The Canadian S3 alternative.
Compare Canadian and global S3 storage on monthly cost, data location, and the tools you can use to move your files.
We build Storm Buckets. This comparison includes competing providers, their published prices, and a practical migration path. Our principles are published in Why We Built This.
Why look for a Canadian S3 alternative at all
A proprietary API or an exit fee turns "we might leave" into "we can't." S3 compatibility on an open engine means the door you came in through stays open behind you.
Migration pathUSD-billed storage moves with the exchange rate, and metered egress turns a quiet month into a surprise invoice. Pricing in CAD, in fixed blocks, is a number you can forecast.
Compare pricingA Canadian region is residency. Sovereignty is whose law reaches your data, and a US company answers to the CLOUD Act in every region it runs, as Microsoft admitted under oath. A Canadian company storing in Canada keeps your data, and your audit trail, under Canadian law.
Residency is not sovereigntyThe comparison
Storage per TB per month, in CAD. USD prices converted at 1.4057, the Bank of Canada rate for 2026-10-21. Prices confirmed 2026-10-21 on each provider's own pricing page.
| Provider | Company Which country's law decides who can reach your data. A US company answers to the CLOUD Act for data it controls in every region it runs, Canadian ones included. | Canadian region Residency: where the bytes sit. It settles latency, while the company column settles whose law reaches them. | Storage /TB/mo | Egress What it costs to read your own data back out. Storm's 3x allowance: a 1 TB account reads out up to 3 TB a month, then reads slow down and the bill does not move. A metered rate is a bill that moves with every byte. | Open engine The software storing your data is public code you can read and run yourself. Storm ships Garage for storage and Pulse for node management, with fixes merged upstream. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storm Buckets | Canada | Canada only (Montreal) | $9 CAD | 3x capacity, then throttle | ✓ Garage + Pulse |
| The Object Store | Canada | Canada only | $9.00 CAD (per TiB) 1 TiB minimum, then billed per GiB |
3x stored, then $0.00878/GiB | ✗ |
| eazyBackup (e3) | Canada | Canada only (Ottawa) | $9.00 CAD (per TiB) 1 TiB minimum, then billed per GiB |
3x stored, then $0.01/GiB | ✗ |
| FullHost | Canada | Canada only | $30.00 CAD ($0.03/GB) | $0.02/GB | ✗ |
| Backblaze B2 | USA | Toronto | ~$9.77 ($6.95 USD) | 3x stored, then $0.01/GB | ✗ |
| Wasabi | USA | Toronto | ~$11.23 ($7.99 USD, per TiB) | 1x stored, fair use | ✗ |
| Cloudflare R2 | USA | None | ~$21.09 ($15 USD) | Zero | ✗ |
| AWS S3 Standard | USA | Montreal, Calgary | ~$35.14 ($25 USD, Montreal region) | $0.09/GB after 100 GB | ✗ |
Compare the whole bill: storage, data transfer, minimum commitments, and currency. Storm prices capacity in CAD, with transfer allowances that throttle reads rather than add an overage charge. Backblaze B2 and Cloudflare R2 in CAD are on the B2 and R2 pricing page.
Storm combines Garage's open-source storage engine with Pulse, our open-source operations agent. You can inspect both components and use standard S3 tools to move your files. We contribute fixes upstream. Coming from MinIO? MinIO community edition alternatives compares Garage with SeaweedFS, RustFS and SILO.
What to check before you choose
- Location and ownership. Check who operates the service and where files, backups, and logs live.
- The whole bill. Include currency, minimum capacity, request charges, and data transfer.
- Compatible tools. Check the S3 operations your applications need and how to copy data out.
- Durability. Compare replication models. Storm Standard uses single-zone, RAIDZ3-backed storage.
- Open source. Look for published code you can inspect and run, plus an accessible audit log.
How to migrate from AWS S3, Backblaze B2, Wasabi or Cloudflare R2
Migration is rclone, dry-run first, verified after. The same tool moves data in and out, which is the whole point of staying S3-compatible.
$ rclone config
$ rclone copy source:bucket storm:bucket --dry-run
$ rclone copy source:bucket storm:bucket --progress
$ rclone check source:bucket storm:bucket
Cut over once rclone check is clean. If you
ever want to leave, the same four commands run in the other direction. No
export ticket, no exit fee.
Put Canadian storage to work.
Start with a 1 TB block on montreal-1 and add capacity as you grow. Flat CAD pricing, with uploads and API requests included.
Hosted and Operated in Canada. Pay by Interac e-Transfer.
We review every request for storage and resources by hand. We maintain strict safety standards. See our Acceptable Use Policy.
1 TB of capacity. Add more in 1 TB blocks.
- ✓ Stack blocks as you grow
- ✓ Buckets and keys are not billed units
- ✓ Custom domains + static hosting
- ✓ Audit logs
Frequently asked
Is Storm Buckets actually S3-compatible?
Yes. Storage runs on Garage, an open-source S3-compatible engine. Standard tools and SDKs work against it. Garage publishes its S3 compatibility matrix so you can confirm coverage before you commit.
Where is my data stored?
On Canadian hardware, operated by Storm in Canada. Your objects and your audit log stay under Canadian jurisdiction.
How much does it cost?
One fixed monthly block, priced in CAD: a 1 TB Production block at $9 CAD, stacked as you grow. Storage is the only billed unit: uploads, API operations, and creating buckets and keys are never metered.
What about egress fees?
Your monthly egress allowance is 3x your storage capacity, counted per endpoint. Cross it and reads are throttled, never billed. There is no surprise transfer invoice.
Is there a free tier?
No. The smallest purchase is one 1 TB block at $9 CAD per month. Uploads and API requests are included.
Does Storm support S3 Object Lock?
No. Garage implements neither object lock nor versioning. Keep immutable history in your backup software.
Can I migrate away later?
Yes. Because the API is S3-compatible, the same rclone command that moves data in moves it out. No proprietary format, no exit fee.