With the comparative data below, a critical question arises: Why do the most expensive cloud providers continue to dominate the market share? At first glance, it might seem counterintuitive, but several factors contribute to this phenomenon.
Delve deeper on the topic or just download our comprehensive Excel spreadsheet that breaks down the costs with precise formulas and also includes direct links to each vendor's price list.
Discounts and Commitments
Firstly, it's important to highlight that large customers often benefit from significant discounts (50%+) off the list prices. Furthermore, committing to a 2-3 year plan leads to even more savings. Therefore, the prices mentioned below represent the list prices for a pay-as-you-go scheme without any volume commitments. Companies that can accurately plan and estimate their usage can leverage these planning strategies for substantial cost reductions.
Specialized vs. Full-Service Providers
It's also crucial to point out that the most cost-effective options often come from specialized storage providers, such as Wasabi or LyveCloud, rather than full-scale cloud platforms. Other providers like Cloudflare and Hetzner offer unique advantages and may be perfectly suitable for many use cases but do not offer the extensive cloud platform functionalities that some businesses require.
Hidden Costs
Lastly, some platforms impose additional fees for API calls. However, these usually come with a generous free volume per month, which means that for many users, these costs do not significantly impact on the overall price calculations. There are also often inter-regions fees, specific more expensive conditions for China, and legal regulations in EU.
Bottom Line
This nuanced view of cloud storage costs reveals that the picture is more complex than it might seem at first glance. Market dominance by pricier providers can be attributed to their ability to offer significant discounts, flexible commitment plans, and a full suite of services that meet a wide range of business needs.