File Storage · head to head
Cloudian vs IDrive e2
Cloudian
File Storage
S3-compatible on-premises object storage with object lock immutability
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
IDrive e2
File Storage
Low cost S3-compatible object storage with egress included up to a multiple of what you store
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only IDrive e2 has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Cloudian you operate the hardware, so capacity planning, firmware, node failures and a refresh cycle every five years return as costs that a public cloud bill hides.; IDrive e2 the included egress is capped as a multiple of stored data, so a small bucket that serves a lot of traffic exhausts the allowance quickly and the economics stop looking cheap exactly where a CDN backed store would still be free.
- They diverge on capability: Cloudian covers S3 API compatibility, IDrive e2 covers S3-compatible endpoints.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Cloudian and IDrive e2 actually diverge.
Identical on both: user rating (Not yet rated), category (File Storage).
What each one covers
Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.
Only in Cloudian
- S3 API compatibility
- Object Lock
- Erasure coding
- Multi-tenancy
- Hybrid tiering
- HyperStore appliances
Only in IDrive e2
- S3-compatible endpoints
- Included egress allowance
- Object lock
- Versioning
- Regional endpoints
- Cross region replication
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Cloudian
- A backup team needing an immutable target so a compromised administrator account cannot delete the backupsnot IDrive e2
- An organisation restoring hundreds of terabytes regularly where public cloud egress charges make cloud storage untenablenot IDrive e2
- A university or government body with data residency rules preventing use of public cloud object storagenot IDrive e2
- A media archive holding petabytes of finished content where per-terabyte capital cost beats per-gigabyte monthly cloud feesnot IDrive e2
IDrive e2
- The offsite copy in a three two one backup chain driven by Veeam, restic or a NAS backup clientnot Cloudian
- Replacing an S3 bucket whose cost is dominated by storage rather than by requestsnot Cloudian
- Small teams who want predictable monthly object storage billing with no request line itemsnot Cloudian
- Archiving media or logs that must stay accessible without a retrieval delaynot Cloudian
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Cloudian
- You operate the hardware, so capacity planning, firmware, node failures and a refresh cycle every five years return as costs that a public cloud bill hides.
- Per-terabyte licensing plus servers means high upfront cost, and the crossover point against public cloud only arrives at meaningful scale, typically hundreds of terabytes and up.
- S3 compatibility is high but not identical to Amazon, so occasional applications depending on newer or less common S3 features need testing rather than assumption.
- Small deployments need a minimum node count for erasure coding to be meaningful, which sets a practical floor on entry cost regardless of how little data you have.
- Performance is object storage performance, so it is not a substitute for block or high-throughput file storage and buyers occasionally deploy it for the wrong workload.
IDrive e2
- The included egress is capped as a multiple of stored data, so a small bucket that serves a lot of traffic exhausts the allowance quickly and the economics stop looking cheap exactly where a CDN backed store would still be free.
- The region list is short compared with the hyperscalers, so data residency requirements outside the main markets are hard to satisfy and multi region designs have fewer options.
- S3 compatibility covers the common calls but not the long tail, so software that relies on less common features can fail in ways that are hard to diagnose against a provider with thin public documentation.
- Support is organised around a consumer and small business backup product rather than a platform engineering organisation, so escalating a storage layer problem takes longer than it would with a specialist provider.
- IDrive publishes far less about the underlying architecture, durability engineering and incident history than its competitors, so due diligence on the storage layer is largely taking the vendor at its word.
Pricing, plan by plan
Cloudian
On request- Cloudian HyperStore$undefined/year
- Licensed per usable terabyte, subscription or perpetual
- Software-only on your hardware or as Cloudian appliances
- No egress or API request charges
IDrive e2
Free- FreeFree
- 10 GB stored
- S3 API access
- Egress within the included allowance
- Pay as you go$4/month
- Roughly 4 USD per terabyte stored per month
- Egress included up to a multiple of stored data
- No per operation charge on standard usage
Which should you pick?
Choose Cloudian if
- You need s3 api compatibility.
- You work on Linux.
- You also want object lock.
Choose IDrive e2 if
- You need s3-compatible endpoints.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, API.
- You also want included egress allowance.
Questions people ask
- Is Cloudian or IDrive e2 better?
- Neither clearly leads. Cloudian starts at On request and IDrive e2 at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Cloudian or IDrive e2?
- IDrive e2 has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Cloudian and Free for IDrive e2.
- Does Cloudian or IDrive e2 run on more platforms?
- Cloudian runs on Linux. IDrive e2 runs on Web, API.
- Can I use IDrive e2 for free?
- Yes. IDrive e2 has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Cloudian starts at On request.
- What is Cloudian best used for?
- Cloudian is most often used for a backup team needing an immutable target so a compromised administrator account cannot delete the backups, an organisation restoring hundreds of terabytes regularly where public cloud egress charges make cloud storage untenable, a university or government body with data residency rules preventing use of public cloud object storage, a media archive holding petabytes of finished content where per-terabyte capital cost beats per-gigabyte monthly cloud fees. Of those, a backup team needing an immutable target so a compromised administrator account cannot delete the backups and an organisation restoring hundreds of terabytes regularly where public cloud egress charges make cloud storage untenable are not what IDrive e2 is typically brought in for.
- What can Cloudian do that IDrive e2 cannot?
- Cloudian covers S3 API compatibility, Object Lock, Erasure coding, Multi-tenancy. IDrive e2 covers S3-compatible endpoints, Included egress allowance, Object lock, Versioning.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Cloudian: Does object lock really stop ransomware deleting backups?
Within the retention period, yes, provided the lock is set in compliance mode. That is precisely why it is the common answer to backup-targeting ransomware.
IDrive e2: Is the egress genuinely free?
It is included up to an allowance tied to how much you store, not unlimited. Read heavy workloads on a small bucket will exceed it.
Cloudian: Are there egress charges?
No. That is the central cost argument against public cloud object storage, and it only becomes visible when you have to restore at volume.
IDrive e2: Does it work with Veeam and restic?
Yes, both treat it as a standard S3 endpoint, and object lock is supported for immutable backup chains.
Cloudian: Can we use our own servers?
Yes, HyperStore is software-defined and runs on qualified commodity hardware, or you can buy Cloudian appliances if you would rather not certify your own.
IDrive e2: Is there a minimum retention period?
No fixed minimum retention charge on standard storage, which is a real difference from providers that bill ninety days on early deletion.
IDrive e2: How does it compare with Backblaze B2?
The rates are close. B2 is the better documented and more widely integrated service; e2 is cheaper at list and has a different egress allowance model.
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