Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs Microsoft Azure File Storage comparison

Google and Microsoft are both solutions in the Public Cloud Storage Services category. Google is ranked #8 with an average rating of 7.6, while Microsoft is ranked #4 with an average rating of 8.2. Google holds a 10.3% mindshare in PCSS, compared to Microsoft’s 10.0% mindshare. Additionally, 100% of Google users are willing to recommend the solution, compared to 97% of Microsoft users who would recommend it.

Google Cloud Storage Nearline

Read 10 Google Cloud Storage Nearline reviews

1,675 Views
1,417 Comparison Views

100% willing to recommend

Microsoft Azure File Storage

Read 48 Microsoft Azure File Storage reviews

2,796 Views
1,579 Comparison Views

97% willing to recommend

Google Cloud Storage Nearline

Microsoft Azure File Storage

Comparison Buyer's Guide

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Executive SummaryUpdated on Oct 1, 2024

Google Cloud Storage Nearline and Microsoft Azure File Storage both offer cloud storage solutions with distinct advantages. Google Cloud Storage Nearline seems to have the upper hand in cost-effectiveness for less frequently accessed data, while Microsoft Azure File Storage excels in versatility and integration with Windows environments.

Features: Google Cloud Storage Nearline provides cost-effective storage for infrequently accessed data, seamless integration with Google Cloud services, and robust data reliability. Microsoft Azure File Storage offers strong file sharing capabilities, SMB access, and easy integration with Windows environments.

Room for Improvement: Google Cloud Storage Nearline could improve its retrieval times, offer more comprehensive documentation, and enhance customer support. Microsoft Azure File Storage could better support larger-scale deployments, reduce latency periods, and simplify deployment in non-Windows environments.

Ease of Deployment and Customer Service: Google Cloud Storage Nearline offers straightforward deployment processes but needs better customer service support. Microsoft Azure File Storage provides smooth deployment within Windows-based systems and reliable customer service, although it faces complexities in non-Windows environments.

Pricing and ROI: Google Cloud Storage Nearline has a highly competitive pricing model, making it ideal for cold data storage. Microsoft Azure File Storage, priced higher, delivers better ROI through its array of features and integration capabilities, justifying the cost for organizations needing these functionalities.

To learn more, read our detailed Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage Report (Updated: June 2025).

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage

June 2025

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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

7.3

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Microsoft Azure File Storage

Ranking in Public Cloud Storage Services

4th

Average Rating

8.2

Reviews Sentiment

7.4

Number of Reviews

Ranking in other categories

No ranking in other categories

Mindshare comparison

As of June 2025, in the Public Cloud Storage Services category, the mindshare of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is 10.3%, up from 5.7% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure File Storage is 10.0%, down from 13.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.

Public Cloud Storage Services

Featured Reviews

AmitKumar36

Solution Architect at HCL Technologies

Flexible, seamless, and scalable document storage with AI and analytics integration, providing reliable support

The solution is very flexible in terms of scalability. It is an online service, so we can scale it anytime with some pre-planning. I rate the scalability a nine out of ten. As for the users using this solution in our organization, that varies according to what time of the day and what day it is, but it goes around 2,000 to 3,000 users. The maximum is about 3,000. On average, it stays somewhere between 2,000 and 1,800.

Read full review

PrashanthR

Lead Software Engineer at a financial services firm with 10,001+ employees

Seamlessly streamlines document processing with advanced file storage and OCR integration

We need to store data over there. We process documents through Kofax Time is a major benefit, as well as ease of processing. With configuration, it happens quite easily, and we can finish tasks early. File storage is complemented by OCR with Azure Cognitive Service. This enhances the processing…

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Quotes from Members

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

Pros

"The capacity and space on offer are excellent."

"It can isolate files and stop them from corrupting other files."

"Google is always introducing new features and tends to have a new release every month."

"The most valuable aspect of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is its integration with the wider Google Cloud ecosystem."

"Nearline is highly stable."

"It provides the necessary support and flexibility to manage data storage effectively, especially during times of variable data flow."

"The data structure and the types of data that are supported are very good."

"The best part of Nearline storage is the ability to take backups at optimal costs and its availability across multiple regions."

More Google Cloud Storage Nearline pros

"The functionality is easy."

"It's a stable product."

"Its simplicity of use is most valuable. It's easy to start working with it and understand it. It's easier to transfer files between different users. I'm able to move files from my device to my manager's device without any issues or without facing any problems in between."

"The best part is the accessibility to all the files."

"Azure File Storage gives us easy access to cloud solutions at the storage level."

"The initial setup is fairly easy."

"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."

"It is a scalable product since it is a cloud solution. Scalability-wise, I rate the solution a ten out of ten."

More Microsoft Azure File Storage pros

Cons

"The UI could be a little bit more effective."

"One area that needs improvement is the documentation, which I find to be disorganized and not user-friendly."

"The interface for managing file storage in the buckets could be improved."

"The solution needs to offer better System Information and Event Management (SEIM). I'd like to discover how we could implement something like that within Google's cloud."

"The pricing is quite high."

"The suggestion for improvement primarily revolves around cost efficiency."

"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."

More Google Cloud Storage Nearline cons

"Microsoft Azure File Storage should improve its pricing."

"It's a bit complex to set up. Other than that, there is nothing to improve."

"The solution is not user-friendly."

"Licensing costs are expensive."

"There is a limitation on the storage capacity, like four terabytes. It could be improved to accommodate more data."

"If the file is large, there may be a delay in download time."

"It would be helpful if we could remove data that we don't frequently access to reduce the cost of the storage."

"The pricing could be improved. They need to make the costs more transparent so users know what they will be charged and why ahead of time."

More Microsoft Azure File Storage cons

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."

"For one terabyte of data, we are spending about 150 Euro every month."

"Microsoft Azure File Storage is expensive."

"The pricing is usually dependent on your storage requirements. Overall, I believe Microsoft Azure File Storage's price is reasonable."

"The solution is a bit pricey compared to AWS and Google."

"We pay for both yearly and monthly licenses. The yearly one is cheaper than the monthly one."

"I would rate the pricing a seven out of ten, with ten being the most expensive. It's not cheap."

"The price is comparable to other competitive solutions."

"The licensing cost for Microsoft Azure File Storage comes with an agreement from Microsoft."

More Microsoft Azure File Storage pricing and cost advice

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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews

Computer Software Company

18%

Financial Services Firm

Comms Service Provider

Manufacturing Company

Computer Software Company

15%

Manufacturing Company

10%

Financial Services Firm

10%

Government

Company Size

By reviewers

Large Enterprise

Midsize Enterprise

Small Business

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Google Cloud Storage Nearline?

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.

See all answers

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.

See all answers

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.

See all answers

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...

See all answers

What do you like most about Microsoft Azure File Storage?

The product is a reliable cloud solution.

See all answers

What is your experience regarding pricing and costs for Microsoft Azure File Storage?

The pricing for Microsoft Azure File Storage is five out of ten, not so expensive and not so low.

See all answers

Comparisons

Amazon S3 Glacier vs Google Cloud Storage Nearline

Compared 97% of the time

Amazon S3 vs Google Cloud Storage Nearline

Compared 3% of the time

More Google Cloud Storage Nearline Competitors

Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) vs Microsoft Azure File Storage

Compared 46% of the time

Azure NetApp Files vs Microsoft Azure File Storage

Compared 21% of the time

Wasabi vs Microsoft Azure File Storage

Compared 16% of the time

Amazon S3 vs Microsoft Azure File Storage

Compared 7% of the time

Amazon S3 Glacier vs Microsoft Azure File Storage

Compared 7% of the time

More Microsoft Azure File Storage Competitors

Product Reports

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud Storage Nearline

June 2025

Download Google Cloud Storage Nearline product report

Buyer's Guide

Microsoft Azure File Storage

May 2025

Download Microsoft Azure File Storage product report

Also Known As

No data available

MS Azure File Storage

Overview

A low-cost, highly-durable and highly available storage service for infrequently accessed data, data archiving, online backup and disaster recovery. Data is available instantly, not within hours or days. With sub-second average response times and 1 cent per GB/month pricing, Cloud Storage Nearline gives you terrific performance at a low cost.

Google

Fully managed file shares that use the standard SMB 3.0 protocol

Key scenarios:

Share data across on-premises and cloud servers
Migrate file share-based applications to the cloud with no code changes
Integrate modern applications with File storage
Simplify hosting for high availability workload data

Microsoft

Sample Customers

Information Not Available

Talon, Camden

Buyer's Guide

Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage

June 2025

Free Report: Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs. Microsoft Azure File Storage

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