Storj
Decentralized S3-compatible object storage built on a network of 30,000+ independent storage nodes worldwide. Files are encrypted client-side, erasure-coded into 80 pieces, and distributed such that any 29 pieces can reconstruct the original — yielding claimed **11 nines (99.999999999%) durability** without any single trusted entity (including Storj itself) having access to the plaintext. Drop-in S3 API compatibility lets teams keep their existing tooling.
Definition
Decentralized S3-compatible object storage built on a network of 30,000+ independent storage nodes worldwide. Files are encrypted client-side, erasure-coded into 80 pieces, and distributed such that any 29 pieces can reconstruct the original — yielding claimed **11 nines (99.999999999%) durability** without any single trusted entity (including Storj itself) having access to the plaintext. Drop-in S3 API compatibility lets teams keep their existing tooling.
Centralized hyperscaler object storage is expensive per-GB and per-egress, locks customer data inside one provider's perimeter, and concentrates carbon impact in a small number of mega-datacenters. Storj's bet is that a distributed-storage market — using already-existing spare capacity across the world — can undercut centralized pricing dramatically while offering better data-sovereignty and privacy properties as a side effect. The 2026 framing has solidified: Storj is the cheapest credible S3-compatible at $4/TB/month, and the architecture is operationally mature (running in production since 2018).
Cost-optimized backup and archive storage, cold-tier object storage for compliance retention, geographically-distributed CDN origins where every-region-billed AWS S3 is prohibitive, AI training-dataset distribution across multiple regions, and privacy-sensitive applications where mandatory client-side encryption matters (legal, healthcare, journalism).
Recent developments
- $4/TB/month pricing — cheapest credible S3-compat. Standard storage at $0.004/GB ($4/TB/month) with a $5 monthly minimum. Regional, Archive, and Global tiers each include 1× free egress per month equal to stored data volume. Per Storj pricing.
- 30,000+ node network, 11-9s durability. Architecture splits files into 80 erasure-coded pieces; any 29 pieces reconstruct the original. No single entity (including Storj) can access plaintext due to mandatory client-side encryption. Per Storj S3-compatible page.
- 80% cloud-cost reduction, 83% carbon reduction claimed. Per the official platform, leveraging distributed resources lowers cloud costs by up to 80% and slashes carbon emissions by up to 83% vs. centralized hyperscaler equivalents. Per storj.io.
- Cheapest provider in the 2026 S3-compatible comparison. TechPlained's 2026 ranking puts Storj as the cheapest credible option for S3-compatible storage. Per TechPlained 2026 comparison.
- Included in the Mixpeek 21-provider 2026 comparison. Across 21 tested S3-compatible providers, Storj remains positioned as the dominant decentralized option. Per Mixpeek 2026 list.