storage GB: 10 · Internet egress GB: 110 · Class A requests: 0 · Class B requests: 0 · Source deleted, overwritten, moved, or transitioned: no · Billing period: one month · Currency: USD · AWS class: S3 Standard · AWS region: us-east-1
| Meter | Amazon S3 | Backblaze B2 |
|---|---|---|
| storage | $0.2310 GB x $0.023 = $0.23.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedThe first 10 GB of B2 storage is free.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| internet egress | $0.90(110 GB - 100 GB free) x $0.09 = $0.90.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | $0.80The allowance is 30 GB. (110 GB - 30 GB) x $0.01 = $0.80.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| retrieval and operations | not chargedRetrieval is not charged and there are no requests.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedRetrieval and requests are not charged.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| early deletion | does not applyThe download is read-only, so early deletion does not apply.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not applyThe download is read-only, so early deletion does not apply.Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing |
| Total | $1.13 | $0.80 |
Lower bill: Backblaze B2. B2 retakes the lead by $0.33 because its $0.01 per GB overage is lower than AWS's first paid internet-transfer band. S3/B2 source inputs: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.
First tiny-account crossover at 53 GB downloadedno comparable winner
Stored GB: 10 · Average monthly storage GB: 10 · Internet egress GB: 53 · Class A requests: 0 · Class B requests: 0 · Source deleted, overwritten, moved, or transitioned: no · Billing period: one month · Currency: USD · AWS class: S3 Standard · AWS region: us-east-1
| Meter | Amazon S3 | Backblaze B2 |
|---|---|---|
| storage | $0.2310 GB x $0.023 = $0.23.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedThe first 10 GB of B2 storage is free.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| internet egress | not charged53 GB is inside the 100 GB monthly AWS allowance.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | $0.23(53 GB - 30 GB allowance) x $0.01 = $0.23.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| retrieval and requests | not chargedS3 Standard retrieval is not charged and there are no requests.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedRetrieval and requests are not charged.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| Total | $0.23 | $0.23 |
No winner: at least one side cannot be priced here, and an unpriced side is not a cheap side. The two receipts tie at $0.23. Above 53 GB and before the later 105.875 GB crossover, AWS's fixed allowance temporarily beats B2's proportional allowance. S3/B2 source inputs: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.
Normal 10 TB backup monthBackblaze B2 is lower
Stored GB: 10,000 · Average monthly storage GB: 10,000 · Internet egress GB: 1,000 · Class A requests: 500,000 · Class B requests: 2,000,000 · Source deleted, overwritten, moved, or transitioned: no · Billing period: one month · Currency: USD · AWS class: S3 Standard · AWS region: us-east-1
| Meter | Amazon S3 | Backblaze B2 |
|---|---|---|
| storage | $230.0010,000 GB x $0.023 = $230.00.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | $69.43(10,000 GB - 10 GB free) x $0.00695 = $69.4305, rounded to $69.43.Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing |
| internet egress | $81.00(1,000 GB - 100 GB free) x $0.09 = $81.00.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | not chargedThe 30,000 GB proportional allowance covers the 1,000 GB download.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| Class A operations | $2.50500,000 / 1,000 x $0.005 = $2.50.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| Class B operations | $0.802,000,000 / 1,000 x $0.0004 = $0.80.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| retrieval | not chargedS3 Standard retrieval is not charged.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| minimum duration | does not applyS3 Standard has no minimum duration.Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing | does not apply |
| retrieval and operations | does not apply | not chargedRetrieval and the captured Class A and Class B meters are not charged.Backblaze: Transaction pricing |
| duration, capacity minimum, and fixed fees | does not apply | does not applyB2 has no minimum duration, capacity commitment, or separate fixed fee.Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing |
| Total | $314.30 | $69.43 |
Lower bill: Backblaze B2. B2 wins by $244.87. The fixed-allowance reversal is confined to very small storage accounts and does not survive this ordinary 10 TB workload. S3/B2 source inputs: Amazon Web Services: S3 pricing, Backblaze: Cloud storage pricing, and Backblaze: Transaction pricing; retrieved 2026-07-25 15:34:44+00:00.