AWS Snowball Edge is a physical data transfer service: AWS ships a hardened storage device to the customer, the customer copies data to it, ships it back to AWS, and AWS ingests the data into S3. The service exists because the physics of moving large datasets over the public internet is unfavourable; at scale, shipping a hard drive is faster and cheaper than transferring over the network. This page is the 2026 cost reference for Snowball Edge and the decision rules for when to use it.
The AWS Snowball capacity question has a short answer in 2026: the only orderable data-migration device is the Snowball Edge Storage Optimized at 210 TB. The smaller Snowball units, the Snowcone, and the Snowmobile shipping container were all discontinued or retired, so a single 210 TB device (or several in parallel) now covers every offline transfer scenario.
AWS Snow family devices: capacity and 2026 status (verified July 2026)
| Device | Capacity | 2026 status | Data-migration cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowball Edge Storage Optimized (current) | 210 TB | Orderable | $1,800 up to 100 TB used, $3,200 for 101 to 210 TB, per job |
| Snowball Edge Storage Optimized (previous gen) | 80 TB | Discontinued for new orders 12 Nov 2024 | No longer orderable |
| Snowcone (HDD) | 8 TB | Discontinued for new orders 12 Nov 2024 | No longer orderable |
| Snowcone (SSD) | 14 TB | Discontinued for new orders 12 Nov 2024 | No longer orderable |
| Snowmobile (shipping container) | 100 PB per truck | Retired early 2024 | No longer offered |
Snowcone and Snowmobile pricing in 2026
Short answer: for 20 TB, Snowball is usually the wrong tool, and there is no 20 TB Snowball device. A single Snowball Edge job costs roughly $2,100 all in ($1,800 service fee plus about $300 round-trip shipping) no matter how little of the 210 TB device you fill, because there is no smaller, cheaper migration device in 2026; the 50 TB and 80 TB Snowball units and the 8 TB / 14 TB Snowcone were all discontinued for new orders on 12 November 2024. Moving the same 20 TB over the internet costs about $1,000 to $1,850 in source-side egress (at $0.05 to $0.09 per GB) and finishes in under 5 days on a 400 Mbps sustained connection. AWS DataSync adds only about $256 ($0.0125/GB) on top of egress if you want managed online transfer.
Moving 20 TB to AWS S3: Snowball vs internet (verified pricing structure, June 2026)
| Approach | Cost | Elapsed time | Verdict at 20 TB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Snowball Edge 210 TB (≤100 TB tier) | ~$2,100 ($1,800 fee + ~$300 shipping) | 13 to 16 days | Overkill unless bandwidth is very low |
| Internet egress at $0.05/GB | $1,024 | ~4.7 days at 400 Mbps | Cheaper and faster |
| Internet egress at $0.09/GB | $1,843 | ~4.7 days at 400 Mbps | Still cheaper than Snowball |
| DataSync over internet ($0.0125/GB) | $256 + egress above | ~4.7 days + agent setup | Managed online alternative |
The 20 TB rule of thumb
AWS consolidated the Snow family in late 2024: Snowcone and the previous-generation 80 TB Snowball Edge Storage Optimized were discontinued for new orders on 12 November 2024. As of June 2026 a single device handles data migration: the Snowball Edge Storage Optimized 210 TB (NVMe storage, up to 1.5 GB/s transfer). The Compute Optimized device remains, but as an edge-compute product on monthly and committed plans, not a per-job migration option. The migration device is ruggedised for shipping, encrypted by default, and chain-of-custody tracked from order to ingest.
AWS Snowball Edge on-demand pricing for data migration (June 2026)
| Option | Service fee (per job) | Included on-site period | Daily extension | Shipping (round-trip) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Storage Optimized 210 TB, up to 100 TB used | $1,800 | 15 days | $250/day | Carrier rates, varies by location and speed |
| Storage Optimized 210 TB, 101 to 210 TB used | $3,200 | 15 days | $250/day | Carrier rates, varies by location and speed |
| Compute Optimized (edge compute, not migration) | $5,038/month plan | Monthly | n/a | Carrier rates |
Pricing verification
The current pricing is on the public AWS Snowball pricing page. Rates vary slightly by region. The job fee covers the included 15 days from when the device arrives at the customer location to when it ships back to AWS; days beyond that bill at $250 per day. Data ingest into S3 is free; only the job fee plus shipping applies. The 100 TB tier boundary matters for planning: a job that loads 101 TB costs $1,400 more than one that stays at 100 TB.
The decision between Snowball Edge and internet transfer depends on three variables: the dataset size, the available bandwidth, and the source-side egress charge. For AWS-source datasets the source egress charge is the AWS Data Transfer Out rate (which is paid even for internet egress). For non-AWS-source datasets (on-premise, other cloud) the source egress charge is the source provider's outbound rate. The calculator below stacks all three together and surfaces the bandwidth break-even at your data volume.
Snowball Edge vs internet egress, decision matrix
| Dataset size | Available bandwidth | Best option | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 TB | Any | Internet transfer | $1,800 job fee not justified |
| 10 to 25 TB | 100 Mbps+ | Internet transfer | Usually cheaper than the job fee; DataSync simplest |
| 10 to 25 TB | Under 100 Mbps | Snowball Edge | Internet transfer too slow |
| 25 to 100 TB | 1 Gbps+ dedicated | Either | Cost-neutral zone; choose on operational preference |
| 25 to 100 TB | Shared / under 1 Gbps | Snowball Edge ($1,800 tier) | Cheaper and faster at typical egress rates |
| 100 to 210 TB | Any | Snowball Edge ($3,200 tier) | Single device fits |
| 210 TB to 1 PB | Any | Multiple Snowball Edge devices | Snowmobile retired |
| Over 1 PB | Any | Multiple Snowball Edge + Direct Connect | Combination approach |
A representative break-even analysis for a 50 TB transfer from an on-premise data centre to AWS S3. The on-premise side has a 1 Gbps internet connection shared with other production traffic; sustainable transfer rate for the migration is approximately 400 Mbps. The on-premise provider charges $0.05 per GB for outbound internet egress.
Worked break-even, 50 TB from on-premise to AWS S3
| Approach | Time to complete | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Internet transfer at 400 Mbps sustained | 12 days transfer + 1 day overhead | $2,560 (50 TB at $0.05/GB egress) |
| Snowball Edge Storage Optimized 210 TB (single device, $1,800 tier) | 13 to 16 days total elapsed | $1,800 job fee + roughly $300 shipping = $2,100 |
| DataSync over internet at 400 Mbps | 12 days transfer + agent setup | $2,560 egress + $640 DataSync ($0.0125/GB) = $3,200 |
Snowball Edge wins on cost by roughly $450 in this scenario, a much narrower margin than under the old 80 TB device pricing. At lower source egress rates or smaller volumes the internet path wins outright: at $0.05/GB the cost break-even sits at roughly 40 TB, and at $0.09/GB at roughly 25 TB. The trade-offs are elapsed time (similar here) and the operational overhead of receiving, copying to, and shipping back the device.
The Snowball Edge cost advantage
AWS Snowmobile, the 100 PB shipping container service introduced in 2016, was officially retired in early 2024. The service had handled extremely large data transfers (multi-petabyte enterprise data lake migrations primarily). Utilisation was low; only a handful of customers used Snowmobile each year. AWS retired the service in favour of the multi-Snowball pattern combined with Direct Connect for ongoing replication.
For petabyte-scale transfers in 2026, the recommended pattern: order multiple Snowball Edge 210 TB devices in parallel waves, run them in sequence to maintain ongoing customer-side IO, and use AWS Direct Connect for any incremental delta or ongoing replication after the bulk seed. A 1 PB transfer typically uses 5 to 8 devices in 2 to 3 waves, completing in 4 to 8 weeks of elapsed time at a total job-fee cost of roughly $16,000 to $26,000 (each fully-loaded device bills at the $3,200 tier) plus shipping.
Snowball Edge supports both import (data into AWS) and export (data out of AWS to a customer location). The export use case is most common in cross-cloud transfers where the customer is moving from AWS to Azure or GCP. The export device is ordered, AWS copies the data to the device, ships it to the customer, the customer ingests into the destination cloud (typically using Azure Data Box or Google Transfer Appliance), and ships back.
Export jobs pay the device job fee plus AWS data transfer out at standard rates, so the advantage over direct internet egress is mostly operational: no bandwidth ceiling, no weeks-long transfer window. Customers leaving AWS entirely should ask about the free data transfer out programme AWS announced in March 2024, which can waive the egress component of an exit migration.
AWS DataSync is the online data transfer service that complements Snowball Edge. The common pattern: Snowball Edge for the initial bulk seed (when the dataset is large and time is not critical), DataSync for ongoing incremental replication during the migration and cutover (when the dataset is small per increment and time-sensitive).
DataSync pricing is $0.0125 per GB transferred, with no separate compute charge. For a 5 TB incremental transfer per week during a 12-week migration cutover, the DataSync cost lands at approximately $750. The combined bulk-plus-incremental pattern typically uses Snowball for 80 to 95 percent of the data and DataSync for the remaining 5 to 20 percent that accumulates during the migration window.
AWS Snowball Edge remains the right tool for bulk transfer at scale, but the 2024 move to the 210 TB device and its per-job fee raised the entry cost: below roughly 25 to 40 TB, internet transfer now usually wins on cost. Above 100 TB, or wherever bandwidth is constrained, Snowball wins decisively. The retirement of Snowmobile has not meaningfully changed the petabyte-scale story because multi-Snowball patterns combined with Direct Connect cover the same use case. For most AWS migrations above 50 TB, Snowball Edge is the right default.
A. The current data-migration device is the Snowball Edge Storage Optimized 210 TB. The on-demand service fee is per job, in two tiers: $1,800 if you use up to 100 TB of the device, or $3,200 if you use 101 to 210 TB. Each job includes 15 days with the device on site; days beyond that are billed at $250 per day. Round-trip shipping is extra at carrier rates. Data ingest into S3 is free. The older 80 TB Storage Optimized device (the $300-per-job generation) was discontinued for new orders on 12 November 2024.
A. There is no 20 TB Snowball device. As of 2026 the only data-migration device is the Snowball Edge Storage Optimized 210 TB; the smaller 50 TB and 80 TB Snowball units and the 8 TB / 14 TB Snowcone were discontinued for new orders on 12 November 2024. A Snowball job for 20 TB still costs the full ~$2,100 all in ($1,800 service fee plus about $300 shipping), because the fee is fixed regardless of how little you load. Moving 20 TB (20,480 GB) over the internet costs about $1,024 at $0.05/GB or $1,843 at $0.09/GB of source egress, and takes under 5 days on a 400 Mbps sustained connection. For 20 TB, internet transfer or DataSync (adds ~$256 at $0.0125/GB) is almost always cheaper and faster; Snowball only pays off below roughly 150 Mbps of available bandwidth.
A. With the $1,800 minimum job fee, Snowball typically beats internet egress on pure cost above roughly 40 TB at a $0.05/GB source egress rate, or above roughly 25 TB at $0.09/GB. Below those volumes, internet transfer is usually cheaper unless bandwidth is the constraint. For a 100 TB transfer on a shared connection sustaining 400 Mbps, internet transfer takes roughly 24 days of pure transfer time and costs $5K to $9K in source-side egress; a single Snowball Edge job at $1,800 plus shipping completes within the included 15-day window and typically saves 60 to 75 percent.
A. The current AWS Snowball Edge Storage Optimized device holds 210 TB, billed in two per-job tiers: $1,800 for up to 100 TB used and $3,200 for 101 to 210 TB. The previous-generation Snowball Edge held 80 TB and the original Snowball came in 50 TB and 80 TB units; all were discontinued for new orders on 12 November 2024. The 8 TB (HDD) and 14 TB (SSD) Snowcone and the 100 PB Snowmobile are also gone, leaving the 210 TB device as the only orderable Snow migration device in 2026. For datasets larger than 210 TB, AWS uses multiple devices in parallel.
A. Neither is orderable in 2026, so there is no current price. AWS retired Snowmobile, the 100 PB shipping-container service, in early 2024, and discontinued the 8 TB / 14 TB Snowcone for new orders on 12 November 2024 (existing-customer support ended 12 November 2025). For any transfer those devices once suited, the current option is the Snowball Edge Storage Optimized 210 TB at $1,800 per job (up to 100 TB used), or multiple devices in parallel for petabyte-scale moves. For small datasets, internet transfer or AWS DataSync at $0.0125/GB is now cheaper than any offline device.
A. Yes. AWS officially retired Snowmobile in early 2024. Snowmobile was the 100 PB shipping container service for extremely large data transfers. For petabyte-scale transfers, AWS now recommends multiple Snowball Edge devices in parallel, plus DataSync for ongoing replication. The retirement was driven by low utilisation and the increasing capability of multi-Snowball patterns combined with high-bandwidth Direct Connect.
A. Snowball Edge Export can be used to ship data out of AWS to a customer location. The destination cloud-side ingest then uses a separate device (Azure Data Box for Azure, Transfer Appliance for GCP, customer-side internet ingest for other targets). Export jobs pay the device job fee plus AWS data transfer out at standard rates, so the saving versus direct internet egress is mostly operational (no bandwidth ceiling) rather than fee-based. Customers migrating off AWS entirely should ask AWS about the free data transfer out programme announced in March 2024, which can waive the egress component.
A. The end-to-end Snowball Edge cycle: AWS ships the device (3 to 7 days transit), customer copies data to the device (1 to 5 days depending on data volume and source IO), customer ships the device back to AWS (3 to 7 days transit), AWS ingests the data into S3 (1 to 3 days). Total elapsed time for a typical 80 TB transfer is 12 to 22 days. For comparison, the same 80 TB at 400 Mbps sustained over the public internet would take roughly 18 days of pure transfer time, plus the source-side egress cost.
A. Yes. All Snowball Edge devices use 256-bit encryption with keys managed by AWS Key Management Service (KMS). The encryption is enabled by default and cannot be disabled. Tamper-evident enclosures, Trusted Platform Module (TPM), and chain-of-custody tracking all combine to meet most regulatory requirements for in-transit data protection. Snowball Edge is FedRAMP authorised and HIPAA-eligible.
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Updated 2 May 2026