The Unseen Costs of Hyperscaler Cloud Storage in Europe

For many European enterprises, the initial allure of hyperscaler cloud platforms, including AWS S3, lies in their perceived scalability and flexibility. However, the reality often diverges significantly from the promise, particularly when it comes to cost. A recent study revealed that 56% of European organisations reported overspending on their cloud storage budgets in the past year, with Germany seeing the highest rate at 66%, followed by the Netherlands at 64%, France at 53%, and the United Kingdom at 51%. Ninety percent of European respondents identified fee-related issues, such as higher-than-expected API, data retrieval, deletion, or egress fees, as primary contributors to these budget overruns.

Data egress fees are often the most significant cause of this financial unpredictability. AWS, for instance, typically charges around $0.09 per GB for the first 10 TB of data transferred out to the public internet, with varying rates for cross-region transfers. These charges can quickly accumulate, transforming what appears to be a cost-effective solution into a significant financial burden, especially for data-intensive applications or multi-cloud strategies. The impact is tangible: 55% of European organisations report that egress or other data access fees have delayed IT or business initiatives, stifling innovation and operational agility.

Beyond egress, the complexity of hyperscaler storage tiers adds another layer of hidden costs. AWS S3 offers numerous storage classes, from S3 Standard for frequently accessed data to S3 Glacier Deep Archive for long-term retention. While designed to optimise costs based on access patterns, managing these tiers effectively requires constant vigilance and sophisticated lifecycle policies. Misconfigurations or unexpected access patterns can lead to costly data retrieval fees or charges for transitioning data between tiers. This intricate pricing structure, encompassing storage, requests, data retrieval, and management features, makes accurate cost forecasting challenging for even the most experienced IT teams.

Navigating European Data Sovereignty and Compliance

Beyond financial considerations, European organisations must contend with a stringent and evolving regulatory landscape. Data sovereignty, the principle that data is subject to the laws and governance structures of the nation in which it is collected and stored, has become a paramount concern. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) remains the cornerstone, imposing strict rules on the processing of personal data within the EU and requiring robust data security measures, lawful processing, and clear data processing agreements (DPAs) with cloud providers.

Complementing GDPR, the UK Data Protection Act 2018 (UK DPA) and UK GDPR apply to organisations processing personal data of UK residents, mandating similar protections and requiring data to be stored within the UK or a country with adequate data protection. More recently, the NIS-2 Directive, which became applicable in October 2024, significantly expanded the scope of cybersecurity obligations for critical entities, including cloud service providers. It mandates comprehensive cybersecurity risk management, incident reporting, and supply chain security, making compliance a legal imperative rather than a voluntary standard.

Perhaps the most impactful recent development is the EU Data Act, applicable since September 2025. This regulation aims to foster a fairer data market by giving customers greater control over their data and helping easier switching between cloud providers. Crucially, the Data Act prohibits all switching charges, including data egress fees, effective from January 12, 2027. Until then, any such charges must be transparent and directly linked to costs. The Act also introduces rules for international governmental access to non-personal data, requiring cloud providers to be transparent about the jurisdiction their infrastructure is subject to and the safeguards in place against unlawful international access.

A significant challenge for European businesses using US-based hyperscalers is the US CLOUD Act. Enacted in 2018, this federal law grants US authorities the power to compel US-based technology companies, including major cloud providers, to provide access to data stored anywhere globally, regardless of local data protection laws. This extraterritorial reach creates a direct conflict with GDPR and EU data sovereignty principles, as data physically located in European data centres could still be subject to US legal demands, potentially without the knowledge or consent of the European data owner.

Beyond Cost: The Strategic Value of an S3-Compatible Alternative

While cost predictability and regulatory compliance are paramount, the strategic value of a cloud storage alternative extends to technical flexibility and operational efficiency. A key enabler for this is S3 compatibility. Amazon S3 has become the de-facto standard for object storage, with its robust API, extensive SDKs, and a vast ecosystem of tools and applications built around it. For organisations considering a migration, true S3 compatibility means that existing applications, scripts, and workflows can continue to function without requiring extensive code rewrites or re-architecting. This significantly reduces the time, effort, and risk associated with moving data and workloads to a new provider.

The absence of genuine S3 compatibility can lead to vendor lock-in, a situation where switching providers becomes prohibitively expensive or complex due to proprietary APIs, data formats, or management tools. This lock-in limits an organisation's ability to negotiate better terms, use multi-cloud strategies, or adapt to evolving business needs. Choosing an alternative that offers full S3-API compatibility ensures that your data remains portable and accessible, giving you the freedom to choose the best-fit solutions for your evolving infrastructure.

Furthermore, the operational model of an S3-compatible alternative can offer significant advantages. Many hyperscalers rely on complex storage tiering to offer lower headline prices, but this often comes with trade-offs in performance, retrieval delays, and additional fees for accessing less frequently used data. An 'Always-Hot' object storage model, where all data is immediately accessible without tier-restore delays or hidden retrieval charges, simplifies operations and ensures consistent, predictable performance for all workloads, from active archives to mission-critical applications. This eliminates the need for intricate lifecycle policies and the risk of unexpected costs from data access patterns.

Choosing Your Cloud Partner: A Comparison for European Enterprises

When evaluating cloud storage providers in Europe, particularly as an AWS S3 alternative with zero egress fees in Europe, it's essential to look beyond surface-level features and examine the core differentiators that impact your business. The choice of cloud partner has profound implications for your budget, compliance posture, and operational agility. European enterprises must weigh the benefits of global hyperscalers against the advantages of sovereign, regionally focused providers, especially in light of the evolving regulatory landscape.

Hyperscalers like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud offer immense scale and a broad array of services. However, their global footprint and US jurisdiction often introduce complexities regarding data sovereignty and cost predictability. Their pricing models, while seemingly competitive for raw storage, can quickly become opaque due to egress fees, API call charges, and the intricacies of multi-tiered storage. This often leads to the budget overruns reported by a majority of European organisations.

Conversely, European-centric cloud providers are specifically designed to address these concerns, focusing on local compliance, transparent pricing, and dedicated support. The table below outlines key evaluation criteria for European businesses seeking a robust and reliable cloud storage solution:

This structured comparison highlights that while hyperscalers offer scale, a dedicated European provider offers a tailored solution that directly addresses the unique challenges of the European market, particularly around cost control and data governance.

Impossible Cloud: Your Sovereign AWS S3 Alternative with Zero Egress Fees in Europe

For European organisations seeking a powerful AWS S3 alternative with zero egress fees in Europe, Impossible Cloud offers a compelling solution engineered for the modern enterprise. Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, Impossible Cloud provides S3-compatible object storage built on a decentralised architecture, operated exclusively in certified European data centres across Germany, the Netherlands, the UK, Denmark, and Poland. This commitment to EU-only infrastructure ensures that your data remains under European jurisdiction, eliminating exposure to extraterritorial laws like the US CLOUD Act by design.

One of the most significant advantages of Impossible Cloud is its transparent and predictable pricing model. We believe in Full Control. Zero Surprises., which means no hidden egress fees, no API call costs, and no minimum storage duration. This predictable-by-design approach allows businesses to accurately forecast their cloud expenditure, avoiding the budget overruns commonly associated with hyperscalers. By removing these punitive charges, Impossible Cloud empowers organisations to move, access, and use their data freely, fostering innovation without financial penalties.

Impossible Cloud is designed as a true drop-in S3 replacement. With full S3-API compatibility, existing applications, scripts, and tools that interact with AWS S3 can seamlessly integrate with Impossible Cloud without requiring any code changes. This includes advanced S3 features such as versioning, lifecycle management, event notifications, and Object Lock (WORM) for immutable storage. This frictionless compatibility ensures that migration is straightforward, reducing operational disruption and accelerating your transition to a more sovereign and cost-effective cloud environment. Learn more about our S3-compatible object storage.

Security and resilience are paramount. Impossible Cloud offers 99.999999999% (11 nines) data durability, achieved through a multi-AZ replication architecture that eliminates single points of failure. Data is protected with multi-layer encryption (in transit and at rest), and robust access controls are enforced through IAM with MFA/RBAC and SAML/OIDC support. Our platform is certified with ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II, and PCI DSS, demonstrating our adherence to the highest international security standards and readiness for GDPR compliance.

Seamless Migration and Preparing Your European Cloud Strategy for the Future

Migrating from a hyperscaler like AWS S3 to a sovereign European provider might seem daunting, but with a truly S3-compatible alternative like Impossible Cloud, the process is designed for minimal disruption. The full S3-API compatibility means that data transfer tools, backup solutions (such as Veeam, Acronis, and MSP360), and existing applications can be reconfigured to point to Impossible Cloud endpoints with ease. This 'lift-and-shift' approach avoids the need for complex re-architecture, saving valuable time and resources. Our team of experts can guide you through the migration process, ensuring a smooth transition for your critical data and workloads.

Beyond the technical ease, migrating to Impossible Cloud future-proofs your cloud strategy against evolving regulatory demands and unpredictable costs. The EU Data Act's upcoming prohibition on egress fees from January 2027 underscores a broader European push towards greater data portability and control. By choosing a provider that already operates with zero egress fees and is sovereign by design, you align your infrastructure with the future direction of European data governance. This proactive step mitigates future compliance risks and ensures your business remains agile and competitive.

Impossible Cloud's 'Always-Hot' object storage model further simplifies operations. Unlike tiered hyperscaler solutions that can introduce delays and unexpected costs for data retrieval, all data stored with Impossible Cloud is immediately accessible with predictable latencies. This eliminates the need for complex lifecycle management and ensures consistent performance for all use cases, from high-performance applications to long-term archiving and backup. This operational simplicity, combined with transparent pricing, allows your IT teams to focus on innovation rather than managing cloud costs. Explore our customer success stories to see how other organisations have benefited.

For Managed Service Providers (MSPs), Impossible Cloud offers a robust foundation for building profitable Backup-as-a-Service (BaaS) offerings. The predictable pricing, multi-tenant console, and whitelabel capabilities enable MSPs to deliver branded cloud services with clear margins, free from the uncertainty of hyperscaler egress fees. This creates a win-win situation, allowing MSPs to expand their service portfolio while providing their clients with a sovereign, cost-effective, and high-performance cloud storage solution.