Backblaze B2 vs Box (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Box grades higher than Backblaze B2: 2.8 against 2.0 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 5, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 10, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
Backblaze B2 grades higher on value for money. Box grades higher on features, ease of use and platforms. They get the same grade on the free plan.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
Backblaze B2
S3-compatible object storage billed per terabyte
Box
Business content storage with e-signatures, workflows and AI
Which one is for you
Pick Backblaze B2 if
- Fits if you have developers or an IT person to point backup tools at an S3 bucket
- Works for teams storing terabytes of backups that rarely get read back
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you want a folder that syncs to your laptop, as there is no consumer sync app
- Tight if you read a lot back: egress beyond 3 times your stored data costs $0.01 per GB
- Watch out: API calls past the first 2,500 a day cost $0.004 per 10,000 on Class D transactions
- Watch out: B2 Overdrive is $15 per TB and up, with a multi-petabyte commitment bought by quote
Pick Box if
- Fits if your company wants unlimited storage priced per user, from 3 users up
- Works for teams that send contracts for signature from where they're stored, or plug files into Microsoft 365, Salesforce or Slack
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you're one person wanting more space, as every paid plan priced here needs at least 3 users
- Pricey if you want the unlimited storage and the AI, which start at $15 a user against a $5 category middle
- Not for you if you're on Linux, since Box Drive is Mac and Windows only
- Tight if you stay free: 10 GB, no file over 250 MB, 1 version kept and 5 signature requests a month
- Watch out: uploads cap at 2 GB on Starter and 5 GB on Business, and Enterprise Plus is billed yearly only
How we grade them
| 2.0GPABackblaze B2Fair | 2.8GPABoxGood | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | C$6.95 per TB a month matches the category's middle price. This is a different kind of product from consumer storage, billed by the terabyte. | DStorage in this category has a middle price of $5 a month, and the dearest tenth starts at $9.99. Box's entry plan is $5 a user but needs 3 users, so $15 a month minimum for 100 GB. The parts people actually come for, unlimited storage, Box AI and unlimited signing, start at $15 a user. |
| Free plan and trial | CThe first 10 GB is always free, with free egress up to 3 times what you store, and you'll pass 10 GB quickly. | CFree for one person with 10 GB, which sounds fine until you read the caps: no file over 250 MB, 1 version kept of anything you edit, 5 signature requests a month. A phone video can breach that upload limit. |
| Features | CStorage through an S3-compatible API with lifecycle and partner integrations, but the page shows no consumer sync app. It does its narrow job fully. | BStorage and sharing, plus Box Sign for e-signatures, workflow automation and Box AI, with Box Drive opening files on a Mac or PC without filling the disk. The listing's own upload ceilings, 250 MB free and 2 GB on Starter, keep it off an A. |
| Ease of use | DIt needs an API, keys and tooling, so it's a developer service. No store rating on record. | A4.8 from about 191,000 App Store ratings. On a computer, Box Drive puts your Box files in Finder or Explorer, so there's nothing new to learn. |
| Platforms and integrations | BThe vendor lists 8 integrations and an S3 API, but it is web only, with no apps. | AWeb, Mac, Windows, iPhone and Android, and Box counts more than 1,500 connected apps, Microsoft 365, Salesforce and Slack among them, with API call allowances on the paid plans. No Linux app, mind. |
| Best for | cheap object storage for developers and IT teams | company files with signing and workflows built in |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: Backblaze B2 and Box. How we grade
Price against what you get
Backblaze B2 starts at $6.95 a month and scores 2.0 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Box starts at $5 a month for each person and scores 3.7.
Box scores higher and starts $1.95 a month lower. Of the other file storage and sync services on the chart, 20 score higher than Backblaze B2 for less, and none scores higher than Box for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
- Backblaze B2 also covers file management.
- Box also covers workflow automation, file sync and file sharing.
At a glance
| Backblaze B2 | Box | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | $6.95 per TB / month | $5 per user / month, billed annually (minimum 3 users) |
| Free plan | The first 10 GB of storage is always free, with free egress up to 3x the data stored. | Individual plan: one user, 10 GB of storage, a 250 MB file upload limit, 1 file version and 5 Box Sign requests per month. |
| Free trial | None listed | Free trial offered on Business Starter, Business, Business Plus, Enterprise and Enterprise Plus |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | Backblaze | Box, Inc. |
| Price read from | backblaze.com | peony.ink (not the vendor's own page) |
| Checked | Nov 12, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Worth knowing
Backblaze B2
- Egress beyond 3x the average monthly data stored costs $0.01 per GB, except to partner CDNs and compute services.
- Class D API transactions cost $0.004 per 10,000 calls after the first 2,500 each day.
- B2 Overdrive needs a multi-petabyte commitment and is sold by quote.
- It is a storage service for developers and IT teams; the page shows no consumer sync app.
Box
- Business and Enterprise plans require a minimum of 3 users.
- File upload size is capped by plan: 250 MB on the free plan, 2 GB on Business Starter, 5 GB on Business and 15 GB on Business Plus.
- Enterprise Plus is sold on annual billing only, and Enterprise Advanced is priced through sales.
- The downloads page lists Box Drive for Mac and Windows only, with no Linux app.
Key features
Backblaze B2
- S3-compatible object storage
- The page describes S3-compatible storage for active archiving, backup and recovery, media and application workloads.
- No minimums on files or duration
- There are no minimum file size or storage duration fees, and class A, B and C API calls are free on pay as you go.
- Free egress allowances
- Egress is free up to 3x the average data stored, and free to partner CDNs and compute services such as Cloudflare, Fastly and bunny.net.
- Capacity commitments
- Customers can commit to a set amount of storage for 1 to 5 years, billed for the full term at contract start with a locked rate.
Box
- Box Drive
- A desktop app for Mac and Windows that opens Box files from the computer without taking up much local disk space.
- Box Sign
- E-signatures are built in: 5 signature requests a month on the free plan, 10 on Business Starter, and unlimited from the Business plan up.
- Box AI
- Box AI is included from the Business plan. Enterprise adds 1,000 AI Units a month and Box Hubs, and Enterprise Plus raises the allowance to 2,000.
- External collaboration
- The Business plan charges for each external collaborator, while Business Plus and the Enterprise plans allow an unlimited number.
- File version history
- The free Individual plan keeps 1 version of each file, Personal Pro keeps 10 and Business Starter keeps 25.
- Integrations and API
- Box lists more than 1,500 apps and AI agents that connect to it, and paid business plans include a monthly allowance of API calls.
Plans
Backblaze B2
Backblaze B2$6.95
per TB / month, billed monthly on byte-hours stored
Pay as you go, or commit to capacity for 1 to 5 years with discounts. Free egress up to 3x stored data, then $0.01/GB.
B2 Overdrive$15
per TB / month and up
For AI, HPC and research workloads: dedicated vaults, unlimited free egress and a multi-petabyte commitment. Sold by quote.
Box
Individual$0
Single user with 10 GB of storage, a 250 MB file upload limit and 5 Box Sign signature requests per month.
Business Starter$5
per user / month, billed annually ($7 billed monthly)
Minimum of 3 users: 100 GB of storage, 2 GB file uploads, 25 file versions and 10 Box Sign requests per month.
Business$15
per user / month, billed annually ($20 billed monthly)
Minimum of 3 users: unlimited storage, 5 GB file uploads, Box AI, unlimited e-signatures and 50,000 API calls per month.
Business Plus$25
per user / month, billed annually ($33 billed monthly)
Minimum of 3 users: unlimited storage, 15 GB file uploads and unlimited external collaborators.
Enterprise$35
per user / month, billed annually ($47 billed monthly)
Minimum of 3 users: 50 GB file uploads, 1,000 AI Units per month, Box Hubs and 100,000 API calls per month.
Enterprise Plus$50
per user / month, annual billing only
Minimum of 3 users: 150 GB file uploads, 2,000 AI Units per month and support with 24-hour coverage.
Ways to pay less
Backblaze B2
- Other savings
Discounts for volume and term commitments
The pricing page says discounts are available when you commit to volume and a 1 to 5 year term; the amounts are not published.
Box
- Annual discount
About 25% lower with annual billing
Box's pricing page has a monthly or annual toggle that advertises a saving for paying annually. The listed prices put Business at $15 per user annually against $20 monthly.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, Backblaze B2 or Box?
As of Nov 12, 2026, Backblaze B2 starts at $6.95 per TB / month, and Box starts at $5 per user / month, billed annually (minimum 3 users). One is priced for each person and the other is not, so which costs less depends on how many of you use it.
Which has a free plan, Backblaze B2 or Box?
As of Nov 12, 2026, both Backblaze B2 and Box have a free plan.
Which platforms do Backblaze B2 and Box run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only Box lists macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps. Both list a web app. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.