Cloud vs NAS Cost Calculator (AU)

This calculator compares the cash you would spend on cloud storage with owning a NAS over 1 to 10 years. The cloud side uses tracked Australian plan prices and moves up a plan as your data grows; the NAS side uses market prices for the NAS and drives, the usable capacity of your RAID layout, the maker's power figures at your electricity rate, and an offsite backup of your data.

A NAS costs more on day one and little each month; a cloud plan costs nothing on day one and the same or more every month. Which is cheaper depends on how much you store, how fast it grows, how long you count and whether you give the NAS an offsite copy, so the calculator works it out for your figures instead of quoting a rule of thumb.

A NAS on its own is not an offsite copy. RAID or SHR covers a failed drive, but a fire, theft or flood at home can take the NAS and its data together. The calculator adds an offsite backup to the NAS side by default so it is compared like for like with a cloud plan; you can turn it off, and the result then says the NAS has no offsite copy.

Cloud storage

Plan

Billing

Amount to count

Data you store now (TB)

Growth

Grows by

A percentage compounds; TB a year adds the same amount each year.

NAS

NAS model

The NAS and drives

Already owned: they count at 0 upfront. A UPS, a drive refresh or a UPS battery you would still buy is counted when you buy it.

NAS price (no drives)

Drives

How many

Price each

RAID layout

Hours a day the drives sleep

0 = the maker's busy figure all day; a NAS that is idle most of the day will usually use less.

Share of the hardware cost to count (%)

Less than 100 if the NAS also does other jobs. The share applies to everything bought for the NAS, including the UPS and planned replacements.

Replace all drives

UPS (one off)

UPS battery each time

Battery every (years)

Blank battery fields = no battery replacement counted.

Offsite backup of the NAS

Your state (electricity rate)

Electricity rate (c/kWh)

Comparison period

Cannot calculate

Cloud over the period

Cannot calculate

NAS over the period

Cannot calculate

Difference

Cannot calculate

NAS break-even

Cannot calculate

End of	Data	Cloud spent	NAS spent	Cheaper so far

Cloud, cash spentNAS, cash spent

NAS costs

Cloud costs

Not in the money

This compares cash only. LAN speed, remote access, privacy, apps you run on the NAS, and the time you spend looking after it are yours to weigh. To choose a NAS that fits your data, try Find My NAS or the NAS Sizing Wizard.

Sample Scenarios

Each link opens the calculator with these inputs, worked out on today's tracked prices and the NSW electricity rate over 5 years. The data and growth are example inputs, not typical figures; change any of them to match yours.

1.5 TB growing 10% a year on a 2 TB cloud plan, against a starter 2-bay NAS with two 4 TB drives and an offsite backup of the NAS. Open this example
The same data and NAS with no offsite copy (not like for like: the NAS is then one copy in one place). Open this example
5 TB growing 10% a year on a 6 TB cloud plan, against the same 2-bay NAS with two 12 TB drives and an offsite backup. Open this example
A NAS and drives you already own, 1.5 TB that does not grow, a drive refresh every 3 years and a UPS: the future purchases still count. Open this example

How We Calculate

Cash, month by month. The NAS, its drives and any UPS are counted in the month you buy them; a NAS and drives you already own count at 0, but anything you would still buy for them is counted. Electricity, the offsite backup and the cloud plan are counted each month, and a drive refresh or UPS battery you plan is counted in the month it happens. Nothing is spread out over years, so nothing is counted twice.

Cloud. Your data grows each month (a percentage compounds; TB a year adds the same each year). When it passes your plan's capacity, the calculator moves to the next larger plan from the same provider at its listed price; above the largest plan it lists, no plan is assumed and the cloud option cannot hold your data. Yearly billing counts a twelfth of the yearly price each month. Backblaze B2 bills the data stored after its free allowance, plus downloads beyond its free allowance.

NAS. Usable capacity comes from your drives and RAID layout (the same maths as the RAID Calculator) and is checked every month. The file system, snapshots and any space you keep free take some of it, so treat the usable figure as an upper bound; if your data outgrows it, there is no cost verdict until you add capacity. Electricity uses the NAS maker's two published power figures and the hours the drives sleep, times your rate. The offsite backup is priced on the same amount of data you store each month; restore downloads are not counted.

Break-even is the month the NAS's total cash spent drops to the cloud plan's and stays there, with four cases: it pays back after some months, it is ahead from the start, the cloud plan catches up, or it does not pay back within the period.

Cloud plan prices used

Provider	Plan	Capacity for one store of data	Monthly billing	Yearly billing
Google One	Basic (100 GB)	0.1 TB	$2.99 a month	$29.99 a year
Google One	AI Plus (2 TB)	2.0 TB	$14.99 a month	$149.99 a year
Google One	AI Pro (5 TB)	5.0 TB	$32.99 a month	$329.99 a year
iCloud+	200 GB	0.2 TB	$4.49 a month	monthly only
iCloud+	2 TB	2.0 TB	$14.99 a month	monthly only
iCloud+	6 TB	6.0 TB	$44.99 a month	monthly only
iCloud+	12 TB	12.0 TB	$89.99 a month	monthly only
Dropbox Plus	2 TB	2.0 TB	$18.69 a month	$184.67 a year
Microsoft 365	Personal (1 TB)	1.0 TB	$16.00 a month	$159.00 a year
Microsoft 365	Family (2 TB shared)	2.0 TB	$18.00 a month	$179.00 a year
Backblaze B2	Per GB stored	No limit	US$0.00695 per GB a month	Downloads beyond the free allowance: US$0.01 per GB

Microsoft 365 Family (2 TB shared): A Family subscription bought before 8 October 2026 keeps 1 TB per person until it renews on or after 2 May 2027; the calculator uses the current offer of 2 TB shared. (Microsoft, checked 2026-10-12)

Prices in Australian dollars including GST unless marked US$, as each provider lists them. NTK checks them against each provider's own page every week; last changed or confirmed by hand 2026-09-20.

Backblaze B2 terms used

Backblaze B2 charges for storage only after the first 10 GB in an account. (Backblaze, checked 2026-10-12)
Backblaze B2 downloads are free up to three times the average data stored each month, then US$0.01 per GB. (Backblaze, checked 2026-10-12)
By default Backblaze B2 keeps every older version of a file until you delete it or set a lifecycle rule, and kept versions count as stored data. (Backblaze, checked 2026-10-12)
US dollar prices are converted at 1.4333 Australian dollars to the US dollar, the Reserve Bank of Australia rate for 2026-09-30 (RBA table F11).

NAS power figures and prices

NAS	Bays	Busy	Drives asleep	Market price	Source
Synology DS225+	2	16.98 W Access	6.08 W HDD Hibernation	$599	Synology, checked 2026-10-07
Synology DS425+	4	28.25 W Access	6.1 W HDD Hibernation	$899	Synology, checked 2026-10-07
Synology DS925+	4	37.91 W Access	12.33 W HDD Hibernation	$1099	Synology, checked 2026-10-07
Synology DS1823xs+	8	87.93 W Access	28.37 W HDD Hibernation	enter yours	Synology, checked 2026-10-07
Synology DS223j	2	16.31 W Access	4.0 W HDD Hibernation	enter yours	Synology, checked 2026-10-07
QNAP TS-464	4	40.536 W Operating Mode, Typical	21.618 W Disk Standby Mode	$1129	QNAP, checked 2026-10-07
QNAP TS-264	2	29.086 W Operating Mode, Typical	18.288 W Disk Standby Mode	$1014	QNAP, checked 2026-10-07
QNAP TS-433	4	22.54 W Operating Mode, Typical	8.45 W Disk Standby Mode	$699	QNAP, checked 2026-10-07
QNAP TVS-H874	8	96.247 W Operating Mode, Typical	72.331 W Disk Standby Mode	enter yours	QNAP, checked 2026-10-07
UGREEN DXP2800	2	16.38 W drive access	5.24 W drive hibernation	enter yours	UGREEN, checked 2026-10-07
UGREEN DH4300 Plus	4	22.89 W drive access	7.23 W drive hibernation	$612	UGREEN, checked 2026-10-07
TerraMaster F4-424 Pro	4	33.0 W read/write state	13.0 W hibernation	enter yours	TerraMaster, checked 2026-10-07
ASUSTOR AS5402T	2	22.9 W Operation	12.7 W Disk Hibernation	$545	ASUSTOR, checked 2026-10-07

Market prices are NTK's median across at least three Australian retailers with fresh listings, 2026-10-15. A model or drive without one needs your price. Power figures are the maker's own, measured under the maker's conditions.

Synology lists RAID F1, Basic, JBOD, RAID 0, RAID 1, RAID 5, RAID 6 and RAID 10 for the DS1823xs+; Synology Hybrid RAID (SHR) is not on its list. The calculator does not offer SHR for it. (Synology, checked 2026-10-12)

Electricity rates used

State	Rate (c/kWh)	What it is	Date
NSW	33.96	Australian Energy Regulator: default market offer (DMO), price cap on standing offers. AER DMO 8 Final Determination 26 May 2026, Section 9(1), avg of 3 NSW zones	September 2026
VIC	28.2	Essential Services Commission: Victorian Default Offer (VDO). ESC Victorian Default Offer 2026-27 domestic flat tariff, avg of 5 distribution zones	September 2026
QLD	27.97	Australian Energy Regulator: default market offer (DMO), South East Queensland only. AER DMO 8 Final Determination 26 May 2026, Section 9(1), Energex flat rate (SE Queensland)	September 2026
SA	41.91	Australian Energy Regulator: default market offer (DMO), price cap on standing offers. AER DMO 8 Final Determination 26 May 2026, Section 9(1) SA Power Networks flat rate	September 2026
WA	33.26	WA State Government (Energy Policy WA): regulated tariff (Synergy, set in the State Budget). Synergy Home Plan (A1) from 1 Jul 2026 (WA Government-set tariff)	September 2026
TAS	24.75	Office of the Tasmanian Economic Regulator: regulated standing offer (Aurora Energy, maximum price). Aurora Energy Tariff 32 Residential Single Rate from 1 Jul 2026 (OTTER-approved standing offer)	September 2026
ACT	36.95	Independent Competition and Regulatory Commission: regulated standing offer (ActewAGL Retail). ActewAGL ACT Standard plan from 1 Jul 2026 (ICRC standing offer), Home all usage	September 2026
NT	31.68	NT Government Electricity Pricing Order (enforced by the Utilities Commission): regulated retail price (Electricity Pricing Order). Jacana Energy regulated residential tariff from 1 Jul 2026	September 2026

Enter the rate from your bill for your own figure; on a time of use plan, use your average (blended) rate.

Assumptions NTK made

Method last reviewed: 2026-10-12. Cloud plan prices confirmed: 2026-09-20. Backblaze and Microsoft facts checked at source: 2026-10-12. NAS power figures checked at source: 2026-10-07. Market prices: 2026-10-15. Electricity rates dated from: 2026-09-25. Exchange rate: RBA, 2026-09-30.

Your first step for a faulty product is usually the retailer that sold it. The ACCC explains your rights under the Australian Consumer Law at accc.gov.au.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is a NAS cheaper than cloud storage?

It depends on how much you store, how fast it grows, how long you count and whether you count an offsite backup, so the calculator works it out for your figures instead of quoting a rule of thumb. For example, in round numbers (not a real plan or model): a cloud plan at $15 a month costs $900 over 5 years. A NAS that costs $1,300 with its drives and $50 a year in electricity costs $1,550 over the same 5 years before any offsite backup, so there the cloud plan is cheaper. Against a larger plan at $35 a month ($2,100 over 5 years) the same NAS is cheaper. Put in your own data, growth and rate to see which way your figures fall.

Is a NAS a backup?

No. A NAS on its own is one copy in one place: RAID or SHR covers a failed drive, but a fire, theft or flood at home can take the NAS and its data together. That is why the calculator adds an offsite backup to the NAS side by default, priced on the data you store, so the NAS and the cloud plan are compared like for like. Turn it off and the result says the NAS has no offsite copy. A second NAS somewhere else or a drive you rotate off site can be the offsite copy too: enter its monthly cost instead. By default Backblaze B2 keeps every older version of a file until you delete it or set a lifecycle rule, and kept versions count as stored data. Old versions you keep add to the backup bill.

How does the calculator price Backblaze B2?

From the rates NTK tracks against Backblaze's own pricing page each week: US$0.00695 per GB a month for stored data. Backblaze B2 charges for storage only after the first 10 GB in an account. Backblaze B2 downloads are free up to three times the average data stored each month, then US$0.01 per GB. US dollar prices are converted at 1.4333 Australian dollars to the US dollar, the Reserve Bank rate for 2026-09-30.

What happens when my data outgrows a cloud plan?

The calculator moves you up to the next plan the same provider lists, at its listed price, in the month your data passes the plan's capacity. The plan sizes it uses are Google One: 0.1 TB, 2 TB, 5 TB; iCloud+: 0.2 TB, 2 TB, 6 TB, 12 TB; Microsoft 365: 1 TB, 2 TB. Above the largest plan no plan is assumed: the result says the cloud option cannot hold your data, the same way it does for a NAS that runs out of space.

What about Microsoft 365 storage?

Microsoft 365 Family is for 1 to 6 people and includes 2 TB of cloud storage shared between them. One store of data can use all 2 TB, so the calculator counts Family as 2 TB. Microsoft says Family subscriptions bought or upgraded from 8 October 2026 share their storage, so one person can use the whole allowance; a subscription bought before 8 October 2026 moves to shared storage when it renews on or after 2 May 2027, and nothing changes before then. Before shared storage, Microsoft 365 Family storage was 1 TB per person, up to 6 TB across six people. The calculator uses the current offer. To compare a Family subscription that started before 8 October 2026 as it is until it renews, choose "My own plan" with 1 TB and your price. Microsoft 365 Personal and Family include the desktop apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and OneNote) as well as cloud storage. If you would keep paying for the apps anyway, set the amount to count for the plan to the share you put on storage, or 0.

What does a NAS cost to run?

Electricity, plus any drives you plan to replace and any UPS. The calculator counts the NAS at the maker's busy figure all day unless you enter the hours its drives sleep. Makers measure that figure during file transfers or typical operation, and Synology says its figures are not meant to be minimum or maximum power consumption figures, so a NAS that sits idle most of the day will usually use less. In round numbers, a NAS that draws 20 W all day uses about 175 kWh a year, about $53 a year at 30 c/kWh. Drive replacement is a planning choice you set (a full refresh every so many years, or none), counted in the month it happens, not a prediction that drives fail. A NAS you already own counts nothing upfront, but a refresh, a UPS or a UPS battery you will still buy is counted when you buy it.

Can I back up my NAS to the cloud over NBN?

Yes, but the first upload of everything takes a while: at a steady 20 Mbps upload, 4 TB takes about 18.5 days of continuous upload (4 TB x 8 bits / 20 Mbps). After that only changes are uploaded. The Cloud Backup Time Estimator works it out for your plan and data, and the NBN Remote Access Reality Checker covers reaching your NAS from outside.

Should I compare monthly or yearly billing?

Some providers sell a yearly plan for less than twelve monthly payments: in round numbers, $15 a month or $150 a year ($12.50 a month). The calculator counts yearly billing as a twelfth of the yearly price each month, uses the monthly price where a provider has no yearly option, and shows each plan's own prices in the table under How We Calculate.