IDrive vs Backblaze B2: Which Should You Buy?

When I build a homelab or set up a home server for my family, the first rule of infrastructure is simple: if it isn’t backed up, it doesn’t exist. We all know this truth in our bones. However, choosing where that backup lives can be confusing when you are comparing platform-style services like IDrive against raw storage buckets like Backblaze B2.

Whatever you pick, remember the golden rule of data integrity: it is NOT a backup until a copy lives off-site. Relying solely on local RAID or NAS snapshots leaves you vulnerable to fire, theft, and ransomware. To truly secure your digital life, I recommend setting up both Backblaze (B2) for raw storage flexibility and IDrive for an all-in-one solution that handles the heavy lifting of device synchronization across different operating systems.

Quick verdict

The choice here depends entirely on how you manage data in your homelab. Are you a tinkerer who wants cheap, granular control over object storage? Or are someone who just wants to click “install” and have every laptop, phone, and server protected automatically?

You are…	Buy this (affiliate)
A homelabber needing a simple S3-style off-site target for Proxmox or TrueNAS.	Backblaze B2 (affiliate)
Someone who needs to back up multiple devices (PCs, Macs, Phones) with minimal configuration.	IDrive (affiliate)

Spec-by-spec comparison

Here is how the two services stack up based on their core operational models and pricing structures. Note that while both are SaaS offerings in the cloud backup space, they operate very differently under the hood.

Feature	IDrive (affiliate)	Backblaze B2 (affiliate)
Category	Cloud Backup Service	Object Storage
Type	SAAS Platform	S3-Compatible Bucket Store
Pricing Model	$5/mo flat rate (for 1TB)	$6/TB/month + egress fees
Best For	Multi-device backup workflows	NAS-native off-site targets & API access
Pros	Lots of storage included, cheap entry point for personal use.	Cheap per-terabyte cost, simple interface via APIs/tools, native support in modern NAS OSs.
Cons	Slower restore speeds compared to raw object retrieval; less flexible for programmatic automation without their specific client.	Egress fees apply when downloading data; not a “backup app” itself but the destination layer.

Analysis: Platform vs. Pipeline

IDrive as an Integrated Solution

IDrive operates closer to what traditional users expect from backup software, just hosted in the cloud rather than on your desk. It is designed primarily for Multi-device backup. If you have a Windows desktop at home, a MacBook Pro for work, and maybe an Android phone or two that need protecting, IDrate provides a single client to manage them all under one subscription.

The pricing model here is straightforward: you pay $5/mo. This gets you access to their cloud infrastructure without needing to worry about the complexity of managing API keys or bucket policies yourself. For many homelabbers who also run personal media servers, IDrive offers Lots of storage for that low entry price, making it attractive if your total data footprint across all devices is around a terabyte. However, be aware that while uploading might work well on gigabit fiber, users often report the service has Slower restores. When disaster strikes and you need to recover files quickly, this latency can feel frustrating compared to other solutions.

Backblaze B2 as Infrastructure

Backblaze B2 is not a backup application; it is storage infrastructure. It falls squarely into the category of Object Storage with an S3-compatible API. This makes S3-style off-site target its primary use case in my experience. If you run TrueNAS, Synology NAS (with Cloud Sync), or Proxmox VE, B2 integrates natively as a destination drive letter or mount point via tools like Rclone.

The economics of B2 are driven by volume: $6/TB/mo. This is incredibly cheap for raw storage capacity. It is also praised for being simple to set up once you understand the concept and having strong support in modern NAS environments (NAS-native). However, there is a catch that every homelabber must respect regarding data retrieval costs. While storing your petabytes of cold archive data here is affordable, pulling it back out incurs Egress fees. If you are backing up to satisfy compliance laws and rarely touch the files again, B2 wins on cost efficiency.

Pros & cons deep dive

IDrive (affiliate)

• Pros: The biggest selling point for me is that it handles a ton of storage upfront in its base tier (Lots of storage). It also remains one of the cheapest dedicated backup platforms available if you just want to pay $5/mo and forget about technical details. Its multi-device sync capability means your phone photos can end up on your server automatically without manual intervention.
• Cons: The primary downside is performance during recovery (Slower restores). In a homelab scenario where speed often matters for business continuity, this can be a bottleneck. Additionally, because it is a proprietary platform rather than open standards (like S3), you are locked into their ecosystem if you ever want to migrate elsewhere later.

Backblaze B2 (affiliate)

• Pros: The pricing structure allows massive scalability (Cheap per TB). Because it supports standard protocols like Rclone and native integrations in major NAS operating systems, it feels less restrictive than proprietary backup suites (Simple, NAS-native). It acts as a pure pipeline for your data.
• Cons: You must budget carefully because of the potential surprise costs associated with Egress fees when downloading large volumes of data back to local storage. Furthermore, since it is object storage and not an application, you are responsible for configuring how files get there (e.g., using Rclone mounts or native NAS tools).

Which should you buy?

If your goal is pure cost-efficiency for massive archives—like years of CCTV footage from a Proxmox cluster—you need the raw power and low per-terabyte price point that Backblaze B2 (affiliate) provides. It serves as an excellent, cheap S3-style off-site target where you can dump data via API or Rclone without worrying about managing complex file systems yourself.

However, if your homelab is also a personal command center for family photos and documents across various devices, IDrive (affiliate) offers peace of mind by simplifying the process into one Multi-device backup workflow. It costs just $5/mo to get started with significant capacity included (Lots of storage), though you should be prepared that getting those files back might take longer than a direct bucket download would allow (due to being on the slower side for restores).

Ultimately, I recommend using both: IDrive (affiliate) for your active personal devices and Backblaze B2 (affiliate) as an immutable archive layer for critical server data. This hybrid approach ensures you have redundancy across different ecosystems.

FAQ

Is $5/mo enough storage on IDrive?

Yes, the base plan typically covers