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Google Cloud Storage Nearline vs Microsoft Azure File 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
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
5th
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 June 2026, in the Public Cloud Storage Services category, the mindshare of Google Cloud Storage Nearline is 6.1%, down from 10.2% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Microsoft Azure File Storage is 7.0%, down from 10.0% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Public Cloud Storage Services Mindshare Distribution
ProductMindshare (%)
Microsoft Azure File Storage7.0%
Google Cloud Storage Nearline6.1%
Other86.9%
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

"Nearline is highly stable."
"The data structure and the types of data that are supported are very good."
"The API integration with the storage packet is the solution's most valuable feature."
"There are no issues with the integration of Google Cloud Storage Nearline with other Google services."
"I find the flexibility in storing documents or data and the ease of retrieval valuable with this solution."
"We didn't face any downtime last year using the solution."
"Google is always introducing new features and tends to have a new release every month."
"The best part of Nearline storage is the ability to take backups at optimal costs and its availability across multiple regions."
"It was quick to synchronize back from Azure to the on-premise server."
"It's not a big challenge; it's a one-step process, where if we run the script, the storage happens automatically to store all the log files and everything."
"My client had zero data loss while using the solution for backups and file security."
"I like the diverse facilities offered by the solution."
"The most significant aspect of Microsoft Azure File Storage is its life cycle functionality, which enables us to transfer files to various storage options, such as hot storage, full storage, and archive. This feature is crucial since we can apply a life cycle method to files that have not been in use for an extended period, and then move them to a cheaper cold storage option to save costs. Since the newest files are stored in the hot storage, it met our specific requirements. Consequently, older files can be transferred to archive and cold storage."
"The solution is easy to use and works well."
"Overall, I think Microsoft Azure File Storage is workable, but you really need to make a design to make it redundant."
"We have not explored the desktop performance analysis of the file storage, but the user interface, API, and the response that we receive over the file storage are very good. We have a lot of customers that connect to the client-side, click the images, and upload them. The beauty of the solution is that we can mount the file storage into a critical server as well as an external drive. The speed that we receive with the images is pretty good."
 

Cons

"The pricing is quite high."
"One area that needs improvement is the documentation, which I find to be disorganized and not user-friendly."
"The suggestion for improvement primarily revolves around cost efficiency."
"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 UI could be a little bit more effective."
"The pricing could be improved. It's completely non-competitive at this time."
"The interface for managing file storage in the buckets could be improved."
"They need a better, more visual, user interface for folders and files."
"I'd like to see integration with other platforms as part of the solution."
"Sometimes, we face latency issues in standard storage, which explains my rating."
"The interface is easy to work on, but sometimes it takes very long to refresh the information."
"The support could improve."
"The solution is not user-friendly."
"One thing that Azure File Storage could help us with is some kind of impact assessment. When we talk to some of our larger customers who have between 500 and 1,000 applications, we normally do an assessment of all these applications and then tell them which ones are ready to be lifted and shifted, and which ones need to re-architected. It would really help if Azure File Storage could come up with a better way to give estimations of the total investment required, including all costs incurred during the migration."
"In our use cases, we see the weakness in mobile internet connectivity."
"They can improve the ability to assign permissions to different groups or users."
 

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 give the pricing of the solution a seven out of ten."
"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."
"For one terabyte of data, we are spending about 150 Euro every month."
"One of the major benefits for AWS is that they have a very large customer representative base where clients can be picked from, they offer large discounts and credit. We were not able to receive the same kind of offers from Microsoft Azure File Storage. We tried to approach Azure while hiring for our disaster recovery discussion, but we didn't receive anything from Azure."
"We have Microsoft Azure File Storage's enterprise license."
"Microsoft Azure File Storage is expensive."
"I think the pricing of the product can be reduced."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Computer Software Company
12%
Manufacturing Company
9%
Financial Services Firm
9%
University
9%
Financial Services Firm
11%
Computer Software Company
10%
Manufacturing Company
10%
Marketing Services Firm
6%
 

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 Enterprise8
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: June 2026.
900,747 professionals have used our research since 2012.