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Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs Microsoft Azure File Storage comparison

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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
8th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
11
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
Microsoft Azure File Storage
Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services
7th
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.6
Number of Reviews
53
Ranking in other categories
No ranking in other categories
 

Mindshare comparison

As of September 2026, in the Public Cloud Storage Services category, the mindshare of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is 7.4%, down from 8.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure File Storage is 6.3%, down from 9.9% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Public Cloud Storage Services Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Azure File Storage6.3%
Google Cloud Storage Nearline7.4%
Other86.3%
Public Cloud Storage Services
 

Featured Reviews

Seamless integration with cloud services improves workflows but documentation needs enhancement
One area that needs improvement is the documentation, which I find to be disorganized and not user-friendly. The lack of comprehensive walkthrough guides for specific use cases makes it difficult to follow. To enhance the experience, more detailed examples, guides, and tutorials from start to finish would be beneficial. Additionally, the cost compared to other providers like Amazon could be regarded as a downside.
Karthik-A - PeerSpot reviewer
Senior Manager at a tech vendor with 10,001+ employees
Has simplified customer data management and improved file transfer workflows
We are using AWS as well, and the main difference is that Microsoft Azure File Storage is more user-friendly for configuration-related and admin-related activities. We do not have to perform many complex activities, making it simpler compared to AWS. Security-wise, there are some concerns because it is in the cloud. The customers need to double-check, and they are not giving complete approval when it comes to security. I would rate Microsoft Azure File Storage's security compliance features seven or eight out of ten. It is secure, but since it is in the cloud, we have to convince customers when providing solutions. Many questions were raised while providing the architecture and solution for this file transfer management system. We convinced them because we have the feature and showed a demo, but it is still a prototype. We have to get approval before starting the work. The data redundancy options in Microsoft Azure File Storage are good. I am facing some challenges in convincing customers, and additional information would be helpful to address these challenges. Microsoft Azure File Storage saves time compared to AWS. We tried the prototype in AWS as well, but Azure is easier. Regarding cost, it is slightly less compared to AWS. The functionality of Microsoft Azure File Storage does not pose any issues, though basic users find it complex and require training. Regarding stability, I would rate Microsoft Azure File Storage 8.5 to 9. Scalability in Microsoft Azure File Storage is impressive. We recently handled a huge transaction during an iPhone launch without any problems.

Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"We didn't face any downtime last year using the solution."
"The best part of Nearline storage is the ability to take backups at optimal costs and its availability across multiple regions."
"It provides the necessary support and flexibility to manage data storage effectively, especially during times of variable data flow."
"There are no issues with the integration of Google Cloud Storage Nearline with other Google services."
"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."
"Nearline is highly stable."
"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 feature of Microsoft Azure File Storage is the cloud file storage capability."
"This solution supports all file formats."
"It is very easy to use SSTP and some traditional code to move the data into a database because we can easily use the permissions and we don't have any integration or conversion issues."
"The solution is very secure, it's very fast and connects quickly between my files and the cloud."
"It helps us with geo-redundancy."
"Implementing Microsoft Azure has meant that we are using the same solution as our customers who use Azure Public Cloud, which allows us to integrate our application as well as provide the solution to them while visually representing data and giving clear metrics using their data."
"Very user-friendly and intuitive."
"The profile management option is another valuable feature that allows us to manage the profiles and secure them."
 

Cons

"The interface for managing file storage in the buckets could be improved."
"The suggestion for improvement primarily revolves around cost efficiency."
"Documentation is an area for improvement in Google Cloud Storage Nearline."
"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 pricing could be improved. It's completely non-competitive at this time."
"The pricing is quite high."
"They need a better, more visual, user interface for folders and files."
"Some chunking logics need to be better to address issues with processing bigger files. It should allow better methods for handling large files."
"It's not very intuitive."
"The support could improve."
"I have used the file storage explorer in multiple systems, and it seems a bit cumbersome and not very efficient, particularly with authentication. It can be tricky to set it up."
"Maybe Microsoft can make it more economical because it is a costly affair."
"The pricing could be better."
"I would like to see more updates around File Storage."
"The initial setup is complex. Unless you have done it a few times it, it is going to be hard."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"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."
"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."
"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with ten being the most expensive. It's not cheap."
"One needs to pay according to the storage they plan to use in the solution. The payments are to be made yearly. It is usually monthly, but we opted for yearly subscriptions in our company."
"We have Microsoft Azure File Storage's enterprise license."
"The pricing is usually dependent on your storage requirements. Overall, I believe Microsoft Azure File Storage's price is reasonable."
"The price of the solution is reasonable. The pricing model is based on usage."
"We pay for both yearly and monthly licenses. The yearly one is cheaper than the monthly one."
"The solution is a bit pricey compared to AWS and Google."
"I think the pricing of the product can be reduced."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Manufacturing Company
10%
Computer Software Company
10%
Financial Services Firm
10%
University
9%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Comms Service Provider
8%
Computer Software Company
8%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business6
Midsize Enterprise1
Large Enterprise2
By reviewers
Company SizeCount
Small Business17
Midsize Enterprise9
Large Enterprise26
 

Questions from the Community

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
My experience with the licensing and cost of Google Cloud Storage Nearline has been positive.
What needs improvement with Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
Documentation is an area for improvement in Google Cloud Storage Nearline. Documentation might cause some issues during deployment in future updates of Google Cloud Storage Nearline. Other than tha...
What is your primary use case for Google Cloud Storage Nearline?
I have integrated Google Cloud Storage Nearline with BigQuery for analytics.
Which file storage system is better - Amazon EFS (elastic file storage) or Azure File Storage?
Amazon EFS is easy to set up: you can use the AWS management console, API, or command-line. Amazon EFS can grow to petabytes and deliver consistent low latencies and high levels of throughput. This...
What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure File Storage?
The cost of Microsoft Azure File Storage depends on the storage account, whether it is premium or standard; there is a cost difference, with the cost being higher for premium and lower for standard...
What needs improvement with Microsoft Azure File Storage?
In my opinion, Microsoft can improve Microsoft Azure File Storage by closing the open questions that a lot of customers have raised. There were previously some issues that I cannot recall exactly. ...
 

Also Known As

No data available
MS Azure File Storage
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Information Not Available
Talon, Camden
Find out what your peers are saying about Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage and other solutions. Updated: September 2026.
913,924 professionals have used our research since 2012.