Amazon S3 vs Cloudflare R2
Default scenario: At 50 TB stored, 20 TB egress to internet / month, 10M writes / month, 100M reads / month, estimated bills are $9,970/yr for Cloudflare R2 and $35,778/yr for Amazon S3. That’s a $25,808 difference before accounting for different features or operating costs.
The services may differ in features, performance, support and the work you need to do yourself. Read the notes and test what matters to your setup.
Your selected usage
50 TB stored, 20 TB egress to internet / month, 10M writes / month, 100M reads / month
- Amazon S3: $35,778/yr estimated
- Cloudflare R2: $9,970/yr estimated
Estimated costs at different usage levels
| Usage | Amazon S3 | Cloudflare R2 |
|---|---|---|
| Backups / archive100 TB stored, 1 TB egress to internet / month, 1M writes / month, 1M reads / month | $28,037/yr$2,250 storage + $81 egress + $5.40 requests | $18,057/yr$1,500 storage + $0 egress + $4.86 requests |
| App storage50 TB stored, 20 TB egress to internet / month, 10M writes / month, 100M reads / month | $35,778/yr$1,150 storage + $1,742 egress + $90 requests | $9,970/yr$750 storage + $0 egress + $81 requests |
| Media serving20 TB stored, 200 TB egress to internet / month, 5M writes / month, 2B reads / month | $180,960/yr$460 storage + $13,795 egress + $825 requests | $12,508/yr$300 storage + $0 egress + $743 requests |
Standard (hot) tier, 1 TB = 1,000 GB. Minimum storage durations and retrieval fees for cold tiers aren’t modelled. Try your own numbers against all object storage providers.
Side by side
| Amazon S3 | Cloudflare R2 | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AWS's object storage, billed per GB stored, per request and per GB of internet egress, with tiered volume discounts. | S3-compatible object storage from Cloudflare with no egress fees; billed per GB stored and per operation. |
| Headquarters | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Parent jurisdiction | 🇺🇸 United States (Amazon) | 🇺🇸 United States (Cloudflare) |
| EU self-serve plan | Available; check eligible plans and regions | Available; check eligible plans and regions |
| GDPR DPA | Yes | Yes |
| Provider type | Hyperscaler | Standalone storage |
| Billing | payg | payg |
| Free tier | 100 GB/month of internet egress free (aggregated across AWS); new accounts get usage credits. | 10 GB-month storage, 1M Class A and 10M Class B operations per month. |
| Open source | No | No |
| Source last checked | 2026-10-06 | 2026-10-06 |
| Pricing evidence | Published rates | Published rates |
Which should you choose?
Cloudflare R2 has the lower estimated bill at every usage level we tested, from 5 TB stored, 2 TB egress to internet / month, 1M writes / month, 10M reads / month to 5,000 TB stored, 2,000 TB egress to internet / month, 1B writes / month, 10B reads / month.
They’re different kinds of provider. Amazon S3 (Hyperscaler): Part of a hyperscaler cloud: several storage classes, lifecycle rules, fine-grained access control and integration with that cloud’s other services. Cloudflare R2 (Standalone storage): S3-compatible storage sold on its own rather than as part of a server cloud, usually with few extra services.
Choose Amazon S3 if…
Our data shows no advantage on price, residency, jurisdiction or licensing. Compare features in the notes below.
Choose Cloudflare R2 if…
- it has the lower estimated bill at Backups / archive, App storage and Media serving usage
Based on estimated list-price bills and the facts above. Features, performance and support aren’t scored.
Amazon S3 pricing
Calculated from the listed vendor rates; exclusions still apply.
| Storage / GB-month | Internet egress / GB | 1M write operations | 1M read operations |
|---|---|---|---|
| $0.023, tiered | $0.09, tiered | $5 | $0.4 |
US East (N. Virginia), S3 Standard: $0.023/GB-month for the first 50 TB, $0.022 for the next 450 TB, $0.021 above. PUT/COPY/POST/LIST $0.005 per 1,000 ($5/M); GET $0.0004 per 1,000 ($0.40/M). Internet egress: first 100 GB/month free (aggregated across all AWS services and regions), then $0.09/GB for the first 10 TB, $0.085 for the next 40 TB, $0.07 for the next 100 TB and $0.05 above. EU regions (Frankfurt, Ireland, Paris, Stockholm, Milan, Spain) are self-serve and priced slightly higher. Egress through CloudFront is billed at CloudFront rates instead. The DPA is part of the AWS Service Terms.
Amazon S3 plan limits, full rates and cheaper alternatives · official pricing page
Cloudflare R2 pricing
Calculated from the listed vendor rates; exclusions still apply.
| Storage / GB-month | 1M write operations | 1M read operations |
|---|---|---|
| $0.015 | $4.5 | $0.36 |
Standard storage $0.015/GB-month, Class A operations (writes, lists) $4.50/M, Class B (reads) $0.36/M, egress free. Free tier (Standard only): 10 GB-month, 1M Class A and 10M Class B operations per month; the operations allowance isn't modelled. Infrequent Access is $0.01/GB-month plus retrieval fees. Buckets can be created with the EU jurisdiction restriction on any plan, keeping objects in EU data centres. The DPA is incorporated into Cloudflare's self-serve terms.
Cloudflare R2 plan limits, full rates and cheaper alternatives · official pricing page
Frequently asked questions
Is Amazon S3 cheaper than Cloudflare R2?
Cloudflare R2 has the lower estimated bill at every usage level we tested, from 5 TB stored, 2 TB egress to internet / month, 1M writes / month, 10M reads / month to 5,000 TB stored, 2,000 TB egress to internet / month, 1B writes / month, 10B reads / month. At 50 TB stored, 20 TB egress to internet / month, 10M writes / month, 100M reads / month, the estimates are $35,778/yr for Amazon S3 and $9,970/yr for Cloudflare R2. Estimates use list prices and leave out features, support and operating costs.
Do Amazon S3 and Cloudflare R2 offer EU data residency?
Both offer EU data residency on a self-serve plan. Check which plans and regions qualify.
Do Amazon S3 and Cloudflare R2 have a free tier or trial?
Amazon S3: 100 GB/month of internet egress free (aggregated across AWS); new accounts get usage credits. Cloudflare R2: 10 GB-month storage, 1M Class A and 10M Class B operations per month.
Where are Amazon S3 and Cloudflare R2 based?
Amazon S3 is headquartered in the United States and owned by Amazon (the United States). Cloudflare R2 is headquartered in the United States and owned by Cloudflare (the United States).