--- title: Amazon S3 Glacier Reviews meta_title: 'Amazon S3 Glacier Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & Features | G2' meta_description: Filter 139 reviews by the users' company size, role or industry to find out how Amazon S3 Glacier works for a business like yours. aggregate_rating: rating_value: 4.5 review_count: 139 scale: '5' date_modified: '2026-10-02' parent_category: name: Storage Management url: https://www.g2.com/categories/storage-management ---

Amazon S3 Glacier Pros and Cons: Top 5 Advantages and Disadvantages

Quick AI Summary Based on G2 Reviews

Generated from real user reviews

Users appreciate the affordable storage costs of Amazon S3 Glacier, providing secure data solutions without breaking the bank. (2 mentions)
Users appreciate the data security of Amazon S3 Glacier, enjoying reliable, durable storage for long-term archiving needs. (2 mentions)
Users value the easy integrations of Amazon S3 Glacier, enhancing convenience for long-term data archiving and backups. (2 mentions)
Users appreciate the low-cost, highly durable storage of Amazon S3 Glacier, ensuring secure data archiving and compliance. (2 mentions)
Users value the high reliability of Amazon S3 Glacier, ensuring data security and durability for long-term storage needs. (2 mentions)
Users find the high retrieval costs of Amazon S3 Glacier to be confusing and potentially unexpected without careful monitoring. (2 mentions)
Users find the slow retrieval speed of Amazon S3 Glacier frustrating, especially compared to standard S3 buckets. (2 mentions)
Users find pricing issues with Amazon S3 Glacier due to confusing retrieval fees and data transfer charges. (1 mentions)
Users find the slow retrieval speed of Amazon S3 Glacier frustrating compared to S3 buckets. (1 mentions)
Users find the instructions unclear, making it difficult to navigate S3 Glacier's retrieval options and pricing effectively. (1 mentions)

5 Pros or Advantages of Amazon S3 Glacier

5 Cons or Disadvantages of Amazon S3 Glacier

Atharva P.
AP
Atharva P.
Cloud BI Engineer
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Cost-Effective Archival with Flexibility and Durability"
4.5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

I like Amazon S3 Glacier for its low-cost archival storage, which significantly helps in storage cost savings. I appreciate the life cycle policies that allow for automated archival management. I also like that it is highly durable and supports reliable long-term retention. It's great that it's tightly integrated into the AWS ecosystem, making it very easy to set up backup workflows. The flexible retrieval options are a real plus, providing a good balance between cost and access speed. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Data retrieval can take time depending on the retrieval tier selected, so it's not ideal for workloads requiring instant access. Managing life cycle and retrieval policies can also become complex for large storage environments. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Subrat Kumar S.
SS
Subrat Kumar S.
Data Specialist
Mid-Market (51-1000 emp.)
"Easy Integration, Scalable Cloud Storage"
5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

I like Amazon S3 Glacier because it allows me to store unstructured and semi-structured data efficiently. I appreciate the cloud leverage it provides, enabling scalable data storage. I also enjoy not having to manage the infrastructure, making it easier to archive data. Its capability to integrate with all data platforms for processing and analysis is a major plus. Additionally, I find the initial setup very easy, and I've effectively integrated it with other Amazon services like SageMaker, Athena, Redshift, and Airflow. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Storage cost is a little on the higher side for small-scale companies. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Ashish D.
AD
Ashish D.
Gen AI Developer
Information Technology and Services
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"Cost-Efficient Archival, Secure Yet Complex Pricing"
4.5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

I really like Amazon S3 Glacier for drastically reducing storage costs while maintaining data durability and security, which is a huge plus for me. It lets me store rarely accessed data safely at a much lower cost than standard storage tiers. The strong durability model means I don't worry about data loss, which is crucial for business continuity and regulatory requirements. I also appreciate the lifecycle transparency and control it offers, allowing me to define retention rules, transition policies, and deletion schedules easily. Additionally, features like Object Lock for WORM compliance, encryption via KMS, and tight IAM integration boost my confidence in the security and tamper resistance of archived data. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

One area that could be improved is pricing transparency. While storage costs are low, retrieval fees, data transfer charges, and minimum storage duration costs can become confusing. Without careful monitoring, unexpected retrieval patterns can increase costs. A more simplified or predictive pricing estimator within the console would be helpful. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

MANOJ R.
MR
MANOJ R.
Associate Software Engineer
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Cost-Effective Backups and Disaster Recovery with Flexible Retrieval Options"
4/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Best for general backups and disaster recovery. It’s a cost-effective option and provides retrieval choices that range from a few minutes to up to 12 hours (for free bulk retrievals). Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

There’s nothing much I dislike about it. It’s good in every way. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Humayun G.
HG
Humayun G.
Software Associate • Applications Development • NetSuite Developer
Information Technology and Services
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Low-Cost, Durable Long-Term Archiving with Amazon S3 Glacier"
5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

That Amazon S3 Glacier offers very low-cost, highly durable stroage for long-term data archiving. It's reliable, secure and intergrates seamlessly with other AWS services, making it ideal for backupds and compliance data. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

That data retrieval from S3 Glacier can be slow and sometimes costly. The different retrieval options and pricing can also be confusing for new users. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

ajmal a.
AA
ajmal a.
System Administrator
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"File storage web service"
5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Virtually unlimited scalability and data durability Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

It suitable for data does not require immediate retrieval. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Luca P.
LP
Luca P.
Chief Operations Officer DEQUA Studio | Formerly CTO in MarTech
Marketing and Advertising
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Durable Cloud archival"
5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

S3 glacier offers three distinct storage classes, each optimized for specific access patterns and cost efficiency:

• S3 Glacier Instant Retrieval: Designed for rarely accessed data that still requires immediate (milliseconds) retrieval. This class is suitable for use cases like medical imaging, news media assets, and online file-sharing, combining low storage costs with high durability and performance.

• S3 Glacier Flexible Retrieval: Provides low-cost storage for data accessed 1–2 times per year, with retrieval options ranging from minutes (expedited) to hours (standard and bulk). Flexible Retrieval is ideal for backup, disaster recovery, or offsite storage, balancing cost and access flexibility.

• S3 Glacier Deep Archive: Tailored for data that is accessed less than once a year, Deep Archive offers the lowest storage cost in the S3 family, with retrieval times between 12 and 48 hours. This class is well-suited for compliance archives and digital media preservation.

All S3 Glacier classes deliver unmatched durability (declared: 99.999999999%) by redundantly storing data across multiple physically separated AWS Availability Zones.

The service also integrates advanced security features, including support for multiple encryption methods, AWS CloudTrail logging, and compliance with regulatory standards such as SEC Rule 17a-4, PCI-DSS, HIPAA/HITECH, FedRAMP, EU GDPR, and FISMA.

The pricing model is highly competitive, making it feasible to retain large volumes of archival data without significant cost overhead. There are no upfront fees or minimum commitments; charges are based solely on storage consumed and retrieval operations.

Integration with the broader AWS ecosystem is seamless, and the platform is supported by a wide range of partners and third-party solutions for backup, disaster recovery, and archiving workflows. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Nothing negative to report or that I don't like Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Shirisha D.
SD
Shirisha D.
Infra transformation sr analyst
Enterprise (> 1000 emp.)
"AWS Cloud: the top standard for scalable cloud computing"
4.5/5
What do you like best about AWS Cloud?

AWS Cloud is scalable , reliable and has massive service ecosystem. It allows you to spin up environments within minutes and automate deployments with cloud formation of terraform and manage infrastructure through a highly configurable IAM model Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about AWS Cloud?

The pricing structure can be confusing and hard to estimate for complex setups Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

Pallav S.
PS
Pallav S.
Laravel Developer
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Simple, Cost-Effective Solution for Long-Term Data Archiving"
4.5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

S3 Glacier is straightforward to use and can be integrated with any technology, making it a convenient solution for storing archived data over the long term. It is also a cost-effective option for storage needs. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

Need to time for data retrive and slower then S3 bucket. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

shiv a.
SA
shiv a.
AI / NLP Engineer
Information Technology and Services
Small-Business (50 or fewer emp.)
"Amazon S3 Glacier - low cost long term cloud storage"
4.5/5
What do you like best about Amazon S3 Glacier?

It offers long-term data storage solutions at a very low cost with reliable security features. Its integration with the full AWS ecosystem makes it a very easy and convenient option for enterprises requiring archival storage for backups. And of course, Amazon's customer support is excellent. The implementation is also not at all hard. My organization uses it all the time. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.

What do you dislike about Amazon S3 Glacier?

It has a pay-per-retrieval pricing model that also helps in managing costs effectively, but I feel retrieval times can be slow. I also personally feel retrieval fees are a little hard to predict and are not suitable for businesses that need quick data retrieval. Review collected by and hosted on G2.com.