Clever Cloud Cellar and Amazon S3 are often compared when European teams evaluate S3-compatible object storage. This analysis focuses exclusively on clever cloud Cellar vs Amazon S3 to help engineers, architects and procurement decide which fits specific use cases. The comparison covers API compatibility, pricing patterns (including egress), reproducible migration steps, performance test plans, operational limits, GDPR considerations and practical integration examples for 2025–2026.
API compatibility and signing
Clever Cloud Cellar advertises S3-compatible access. Compatibility covers basic PUT/GET/DELETE and many common operations, but subtle differences in signing, endpoint formats and multipart semantics can appear. Amazon S3 uses AWS Signature Version 4 by default and offers extended features (S3 Select, Transfer Acceleration). When comparing clever cloud Cellar vs Amazon S3, verify whether a workload depends on advanced S3-specific APIs before assuming full interchangeability.
Amazon S3 spans multiple AWS regions across Europe (e.g., eu-west-1, eu-central-1). Clever Cloud Cellar is offered from European data centres operated by Clever Cloud and partners, typically prioritising EU residency. For strict residency and latency considerations, the choice depends on required region availability and egress routing.
- For GDPR guidance, consult the European Data Protection Board: EDPB and the UK Information Commissioner's Office: ICO.
Pricing and total cost examples (2025–2026) — head-to-head
Pricing model overview
Amazon S3 pricing components: storage per GB-month, PUT/GET/request costs, egress (outbound data transfer), lifecycle and optional features (Replication, S3 Select). Clever Cloud Cellar typically bills storage, operations and egress but often with different tier thresholds and simplified plans. Egress pricing is the most decisive factor for public-facing assets or cross-region distribution.
Comparative table (estimates for 2026; confirm provider pages for latest rates)
| Category |
clever cloud Cellar (typical EU plan) |
Amazon S3 (eu-west-1) |
| Storage per GB/month |
€0.02–€0.03 |
€0.024–€0.025 (Standard) |
| PUT (per 1,000) |
€0.005–€0.01 |
€0.005–€0.01 |
| GET (per 10,000) |
€0.001–€0.005 |
€0.0004–€0.004 |
| Egress per GB |
€0.02–€0.10 (often tiered) |
€0.09–€0.12 first 10TB |
| Data transfer between EU zones |
Often free within same provider |
Charged cross-AZ/region (varies) |
| Free tier |
Limited or trial |
5 GB for 12 months (existing AWS free tier policies vary) |
Note: Table values are illustrative summaries based on provider published ranges in 2025–2026; always verify current rates on vendor billing pages.
Example cost scenarios (monthly estimates)
1) Small media site (5 TB stored, 5 TB egress/month, 1M GETs):
- Clever Cloud Cellar: Storage ~€100, Egress ~€100–€250, Requests ~€5 → Total ~€205–€355
- Amazon S3: Storage ~€125, Egress ~€450–€600, Requests ~€4 → Total ~€579–€729
2) Backup-archive (50 TB stored, 100 GB egress/month, infrequent GETs):
- Clever Cloud Cellar: Storage ~€1,000–€1,500, Egress ~€2–€10, Requests minimal → Total ~€1,002–€1,510
- Amazon S3 (Glacier Deep Archive alternative recommended): Lower storage cost possible but retrieval fees and access times differ; direct Standard class would cost more in egress.
These scenarios illustrate egress differences often drive TCO. The reader should model specific traffic profiles before selecting.
Recommended reproducible tests
A reliable comparison requires reproducible tests run from the same test client and network. Suggested tools and example commands:
- rclone (parallel transfers, multipart): rclone
- aws-cli for S3 operations: AWS CLI S3
- curl for simple PUT/GET to verify latency
Example rclone command (parallel multipart upload):
rclone copy --transfers 16 --checkers 8 --s3-chunk-size 64M ./testfiles remote:bucket/testfiles
Example aws-cli multipart upload (scripted):
aws s3 cp large-file.bin s3://bucket/large-file.bin --storage-class STANDARD
Measure:
- Latency: average of 100 small PUT/GET operations
- Throughput: sustained MB/s for parallel uploads of multiple 100–500 MB files
- Success rate and error patterns for retries
Expected patterns and notes
- Amazon S3 tends to show superior global throughput and consistent low-latency in nearby AWS regions due to backbone and CDN integration (CloudFront). Clever Cloud Cellar can deliver competitive latency within specific European POPs but may vary by exact data centre location.
- For edge delivery, pairing storage with a CDN (e.g., CloudFront, Fastly) reduces egress from origin and impacts cost calculus.
Migration guide: reproducible steps and scripts
Planning and prechecks
- Inventory buckets, object counts, average object size, metadata and ACL usage.
- Verify versioning and lifecycle rules. If versioning must be preserved, plan for object version translation.
- Check API features used (S3 Select, SSE-KMS, bucket policies) and map to Cellar equivalents.
1) Using aws cli (source S3) to Clever Cloud Cellar (S3-compatible endpoint)
- Configure a profile for the Cellar endpoint (example using AWS CLI v2):
aws configure --profile cellar
AWS_ACCESS_KEY_ID=CELAR_KEY
AWS_SECRET_ACCESS_KEY=CELAR_SECRET
AWS_DEFAULT_REGION=eu-west-1
- Then run sync (note: signature/version differences may require endpoint override):
aws s3 sync s3://source-bucket s3://target-bucket --profile source --endpoint-url https://cellar.example.eu
2) Using rclone (recommended for large/parallel migrations):
- rclone config: create two remotes (aws-s3 and cellar) then:
```bash
rclone sync aws-s3:source-bucket cellar:target-bucket --transfers 32 --checkers 16 --s3-chunk-size 64M
3) Preserving metadata and versions
- rclone preserves basic metadata; for full ACLs and versions, a staged export/import or vendor API calls may be necessary.
- For versioned buckets, export object version list and iterate with scripts to retrieve each version ID and re-upload with the original timestamp and metadata.
- Terraform can manage bucket creation and basic lifecycle rules. Example for AWS S3 bucket:
provider "aws" { region = "eu-west-1" }
resource "aws_s3_bucket" "example" { bucket = "project-bucket" }
- For S3-compatible providers, use the provider's S3-compatible or generic S3 provider with endpoint override.
Operational limits, SLAs and support differences
Practical limits
- Maximum object size: Amazon S3 supports up to 5 TB per object; multipart uploads required for files >5 GB. Verify Cellar maximum object size and multipart limits before moving very large objects.
- Number of buckets and rate limits: AWS has documented quotas (adjustable via support). Clever Cloud may impose different limits per account—check provider docs or support.
SLA and support
- Amazon S3 SLA is published by AWS and offers high availability guarantees with documented credits. For enterprise-grade SLAs and support, AWS Support plans are paid.
- Clever Cloud SLAs and support tiers vary; smaller providers may offer tailored agreements for EU customers, sometimes with faster local support but possibly fewer global redundancy guarantees.
Compliance and GDPR: residency, processors and legal controls
When comparing clever cloud Cellar vs Amazon S3, data controller/processor responsibilities remain with the user. Key points:
- Verify the provider’s Data Processing Agreement and whether standard contractual clauses are available for cross-border transfers.
- Confirm physical region locations and whether data can be locked to EU-only data centres.
- For authoritative guidance, consult EDPB and ICO resources.
Integration examples and common incompatibilities
SDKs and signing
- Standard AWS SDKs can often work with S3-compatible endpoints by overriding endpoint and credentials. However, differences in signature handling or unsupported advanced features (S3 Select, Object Lambda) require code changes.
CI/CD and Kubernetes
- Use rclone or aws-cli in pipelines for data syncs. For Kubernetes, integrate via CSI drivers if the provider supports an S3-compatible CSI plugin.
FAQ
What are the main egress cost differences between clever cloud Cellar and Amazon S3?
Egress is typically lower with smaller EU-focused providers; Amazon S3 egress from EU regions often charges around €0.09–€0.12/GB for initial tiers in 2026. Exact Cellar egress depends on plan and partner network; model expected traffic to compare.
Are S3 SDKs fully compatible with Cellar?
Basic S3 operations usually work with endpoint override. Advanced S3-only features (e.g., S3 Select, Transfer Acceleration) may not be supported. Test critical APIs before migration.
Use tools that support metadata preservation (rclone with appropriate flags) or script a metadata export/import. For ACLs, verify both source and target support identical ACL models.
Is data residency guaranteed with Cellar?
Clever Cloud markets EU residency; verify contractual terms and data processing agreements to ensure obligatory residency and cross-border restrictions.
If the architecture relies on a global CDN and AWS-integrated services, Amazon S3 plus CloudFront often simplifies integration. For purely EU-hosted content and lower egress, Cellar can be more cost-effective.
Both can be low-latency in Europe; AWS benefits from large network backbones and optimised regional throughput. Cellar performance depends on specific POP locations and network peering.
Are lifecycle and versioning fully compatible?
Basic lifecycle and versioning are commonly supported, but the exact rule set and retention options should be verified against both providers' docs before designing policies.
rclone is recommended for large, parallel, resumable transfers. aws-cli sync works for straightforward AWS-to-AWS moves. For cross-provider migrations, test in a staging environment.
Conclusion
Choosing between clever cloud Cellar vs Amazon S3 depends on specific priorities: egress-driven cost sensitivity and strict EU residency often favour Cellar; global scale, advanced S3 feature parity and CDN integration typically favour Amazon S3. The reader should run targeted cost models, perform small reproducible performance tests described above, and validate API compatibility and SLAs before full migration. A staged migration using rclone and Terraform with careful handling of metadata and versions reduces operational risk.
