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Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs Microsoft Azure Block Storage comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 1, 2024

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Google Cloud Storage Nearline
Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services
9th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
7.3
Number of Reviews
10
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Azure Block Storage
Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services
10th
Average Rating
8.0
Reviews Sentiment
5.9
Number of Reviews
67
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of March 2026, in the Public Cloud Storage Services category, the mindshare of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is 6.5%, down from 10.1% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure Block Storage is 2.2%, up from 0.8% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Public Cloud Storage Services Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Google Cloud Storage Nearline6.5%
Microsoft Azure Block Storage2.2%
Other91.3%
Public Cloud Storage Services
 

Featured Reviews

Optimized cost solutions boost long-term data retention across multiple regions
The best part of Nearline storage is the ability to take backups at optimal costs and its availability across multiple regions. It has 99.99% availability, which is extremely good. It provides an ideal storage solution for data that needs to be kept for thirty days or longer. Each storage class, such as Standard for daily data, Nearline, Coldline, and Archive, serves a specific purpose. Coldline is for ninety days, and Archive is for three hundred and sixty-five days.
Ajai Jayakumar - PeerSpot reviewer
Solution Architect at a computer software company with 501-1,000 employees
Has supported secure file sharing and data automation with minimal setup effort
The encryption feature in Microsoft Azure Block Storage is very good, and the security is excellent. It is easy to map the storage to the virtual servers and user desktops, which is also very beneficial. I can perform automations on the data, such as moving hot data and cold data, and I can select storage based on performance. The security provided by Microsoft around Microsoft Azure Block Storage is a very good function. The replication feature in Microsoft Azure Block Storage is a very good function. The analytic capabilities of Microsoft Azure Block Storage can help optimize resources. I usually work with a third-party tool; our data analytics team uses some custom-made tools for analytics data and dashboards, so we do not use the Microsoft dashboard; we are using a third-party dashboard. It is very easy to manage Microsoft Azure Block Storage. If you have good knowledge of it, it is very easy to manage. Microsoft Azure Block Storage service is a very good, 100% reliable service. It is highly scalable, and performance-wise and reliability-wise, it does not go down. It provides 99.9% uptime without downtime, so it is a very good feature. The backup and restoration efficiency of Microsoft Azure Block Storage is good.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"The API integration with the storage packet is the solution's most valuable feature."
"The data structure and the types of data that are supported are very good."
"I find the flexibility in storing documents or data and the ease of retrieval valuable with this solution."
"The most valuable feature of Nearline is the access. It's helpful to move data that is generated once a month, such as salary information, to Nearline."
"The most valuable aspect of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is its integration with the wider Google Cloud ecosystem."
"The capacity and space on offer are excellent."
"It can isolate files and stop them from corrupting other files."
"Nearline is highly stable."
"The most valuable feature of Microsoft Azure Block Storage is the backing up of files."
"The tool is most valuable for scenarios involving logs and monitoring. For example, logs are generated when using services like Front Door."
"It can scale."
"Azure Block Storage lets you customize code you can use on that endpoint. If you want to write a logic for something, Azure Function can be used to deploy that application."
"I can store data, use the storage account as a queue, and the pricing is also quite economical."
"You can easily access your data whenever you need it."
"I like the product’s versioning and file share features. The file share feature is most useful when we are connecting on-premises services. Azure file share helps to migrate small data amounts from on-premises to the cloud."
"This is a very stable solution."
 

Cons

"From a storage standpoint, it would be beneficial if the retrieval cost could be optimized, as it is comparatively higher than storage costs in Nearline."
"The interface for managing file storage in the buckets could be improved."
"The suggestion for improvement primarily revolves around cost efficiency."
"Nearline security could be better. The solution could integrate better with SEIM tools."
"They should provide more options or flexibility in terms of pricing."
"The solution needs to offer better System Information and Event Management (SEIM)."
"They need a better, more visual, user interface for folders and files."
"One area that needs improvement is the documentation, which I find to be disorganized and not user-friendly."
"It is also costly and not cheap compared to Internet-based networks."
"I want to see my region added to the data center. I'm in Africa, and if a data center is specifically added under Central Africa, that will reduce data latency when accessing data."
"The tool could be cheaper."
"I have used Amazon's solutions which are better than Microsoft's. However, since I have predominately Microsoft solutions it is a better choice for me to use another Microsoft solution."
"There are capacity limitations that could be expanded."
"Some alternatives are cheaper and available for long trial periods before the payment."
"Technical support is not really excellent. It's not easy to speak with the right level of engineer directly."
"Microsoft Azure Block Storage could provide a new authentication type such as basic authentication, not only Active Directory authentication."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"Google Cloud Storage Nearline is very inexpensive. It costs us less than $50 a month to store our files. We use approximately 10 terabytes. Overall, I would rate the product a five out of five for affordability."
"Right now, for the number of servers and the storage that I have, I would say I'm charged between $125 and $150 per month."
"Microsoft Azure Block Storage is expensive. Its licensing costs are monthly."
"The storage part costs us $223. That's on a monthly basis for 20TB of data storage."
"I use Microsoft Azure Block Storage's free version."
"Microsoft Azure Block Storage is an expensive solution and I pay monthly."
"The product is costlier than Amazon S3."
"Azure Block Storage is higher priced than its competitors."
"On a scale from one to ten, where one is cheap, and ten is expensive, I rate the solution's pricing a six or seven out of ten."
"I rate the solution's pricing a seven out of ten."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
15%
University
11%
Comms Service Provider
9%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Marketing Services Firm
19%
Manufacturing Company
11%
Performing Arts
9%
Non Tech Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business5
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business26
Midsize Enterprise14
Large Enterprise24
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
The storage and access cost of Nearline are considered optimal compared to other cloud storage solutions, although I lack a clear view of other cloud storage costs.
What needs improvement with Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
From a storage standpoint, it would be beneficial if the retrieval cost could be optimized, as it is comparatively higher than storage costs in Nearline.
What is your primary use case for Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
I mostly use Google Cloud Storage Nearline ( /products/google-cloud-storage-nearline-reviews ) for backing up data that is not needed for daily activities. It is ideal for files that need to be sto...
What do you like most about Microsoft Azure Block Storage?
We use the solution to develop SaaS platforms on Azure. We utilize various Microsoft components like block storage and databases for this purpose.
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure Block Storage?
Our experience with pricing has been positive. The budget for Microsoft Azure services has been within expectations for the last couple of months. The cost for Azure Data Factory ( /products/azure-...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure Block Storage?
For improvement in Microsoft Azure Block Storage, they can provide tiered level storages, maybe low-cost storages for storing archive data, but it is already there. I do not think there is much to ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS Azure Block Storage
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Mazda, BlinkBox, Rakuten Showtime, Xbox One, Serko, ChronoDrive
Find out what your peers are saying about Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure Block Storage and other solutions. Updated: March 2026.
884,933 professionals have used our research since 2012.