S3 Standard VS S3 Intelligent-Tiering

Let me break down when to use each S3 storage class:

S3 Standard:

1. Best for:

   • Frequently accessed data (multiple times per month)

   • Data with unpredictable access patterns

   • Short-term storage (less than 30 days)

   • Small objects (< 128KB)

Common Use Cases:

• Web content

• Content distribution

• Mobile/gaming applications

• Big data analytics

• Fresh data backups

S3 Intelligent-Tiering:

1. Best for:

   • Data with unknown or changing access patterns

   • Long-lived data (>30 days)

   • Objects larger than 128KB

   • When you want to optimize costs automatically

Common Use Cases:

• Data lakes

• Media archives

• User-generated content

• Application backups

• Long-term storage with varying access

Key Differences:

1. Cost Structure:

   • Standard: Fixed rate per GB

   • Intelligent-Tiering: Monthly monitoring fee + varying storage costs based on access patterns

2. Access Tiers in Intelligent-Tiering:

   • Frequent Access (same as Standard)

   • Infrequent Access (after 30 days of no access)

   • Archive Instant Access (after 90 days)

   • Deep Archive (after 180 days)

Decision Factors:

1. Choose Standard if:

   • Objects are <128KB

   • Storage duration <30 days

   • Consistent, frequent access

   • Need predictable costs

2. Choose Intelligent-Tiering if:

   • Objects are >128KB

   • Storage duration >30 days

   • Uncertain access patterns

   • Want automatic cost optimization

   • Willing to pay monitoring fee for potential savings