Amazon S3 vs Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage
Default scenario: At 50 TB stored, 20 TB egress to internet / month, 10M writes / month, 100M reads / month, estimated bills are $4,794/yr for Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage and $35,778/yr for Amazon S3. That’s a $30,984 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
- Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage: $4,794/yr estimated
Estimated costs at different usage levels
| Usage | Amazon S3 | Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage |
|---|---|---|
| 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 | $9,588/yr$799 storage + $0 egress + $0 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 | $4,794/yr$400 storage + $0 egress + $0 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 | —Egress above fair-use limit (1× stored) |
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 | Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | AWS's object storage, billed per GB stored, per request and per GB of internet egress, with tiered volume discounts. | Flat-rate S3-compatible storage with no egress or API fees, under a fair-use policy that caps monthly egress at the volume stored. |
| Headquarters | 🇺🇸 United States | 🇺🇸 United States |
| Parent jurisdiction | 🇺🇸 United States (Amazon) | 🇺🇸 United States |
| 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. | — |
| Open source | No | No |
| Source last checked | 2026-10-06 | 2026-10-06 |
| Pricing evidence | Published rates | Published rates |
Which should you choose?
Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage 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. Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage (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…
- you want to start free (100 GB/month of internet egress free (aggregated across AWS); new accounts get usage credits)
Choose Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage if…
- it has the lower estimated bill at Backups / archive and App storage 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
Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage pricing
Calculated from the listed vendor rates; exclusions still apply.
| Storage / GB-month |
|---|
| $0.00799 |
Pay as You Go $7.99/TB-month with no egress or API request fees. Free egress applies while monthly egress is no more than the active storage volume (wasabi.com/pricing/faq); heavier egress isn't a fit and can lead to service limits. Minimum monthly charge equals 1 TB of active storage. Objects deleted before 90 days are charged for the remaining days (Timed Deleted Storage). Reserved Capacity Storage (prepaid 1/3/5-year) is cheaper. EU regions: Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris, Milan (plus two in the UK). DPA available on request online.
Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage plan limits, full rates and cheaper alternatives · official pricing page
Frequently asked questions
Is Amazon S3 cheaper than Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage?
Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage 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 $4,794/yr for Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage. Estimates use list prices and leave out features, support and operating costs.
Do Amazon S3 and Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage offer EU data residency?
Both offer EU data residency on a self-serve plan. Check which plans and regions qualify.
Do Amazon S3 and Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage have a free tier or trial?
Amazon S3: 100 GB/month of internet egress free (aggregated across AWS); new accounts get usage credits. Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage has no free tier or trial in our data.
Where are Amazon S3 and Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage based?
Amazon S3 is headquartered in the United States and owned by Amazon (the United States). Wasabi Hot Cloud Storage is headquartered in the United States.