File Storage · head to head
Scality RING vs Storj
Scality RING
File Storage
Petabyte-scale object storage software on your own hardware
- From
- On request
- Rated
- -
Storj
File Storage
S3-compatible object storage distributed in encrypted pieces across independently operated nodes
- From
- Free
- Rated
- -
The short version
- Only Storj has a free tier, so it costs nothing to try first.
- Each has a real cost: Scality RING hardware is bought separately, so the software quote understates total cost and the buyer carries the sizing risk if the drive and server specification is wrong.; Storj billing includes a per segment charge and every object consumes at least one segment, so a bucket holding millions of small files can cost several times what the four dollar per terabyte headline implies.
- They diverge on capability: Scality RING covers S3-compatible object storage, Storj covers Erasure coded distribution.
- Prices and features above were last checked on 1 September 2026.
Where they differ
Only the attributes on which Scality RING and Storj actually diverge.
| Attribute | Scality RING | Storj |
|---|---|---|
| Starting price | On request | Free |
| Pricing model | quote | Per terabyte per month |
| Free tier | No | Yes |
| Platforms | Linux | Web, API, Linux, macOS, Windows |
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 Scality RING
- S3-compatible object storage
- File and object access
- Erasure coding
- Object lock
- Multi-site geodistribution
- Hardware independence
- ARTESCA
Only in Storj
- Erasure coded distribution
- Client side encryption
- S3-compatible gateway
- Native uplink access
- Object Lock and versioning
- Storj Select
What people use each for
The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.
Scality RING
- A broadcaster archiving decades of video where hyperscaler storage and egress costs would be prohibitivenot Storj
- A hospital group holding medical imaging on premises for data residency and retention reasonsnot Storj
- An enterprise building an immutable on premises backup target for Veeam or Commvault with object locknot Storj
- A service provider offering S3-compatible storage to its own customers on hardware it controlsnot Storj
Storj
- An offsite backup or archive target where the data is large, written once and occasionally restorednot Scality RING
- Serving large media files internationally without paying hyperscaler egress ratesnot Scality RING
- Storing data where the objection to AWS, Azure or Google is jurisdiction and concentration rather than costnot Scality RING
- A second, independent copy of a dataset that already lives in a hyperscaler bucketnot Scality RING
Where each one falls short
Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.
Scality RING
- Hardware is bought separately, so the software quote understates total cost and the buyer carries the sizing risk if the drive and server specification is wrong.
- Running distributed erasure coded storage requires operations skills, and organisations that expected appliance simplicity end up staffing a storage team they had not budgeted.
- Rebuild times after a drive failure on large capacity disks are measured in hours or days, and capacity planning has to leave headroom for that degraded window.
- Pricing is per usable terabyte and quoted, so cost comparisons against cloud object storage require modelling your own retrieval patterns rather than reading a rate card.
- Small deployments carry a minimum viable node count for erasure coding to work sensibly, which makes the entry footprint larger and less economic than the per-terabyte price implies.
Storj
- Billing includes a per segment charge and every object consumes at least one segment, so a bucket holding millions of small files can cost several times what the four dollar per terabyte headline implies.
- Reconstructing an object requires responses from dozens of independent nodes, so time to first byte is noticeably higher than a centralised bucket and it is a poor fit behind a latency sensitive read path.
- Performance depends on the mix of node operators serving you at that moment rather than on a datacentre you can raise a ticket against, so slow reads are diagnosed statistically rather than fixed.
- The hosted S3 gateway terminates encryption on Storj infrastructure, so using the convenient access path gives up the end to end encryption that is the main architectural argument for the service.
- The S3 gateway is compatible rather than identical, so tools that lean on less common API calls, multipart edge cases or unusual header behaviour need testing before you commit a workload to it.
Pricing, plan by plan
Scality RING
On request- Scality RING$undefined/year
- Priced per usable terabyte, subscription or perpetual
- Server hardware purchased separately by the customer
- Support tiers quoted separately
- Scality ARTESCA$undefined/year
- Lighter object store for smaller footprints
- Priced per usable terabyte
- Commonly deployed as an immutable backup target
Storj
Free- Free trialFree
- 25 GB stored
- 25 GB egress per month
- No card required to start
- Storj$4/month
- 4 USD per terabyte stored per month
- 7 USD per terabyte of egress
- Per segment fee on top of stored volume
Which should you pick?
Choose Scality RING if
- You need s3-compatible object storage.
- You work on Linux.
- You also want file and object access.
Choose Storj if
- You need erasure coded distribution.
- You want to start without paying.
- You work on Web, API, Linux, macOS, Windows.
- You also want client side encryption.
Questions people ask
- Is Scality RING or Storj better?
- Neither clearly leads. Scality RING starts at On request and Storj at Free, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
- Which is cheaper, Scality RING or Storj?
- Storj has a free tier; the other does not. Paid plans start at On request for Scality RING and Free for Storj.
- Does Scality RING or Storj run on more platforms?
- Scality RING runs on Linux. Storj runs on Web, API, Linux, macOS, Windows.
- Can I use Storj for free?
- Yes. Storj has a free tier, so you can try it without paying. Scality RING starts at On request.
- What is Scality RING best used for?
- Scality RING is most often used for a broadcaster archiving decades of video where hyperscaler storage and egress costs would be prohibitive, a hospital group holding medical imaging on premises for data residency and retention reasons, an enterprise building an immutable on premises backup target for veeam or commvault with object lock, a service provider offering s3-compatible storage to its own customers on hardware it controls. Of those, a broadcaster archiving decades of video where hyperscaler storage and egress costs would be prohibitive and a hospital group holding medical imaging on premises for data residency and retention reasons are not what Storj is typically brought in for.
- What can Scality RING do that Storj cannot?
- Scality RING covers S3-compatible object storage, File and object access, Erasure coding, Object lock. Storj covers Erasure coded distribution, Client side encryption, S3-compatible gateway, Native uplink access.
Answered from the vendors’ own pages
Scality RING: Do we buy hardware from Scality?
No. RING is software; you buy commodity servers and drives yourself, which is the point for buyers who want to rebid hardware at each refresh.
Storj: Why is my bill higher than four dollars per terabyte?
Almost always the per segment fee. Objects are split into segments and small files each consume one, so a few million tiny objects generate a segment charge that dwarfs the storage line.
Scality RING: Is it S3-compatible enough for backup software?
Yes, it is a common object lock target for Veeam, Commvault and Rubrik. Verify the specific S3 features your backup product needs during a proof of concept.
Storj: Can node operators read my data?
No. Files are encrypted client side and each operator holds only an erasure coded fragment, which is not a readable portion of the file.
Scality RING: What is ARTESCA?
A lighter object store from the same company, aimed at smaller footprints and backup targets rather than multi-petabyte archives.
Storj: Is there a minimum retention period?
No. You are billed for what you store while you store it, unlike several competitors that bill a ninety day minimum whatever you delete.
Storj: Is it fast enough to serve a website from?
For large files with parallel reads, yes. For many small objects where time to first byte matters, put a CDN in front of it or use something centralised.
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