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Cloud Storage Comparison: Cloudflare R2 vs Backblaze B2

Last Updated: July 2025

Executive Summary

For infrastructure backup storing 500GB-1TB with daily syncs and occasional full restores, Cloudflare R2 is the recommended choice due to: - Zero egress fees (critical for restore operations) - Existing Cloudflare integration (DNS/SSL already in use) - Superior global performance through CDN integration - Better long-term cost predictability

Detailed Comparison Table

Feature Cloudflare R2 Backblaze B2 Winner
Storage Cost $0.015/GB/month ($15/TB) $0.006/GB/month ($6/TB) B2 ✓
Egress Cost $0 (unlimited free) $0 up to 3x storage, then $0.01/GB R2 ✓
Free Tier 10GB storage + 1M Class A + 10M Class B ops/month 10GB storage + 2,500 Class B/C ops/day R2 ✓
S3 Compatibility Full S3 API Full S3 API Tie
Rclone Support Native (provider = Cloudflare) Native (provider = B2) Tie
Data Centers Global (automatic region selection) 6 locations (US West/East, EU, Canada) R2 ✓
Durability 99.999999999% (11 9's) 99.999999999% (11 9's) Tie
Availability SLA 99.9% 99.9% Tie
Min Storage Duration None None Tie
API Operations $4.50/M Class A, $0.36/M Class B Free Class A, $0.0004/1K Class B after 2.5K/day B2 ✓
Performance Global CDN, low latency Regional, standard latency R2 ✓
Integration Native Cloudflare Workers, CDN CDN partnerships (including Cloudflare) R2 ✓

Cost Analysis for Your Use Case

Scenario: 750GB Storage, Daily Backups, Quarterly Full Restore

Cloudflare R2

Storage: 750GB × $0.015 = $11.25/month
Egress (restore 750GB quarterly): $0
Operations (est. 100K/month): $0.40/month
Total Monthly Cost: ~$11.65
Annual Cost: ~$140

Backblaze B2

Storage: 750GB × $0.006 = $4.50/month
Egress (restore 750GB quarterly): $0 (within 3x limit)
Operations (est. 100K/month): ~$2/month
Total Monthly Cost: ~$6.50
Annual Cost: ~$78

Note: While B2 appears 44% cheaper, this assumes restores stay within the 3x monthly storage limit. A disaster recovery scenario requiring multiple full restores could significantly increase B2 costs.

Rclone Configuration

Cloudflare R2

[r2-backup]
type = s3
provider = Cloudflare
access_key_id = <your_access_key_id>
secret_access_key = <your_secret_access_key>
endpoint = https://<account_id>.r2.cloudflarestorage.com
acl = private

Backblaze B2

[b2-backup]
type = b2
account = <applicationKeyId>
key = <applicationKey>
hard_delete = false

Backup Commands

# Daily incremental backup
rclone sync /srv/dockerdata r2-backup:infrastructure-backup/daily --fast-list

# Full backup
rclone sync /srv/dockerdata r2-backup:infrastructure-backup/full --fast-list

# Restore
rclone sync r2-backup:infrastructure-backup/daily /srv/dockerdata/restore --fast-list

Performance Characteristics

Cloudflare R2

  • Upload Speed: Leverages nearest Cloudflare edge (330+ locations)
  • Download Speed: CDN-accelerated globally
  • Latency: ~10-50ms to nearest edge
  • Concurrent Operations: Optimized for high parallelism

Backblaze B2

  • Upload Speed: Direct to regional data center
  • Download Speed: Standard datacenter bandwidth
  • Latency: ~20-100ms depending on location
  • Concurrent Operations: Recommended 10-32 threads

Integration Benefits

Cloudflare R2 Advantages

  1. Unified Billing: Single invoice with existing Cloudflare services
  2. API Integration: Direct integration with Cloudflare Workers for automated workflows
  3. DNS/CDN Synergy: Leverage existing Cloudflare infrastructure
  4. Security: Inherit Cloudflare's DDoS protection and security features
  5. Zero Egress: No bandwidth charges for disaster recovery

Backblaze B2 Advantages

  1. Lower Storage Cost: 60% cheaper storage pricing
  2. Bandwidth Alliance: Free egress through Cloudflare CDN
  3. Simple Pricing: Straightforward cost structure
  4. Established Service: Longer track record in backup space

Recommendation

Choose Cloudflare R2 for your infrastructure backup needs because:

  1. Zero Egress Fees: Critical for disaster recovery scenarios where you might need multiple full restores
  2. Existing Integration: You already use Cloudflare for DNS/SSL, simplifying management
  3. Performance: Global CDN ensures fast restores from anywhere
  4. Future-Proof: As backup size grows, egress savings become more significant
  5. Operational Simplicity: One vendor for multiple services

Consider Backblaze B2 only if: - Storage costs are the primary concern - Restore frequency is guaranteed to be minimal - You're comfortable managing multiple vendors - Regional data residency is acceptable

Implementation Steps

  1. Create R2 Bucket: 

    # Via Cloudflare dashboard or API
curl -X POST https://api.cloudflare.com/client/v4/accounts/{account_id}/r2/buckets \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer {api_token}" \
  -d '{"name": "infrastructure-backup"}'

  2. Configure Rclone: 

    rclone config
# Follow R2 setup steps

  3. Test Backup: 

    rclone copy /srv/dockerdata/test r2-backup:infrastructure-backup/test --dry-run

  4. Setup Automated Backups: 

    # Add to existing backup scripts
cat >> /srv/dockerdata/_scripts/cloud-backup.sh << 'EOF'
#!/bin/bash
rclone sync /srv/dockerdata r2-backup:infrastructure-backup/$(date +%Y%m%d) \
  --exclude-from /srv/dockerdata/.rclone-exclude \
  --fast-list \
  --transfers 20
EOF

  5. Monitor Usage:

  6. Set up Cloudflare notifications for R2 usage
  7. Track storage growth trends
  8. Plan for capacity increases

Conclusion

While Backblaze B2 offers attractive storage pricing, Cloudflare R2's zero egress fees and seamless integration with your existing Cloudflare infrastructure make it the superior choice for infrastructure backups. The slightly higher storage cost is offset by operational benefits and eliminated egress charges during critical restore operations.