Salesforce has redefined how businesses engage with customers. As a powerful CRM platform, it houses critical data, from lead records to case histories. However, with this advantage comes a pressing challenge: managing Salesforce data storage costs effectively. Organizations are generating more information than ever before. If you’re noticing an increase in the prices of your Salesforce storage, you’re not alone.
In such cases, without a smart strategy, companies may end up paying substantial recurring fees or struggling with a sluggish Salesforce environment. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know about Salesforce storage, Salesforce data storage pricing, and how to manage your data more efficiently.
The Salesforce Storage Model: An Overview
Salesforce offers two types of storage:
- Data Storage: Covers records like Accounts, Contacts, Opportunities, Cases, and custom object data.
- File Storage: Includes attachments, files, content from Salesforce CRM Content, and documents.
Each Salesforce edition — Professional, Enterprise, Unlimited, or Performance comes with a baseline data and file storage limit.
For instance, the Enterprise Edition typically includes 10 GB of data storage per org, plus additional storage per user license.
However, as companies grow, so do their Salesforce data storage costs and overall data footprint. Marketing campaigns, customer support interactions, case resolutions, and third-party integrations all add layers of information daily. Before long, businesses find themselves approaching or exceeding their storage limits and often turning toward additional storage.
Understanding Salesforce Data Storage Pricing
When an organization crosses the standard storage threshold, Salesforce offers additional data storage, but at a premium.
Approximately $125 per month for 500MB of extra data storage.
File storage is often less expensive, but data storage, crucial for operations, carries a much higher price tag.
This data storage Salesforce pricing structure may seem manageable initially. However, when data volumes double or triple year-over-year, businesses find themselves spending thousands annually, often without a clear data management strategy in place.
| Storage Type | Salesforce Native (On-Platform) | External Cloud (AWS S3 Standard) | Approx. Savings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Data Storage | $125 per 500 MB / month → $250 / GB / month | $0.023 / GB / month | ~10,870× cheaper |
| File Storage | $5 / GB / month | $0.023 / GB / month | ~217× cheaper |
| 5 GB / month (example) | Data = $1,250 File = $25 | $0.115 total | Saves 99.99%+ cost |
| 1 TB / year (example) | Data = $3,072,000 File = $61,440 | $282.62 / year | Saves ~99.99% in spend |
How to Check If You Are Out of Storage
Salesforce makes it easy to monitor your storage usage:
- Navigate to Setup.
- Search for Storage Usage.
- Review the breakdown under Data Storage and File Storage.
You’ll see a detailed view of which objects consume the most space. If you’re above 85% usage, it’s time to take proactive action. If you’re already at 95%, you’ll start receiving Salesforce warning notifications.
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Causes of Data Growth in Salesforce Data Storage Cost per GB
Several factors contribute to unexpected data volume growth and rising Salesforce data storage costs:
- Business Expansion: More customers, leads, and opportunities generate additional records, increasing your overall data volume.
- High Customer Service Activity: Case histories, emails, and customer interactions accumulate quickly, filling up storage space.
- Marketing Initiatives: Campaign member records, events, and digital marketing data add significantly to storage usage.
- Third-party App Integrations: Apps from AppExchange or custom integrations create their own records, further raising storage requirements.
- Inefficient Data Management: Lack of regular cleanup and no archiving strategy causes data bloat over time.
Unchecked, these factors accelerate storage consumption, driving up the Salesforce storage price and overall Salesforce data storage cost per GB, catching many businesses off guard.
What to Do If You Run Out of Salesforce Data Storage
When you hit the storage limit, Salesforce restricts new record creation and alerts administrators. At this point, you have a few options:
Data Deletion
Manually delete old records. However, this approach is risky; you may lose valuable historical information needed for compliance, auditing, or customer service.
Purchase Additional Storage
Buy extra storage space from Salesforce at the going rates. This is quick but comes with recurring costs, and both Salesforce data storage and Salesforce file storage costs can add up significantly over time based on Salesforce Data Cloud pricing models.
Data Archiving
Move older or less frequently accessed data to an alternative storage system while keeping it accessible when needed.
Of these options, archiving is emerging as the most sustainable and intelligent solution.
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Why Salesforce Data Archiving Matters
Rather than paying high storage fees or risking data loss challenges through deletion, businesses can implement data archiving solutions.
- Massive Cost Savings: Archived data moves to low-cost storage platforms (e.g., AWS, Azure, Salesforce Big Objects), reducing reliance on expensive Salesforce storage.
- Improved Performance: By keeping your active Salesforce org lean, your CRM operations, searches, reporting, and dashboard loading become much faster.
- Compliance and Retention: Instead of deleting valuable historical data, you can retain it safely for audit or legal needs.
- Easy Accessibility: Good archiving solutions allow users to search, view, and restore archived records without disrupting day-to-day operations.
Build a Future-proof Data Archiving Strategy in Salesforce with DataArchiva
In short, archiving tackles both storage costs and system performance simultaneously.
Why Choose DataArchiva for Your Salesforce Data Management?
DataArchiva stands out as a market leader in Salesforce data management and archiving solutions.
Here’s why businesses trust DataArchiva:
- Flexible Storage Options: Archive data either natively within Salesforce (using Big Objects) or off-platform into external cloud or on-premise databases.
- Automated Data Lifecycle Management: Define rules once and let archiving happen automatically without manual intervention.
- User Experience: Access archived records directly from Salesforce without leaving the platform.
- Security & Compliance: End-to-end encryption and support for industry-specific compliance needs (e.g., HIPAA, GDPR).
- Proven ROI: Organizations save up to 85% on storage costs within the first year of implementation.
Final Thoughts
Salesforce’s CRM capabilities are unmatched, but data growth and storage costs can turn an asset into a liability if not managed properly.
Simply buying more storage is a short-term fix that leads to long-term budget strain. A smarter approach involves proactively archiving your Salesforce data, improving system performance, meeting compliance obligations, and cutting costs dramatically.
FAQs
When your Salesforce org reaches its data storage limit, you'll receive warning alerts and may face restrictions on record creation until you free up space or purchase more storage.
Additional Salesforce data storage typically costs $125 per month for every 500 MB. These charges are recurring and can accumulate significantly as your organization grows.
Yes! Archiving allows you to move older, inactive data to a lower-cost storage platform without deleting it, ensuring compliance, accessibility, and cost-efficiency.
DataArchiva provides advanced Salesforce data archiving solutions that automate the archiving process, reduce primary storage usage, maintain data accessibility, and help organizations save on storage costs by up to 85%.
DataArchiva empowers businesses to thrive with predictable costs and scalable infrastructure.
