Block storage · AWS vs Google Cloud
Amazon EBS snapshots vs Compute Engine disk snapshots
EBS snapshots map to Compute Engine disk snapshots: incremental, compressed, and encrypted, stored regionally or multi-regionally.
Side-by-side comparison
| Aspect | Amazon Web Services | Google Cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Service | Amazon EBS snapshots | Compute Engine disk snapshots |
| Lifecycle | Generally available | Generally available |
| What it is | Incremental point-in-time backups stored in S3-backed storage, with copy across Regions and accounts, an archive tier, fast snapshot restore, snapshot lock, and Recycle Bin. | Incremental, compressed, encrypted backups of disks (standard and archive snapshots), stored regionally or multi-regionally. |
| Pricing model | Per GB-month of stored blocks (standard or archive tier), plus fast snapshot restore per AZ-hour and archive retrieval per GB. | Billed per GB-month of snapshot storage by type (standard or archive) and location. |
| Docs | Amazon EBS snapshots docs | Compute Engine disk snapshots docs |
| Pricing page | Amazon EBS snapshots pricing | Compute Engine disk snapshots pricing |
Key differences
- Snapshots are global resources usable in any region of the project, without a copy step.
- Archive snapshots are the counterpart of EBS Snapshots Archive.
Pricing summary
Pricing models only. No prices are quoted because they change by region and over time.
- AWS
- Per GB-month of stored blocks (standard or archive tier), plus fast snapshot restore per AZ-hour and archive retrieval per GB. Amazon EBS snapshots pricing →
- GCP
- Billed per GB-month of snapshot storage by type (standard or archive) and location. Compute Engine disk snapshots pricing →
And on Azure?
Direct match Azure's equivalent is Managed disk snapshots (incremental). AWS vs Azure comparison →
FAQ
What is the Google Cloud equivalent of Amazon EBS snapshots?
EBS snapshots map to Compute Engine disk snapshots: incremental, compressed, and encrypted, stored regionally or multi-regionally.
How does pricing compare between Amazon EBS snapshots and Compute Engine disk snapshots?
AWS: Per GB-month of stored blocks (standard or archive tier), plus fast snapshot restore per AZ-hour and archive retrieval per GB. Google Cloud: Billed per GB-month of snapshot storage by type (standard or archive) and location. Check the official pricing pages for current rates.
What is the Azure equivalent?
Managed disk snapshots (incremental) (direct match). EBS snapshots map to managed disk incremental snapshots.