Quick answer
Tigris - Tigris wins for most builders who want a simple, zero-egress object store with predictable free-tier behavior, while Backblaze B2 is better if you expect heavier storage-heavy workloads and can live with egress limits.
How the free tiers compare
These are both S3-compatible object stores, but they optimize for different pain points. Backblaze B2 gives you a larger always-free storage allowance and very cheap storage once you outgrow it, with some helpful freebies around API calls and egress up to 3x your average stored data. That makes it attractive for backups, archives, and apps that store a lot but move data out modestly. Tigris is smaller on the free storage quota, but its free tier is more generous where many builders feel pain: zero egress fees, plus included request quotas. That shifts the economics for apps that serve downloads, media, or AI workloads with lots of reads and transfers. After the free tier, Backblaze is straightforward usage-based storage plus overage, while Tigris stays usage-based across storage, requests, and retrieval, so your bill depends more on traffic patterns and storage class choice.
Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage vs Tigris free tier, side by side
| Backblaze B2 Cloud StorageFTV 35 | TigrisFTV 36 | |
|---|---|---|
| Free storageBackblaze gives the larger base storage allowance. | 10 GB always free | 5 GB standard storage per month |
| EgressTigris is simpler if outbound transfer is central to your use case. | Free up to 3x average monthly storage; then $0.01/GB | Zero egress fees |
| Free request quotaThe request models are not directly identical, so treat these as shape, not one-to-one equivalents. | Class A free; Class B and C free for first 2,500/day per class | 10,000 PUT/COPY/POST/LIST per month and 100,000 GET/SELECT/other per month |
| Storage price after free tierBackblaze is cheaper on raw standard storage pricing, but Tigris includes free egress. | $6.95 per TB per month | $0.02/GB/month in Standard; lower in Infrequent Access, Archive, and Archive Instant Retrieval |
| Minimum storage durationThis matters if you churn objects quickly. | No minimum storage duration fees | 30 days on Infrequent Access; 90 days on Archive and Archive Instant Retrieval |
After you outgrow the free tier
Both products are usage-based after the free tier, but the cost drivers differ. Backblaze B2 is mostly about storage plus egress overage, with storage starting at $6.95/TB/month and egress overage at $0.01/GB beyond the free allowance. Tigris charges by storage class plus requests, with free egress across tiers but retrieval fees on some lower-cost classes. For typical small teams, Backblaze is usually cheaper for storage-heavy, low-egress workloads; Tigris is usually cheaper or easier to reason about when outbound traffic is significant.
Cost at real usage
| Usage | Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage | Tigris |
|---|---|---|
| 100 GB stored, 50 GB egress/monthBackblaze egress stays within the 3x storage free allowance; Tigris Standard storage is the main cost. | ~$0.68/mo est. | ~$2.00/mo est. |
| 500 GB stored, 400 GB egress/monthBackblaze egress is still within the free allowance if average storage is 500 GB; Tigris still charges storage, but not egress. | ~$3.39/mo est. | ~$10.00/mo est. |
| 1 TB stored, 2 TB egress/monthBackblaze is still within the 3x storage free egress allowance at 1 TB average storage; Tigris has no egress fee but higher storage cost at Standard. | ~$6.95/mo est. | ~$20.00/mo est. |
| 1 TB stored, 5 TB egress/monthBackblaze includes 3 TB egress free at 1 TB average storage, then charges overage; Tigris remains egress-free. | ~$26.43/mo est. | ~$20.00/mo est. |
Estimates, not quotes. Usage-based rates change - verify with the vendor's pricing page before committing.
When to pick each one
Pick Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage when…
- You need the larger free storage allowance: 10 GB always free instead of 5 GB.
- Your app is backup or archive oriented and does not move lots of data out.
- You want cheap standard object storage once you pass the free tier.
- You want some free API usage beyond the storage cap, especially for Class A and limited Class B/C calls.
Pick Tigris when…
- You expect lots of downloads, file serving, or other outbound traffic and want zero egress fees.
- You need included request quotas in the free tier for PUT/LIST and GET-heavy workloads.
- You want a storage provider with multiple storage classes, including Archive and Infrequent Access.
- You are building around object events, IAM policies, presigned URLs, or S3-compatible app workflows where read traffic matters more than raw storage size.
Bottom line
For the most common builder case, Tigris wins if your app serves or transfers data a lot, because zero egress fees usually matter more than a slightly larger free storage cap. Backblaze B2 wins if you are mostly storing data and want the cheapest straightforward object storage once you move past the free tier. If you are choosing purely on the free tier, Tigris is the better fit for traffic-heavy apps, while Backblaze is the better fit for backup and archive workloads.
Read the full listings: Backblaze B2 Cloud Storage and Tigris. Scores use the FTV methodology at /ftv. Browse more head-to-heads on /compare, or see the top-ranked free tiers on /top.