Backblaze B2 vs Storj: Which Should You Buy?
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If you’ve been in the home-lab game for any length of time, you know that “one copy is none.” Local RAID arrays are great for uptime, but they aren’t a backup. To truly sleep at night, you need an off-site target that doesn’t involve driving physical hard drives to your parents’ house every month.
When looking for S3-compatible object storage, two names consistently pop up in the self-hosting community: Backblaze B2 and Storj. On the surface, they both solve the same problem—getting your data off your local hardware—but they do it using fundamentally different architectures. One is a traditional centralized cloud provider; the other is a decentralized network.
Quick Verdict
If you don’t want to overthink it and just want something that “just works” with your existing NAS, go with Backblaze B2. If you are looking for the lowest monthly storage cost and prefer a distributed model, Storj is your play.
| If you are… | Buy this… |
|---|---|
| A traditionalist wanting simple, NAS-native integration | Backblaze B2 |
| Budget-conscious and interested in decentralized tech | Storj |
| Looking for an S3-style off-site target for backups | Either (both support S3 APIs) |
Spec-by-Spec Comparison
| Feature | Backblaze B2 | Storj |
|---|---|---|
| Category | Object Storage | Decentralized Storage |
| Type | SaaS | SaaS |
| Price (per TB/mo) | $6 | $4 |
| Best For | S3-style off-site target | Distributed S3 storage |
| S3 API Support | Yes | Yes |
The Deep Dive: Architecture and Implementation
The Traditional Approach: Backblaze B2
Backblaze B2 is the “old reliable” of this comparison. It operates as standard object storage. For the home-labber, the biggest draw here is that it’s NAS-native. Most major NAS operating systems have a checkbox for B2; you plug in your keys and start syncing.
The simplicity is its greatest strength. You aren’t managing a complex distributed system; you are sending data to a centralized provider. However, this convenience comes with a catch: egress fees. While the storage cost is competitive, moving your data out of B2 can cost you, which is something to keep in mind if you anticipate needing to do full restores frequently.
The New Guard: Storj
Storj takes a completely different approach by utilizing decentralized storage. Instead of your data sitting in one giant warehouse, it’s distributed across a network. From a user perspective, this is still delivered as a SaaS experience with an S3 API, so your software won’t know the difference—but your wallet will.
At $4/TB/mo, Storj undercuts B2 on raw storage costs. Additionally, because of its architecture, it emphasizes encryption by default. The trade-off for this innovation is that it’s a newer player in the space and you may encounter variable speeds depending on the state of the decentralized network.
Pros & Cons
Backblaze B2
Pros:
- Cheap: Very competitive pricing for those who don’t need massive scale.
- Simple: Minimal configuration required to get running.
- NAS-native: Integrated into most home-server software out of the box.
Cons:
- Egress fees: You pay to get your data back, which can be a pain during disaster recovery.
Storj
Pros:
- Cheap: Lower monthly cost per terabyte than B2.
- Encrypted: Strong focus on security and privacy through decentralization.
- S3 API: Compatible with the industry standard for object storage.
Cons:
- Newer: Less long-term track record compared to traditional providers.
- Variable speed: Performance isn’t always consistent due to its distributed nature.
Which should you buy?
Choosing between these two comes down to your tolerance for risk versus your desire for simplicity.
If you are running a professionalized home lab where “set it and forget it” is the primary goal, Backblaze B2 is the winner. The fact that it’s NAS-native means you spend less time troubleshooting API calls and more time actually using your server. You accept the egress fees as a “convenience tax.”
However, if you are a tinkerer who values privacy and wants to shave every possible cent off your monthly cloud bill, Storj is the way to go. It’s an exciting piece of tech that provides S3 compatibility at a lower price point. Just be aware that because it’s decentralized, you might see some fluctuations in throughput compared to a centralized data center.
FAQ
Is Storj compatible with my existing S3 backup tools? Yes, Storj provides an S3 API, meaning most software designed for S3-style object storage will work with it.
Why does Backblaze B2 have egress fees? This is a common model in traditional SaaS object storage where storing data is cheap, but moving that data across the network incurs costs.
Which one is better for large-scale backups? If raw monthly cost per TB is your primary driver, Storj is cheaper at $4/TB/mo compared to B2’s $6/TB/mo. However, if you want a target that is natively supported by your NAS hardware, Backblaze B2 is generally the simpler choice.
Is my data encrypted on these platforms? Storj specifically highlights encryption as a core pro of its decentralized architecture. While both are SaaS products, Storj’s distributed nature adds an inherent layer of security to how data is stored.
Our pick for personal cloud storage
Want privacy-first storage without recurring monthly fees? Consider pCloud — it’s EU/Swiss-based with optional zero-knowledge encryption and one-time lifetime plans, a strong value alternative for backing up your own data.