Cloud vs Tape Storage Calculator

Simple genome archive calculator. Move the sliders to compare recurring cloud storage against owning an automated LTO tape library. Your inputs are saved in this browser for the next refresh.

Starting genomes

GB per genome Add genomes per year

Graph time horizon, years Auto-scale time graph to show break-even Cloud deep storage rate / TB / month

Genomes read / restored per month Cloud bulk restore cost / TB read

Tape library / drive starting cost Tape cartridge cost Monthly colocation / support cost Monthly VPS / bare metal rental

TB per tape Slots in robot

Defaults use cloud deep storage at $1/TB/month and bulk restore at $2.50/TB read, while tape reads are assumed free. Tape example: $11,000 library, $72 tapes, $50/month colocation/support, $100/month VPS/bare metal, 12 TB native per tape, 24 slots.

Data size

Cloud total

Tape total

Break-even

Cost by storage amount

Cloud cost over selected years Tape ownership cost Break-even point

Cost over time for selected storage

Cloud cumulative bill Tape upfront ownership cost Time break-even

Current calculation

Option	Starting cost required	Media / storage cost	Total cost	Effective cost / TB	Effective cost / genome	Capacity / genomes

Tape total includes the required machine cost as an obvious starting-cost column plus enough whole tapes for the selected data size. Cloud total is recurring storage only over the selected number of years.

Year-by-year spend

Year	Genomes	Storage	Cloud total spend	Cloud extra vs last year	Cloud $/TB	Cloud $/genome	Tape total spend	Tape extra vs last year	Tape $/TB	Tape $/genome

“Extra vs last year” is the additional spend during that year. $/TB and $/genome are effective total spend divided by storage/genomes at the end of that year.

Media-only LTO reference

LTO generation	Native capacity / tape	Typical tape price	Media cost / TB	Genomes / tape	Media cost / genome