Salesforce File Storage vs Data Storage is one of those admin topics that looks simple until your org starts running out of space. The short version: Data Storage holds Salesforce records and their field values, while File Storage holds uploaded files, attachments, content, and other file-based assets. They have separate limits, separate usage breakdowns, and different ways to manage them. This guide breaks down the difference, what actually consumes each bucket, what happens when either one gets full, and when archiving makes more sense than simply buying more storage.
Salesforce Data Storage vs File Storage
What Counts as Salesforce Data Storage?
Data Storage is where Salesforce stores the records that power your CRM.
Read the detailed Salesforce Data Storage Guide.
Common examples include:
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Accounts and Contacts.
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Leads and Opportunities.
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Cases and Contracts.
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Tasks and Events.
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Email Messages.
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Notes.
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Custom object records.
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Campaigns and Campaign Members.
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Salesforce estimates many standard records at around 2 KB each, although some objects consume more. For example, Person Accounts are estimated at 4 KB, while Campaign records are estimated at 8 KB. Email Messages can consume more depending on their content.
Read more: How to Reduce Salesforce Email Storage Costs Without Losing Critical Data
This is where record-heavy Salesforce orgs can quietly rack up storage.
How DataArchiva helps: DataArchiva can archive inactive Salesforce records to Big Objects or external storage while preserving relationships, historical access, and data visibility.
What Counts as Salesforce File Storage?
File Storage is different. It is primarily concerned with the actual file content rather than the CRM record itself.
That includes:
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Salesforce Files.
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Attachments.
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Chatter files.
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Salesforce CRM Content.
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Documents.
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Images.
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File versions.
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Files associated with records.
Salesforce currently allocates File Storage separately from Data Storage. For example, many Salesforce editions receive 10 GB of base Data Storage and 10 GB of File Storage, with additional allocations depending on edition and licenses.
How DataArchiva helps: DataArchiva supports archiving large volumes of files and attachments to external environments while keeping historical information accessible.
Are Notes, Attachments, and Chatter Files the Same?
Nope. This is where things get confusing.
Legacy Notes and Attachments are not the same thing as Salesforce Files or Enhanced Notes. Salesforce’s newer Notes experience uses the ContentNote object, while attachments and files use different content structures. Salesforce also notes that file storage calculations can include Content Bodies created by files, notes, embedded rich-text images, and Chatter content.
Bottom line: Don’t assume that everything users call a “file” belongs to the same Salesforce storage category.
DataArchiva advantage: DataArchiva can handle Salesforce data, files, attachments, Chatter feeds, field audit data, and custom objects as part of a broader archiving strategy.
Why Salesforce Has Two Storage Buckets
What Happens When You Mix Them Up?
The biggest mistake is looking at your total Salesforce storage percentage and assuming you know what is causing it.
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You might have plenty of Data Storage left while File Storage is almost full. Or your records may be consuming most of your Data Storage while your file usage is relatively low.
That changes the fix.
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If this is filling up |
Your first question should be |
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Data Storage |
Which objects and records are consuming space? |
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File Storage |
Which files, attachments, notes, or content are consuming space? |
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Both |
Do you need separate record and file archiving policies? |
Salesforce itself separates these categories in its Storage Usage view because they represent different types of consumption.
How DataArchiva helps: DataArchiva gives teams options to archive records and associated files instead of treating storage as a one-size-fits-all problem.
Does It Work the Same Across Salesforce Editions?
Not exactly.
Storage allocations vary by Salesforce edition and license mix. For example, Professional, Enterprise, Performance, and Unlimited editions have different per-user Data Storage allocations, while File Storage allocations are also edition-dependent.
So don’t build your storage strategy around a random “Salesforce gives you X GB” number. Check your actual org allocation.
Records vs Files: What’s Filling Up Your Org?
Which Records Consume Data Storage?
Some of the usual suspects are:
Cases → Email Messages → Tasks → Opportunities → Campaigns → Custom Objects
Salesforce’s current storage estimates put many records at approximately 2 KB, but high-volume objects can become significant when you have hundreds of thousands or millions of records.
For example, 1 million records at an estimated 2 KB each represents roughly 2 GB of Data Storage, before accounting for objects with higher storage requirements or related data.
DataArchiva helps by allowing admins to define which historical records should leave active Salesforce storage and when they should be archived.
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Which Files Can Bloat File Storage?
File-heavy organizations can have a completely different problem.
Think:
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PDFs.
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Contracts.
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Images.
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Videos.
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Email attachments.
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Chatter attachments.
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Multiple file versions.
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Embedded images in rich-text fields.
And here’s the kicker: Salesforce says its Storage Usage calculation can include content that isn’t obvious from a basic ContentDocument query, including ContentNotes, embedded rich-text images, and Chatter content.
DataArchiva helps by supporting multimedia archiving, including large Salesforce files, images, videos, and documents to external storage.
Salesforce File Storage vs Data Storage: Quick Overview
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Salesforce Data Storage |
Salesforce File Storage |
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What you store |
Records, Cases, Contacts, Opportunities, EmailMessage, custom objects |
Files, attachments, documents, images, videos |
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Additional storage cost |
Historically around $125/month for 500 MB |
Historically around $5/GB/month |
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Approx. cost per GB/month |
$250/GB |
$5/GB |
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Relative cost |
~50× more expensive per GB |
Lower-cost Salesforce storage |
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Typical growth driver |
High-volume records and transactional history |
Documents, attachments and media |
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Can DataArchiva help? |
Yes |
Yes |
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DataArchiva approach |
Archive inactive records to Big Objects or external storage |
Archive files, attachments and multimedia to external storage |
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Potential savings |
Up to 80% according to DataArchiva |
Can also reduce Salesforce file-storage dependency |
Where Do You See Storage Usage?
In Salesforce, go to:
Setup → Storage Usage
The page separates Data Storage and File Storage and shows the amount used, available Salesforce data storage limits, and category-level breakdowns.
Don’t just look at the percentage. Look at what is actually consuming the storage.
What Do the Numbers Mean?
Suppose your org shows:
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Storage |
Limit |
Used |
What It Tells You |
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Data Storage |
10 GB |
8.2 GB |
Record growth is your concern |
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File Storage |
10 GB |
3.1 GB |
Files aren’t your immediate bottleneck |
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Data Storage |
10 GB |
9.8 GB |
You’re much closer to the limit |
This distinction matters because archiving files won’t fix a Data Storage problem, and archiving records won’t fix a file-heavy Salesforce org.
DataArchiva helps by giving teams a way to move historical data and files to an appropriate archive location instead of relying exclusively on Salesforce’s production storage.
What Happens When Salesforce Storage Fills Up?
When Data Storage Hits the Limit
Reaching 100% doesn’t necessarily mean your org instantly stops working. Salesforce states that production orgs can continue running at or around the limit, but performance can degrade beyond available storage, with the exact impact depending on the implementation.
That’s not exactly a situation you want to discover during a critical business process.
When File Storage Hits the Limit
File Storage is a separate capacity problem. If users keep uploading documents, images, attachments, or other content while available capacity is running low, the organization needs to reduce usage or increase its storage allowance.
The important takeaway: Don’t wait until either bucket becomes an emergency.
DataArchiva helps teams move inactive records and file attachments out of the active Salesforce environment, reducing the pressure on production storage.
Salesforce Data Archiving vs File Archiving
Why Deleting Records Isn’t the Same Fix
Deleting an old Case doesn’t automatically solve a file-storage problem if the real culprit is years of PDFs and attachments.
Likewise, moving files out won’t solve a Data Storage problem caused by millions of historical records.
The storage type determines the remediation.
How DataArchiva Handles Both
DataArchiva approaches Salesforce data archiving based on the type and lifecycle of the information.
It can:
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Archive Salesforce records.
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Archive files and attachments.
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Preserve parent-child relationships.
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Apply retention policies.
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Schedule automated archive jobs.
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Search archived information.
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Restore archived records when required.
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Support native Big Objects or external cloud/on-prem storage.
DataArchiva supports archive destinations including Big Objects, AWS, Azure, Heroku, GCP, and on-premises environments, depending on the architecture selected.
The point isn’t to make Salesforce forget your historical data. It’s to stop making your production org carry every piece of historical information forever.
Salesforce File Storage vs Data Storage: Quick Comparison
|
Factor |
Data Storage |
File Storage |
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Stores |
Salesforce records |
Files and content |
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Examples |
Cases, Leads, Accounts, Tasks |
PDFs, images, attachments |
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Common problem |
Too many records |
Too many/larger files |
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Storage measured separately? |
Yes |
Yes |
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Typical growth driver |
Transaction history |
Documents and media |
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Best first step |
Identify high-volume objects |
Identify file/content sources |
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Archiving approach |
Archive historical records |
Archive files and attachments |
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DataArchiva support |
Native + external archiving |
File and attachment archiving |
Salesforce Storage Cost Comparison
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Approach |
What happens |
Best for |
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Buy more Salesforce storage |
Expands your Salesforce capacity |
Short-term capacity needs |
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Delete data/files |
Frees storage permanently |
Content with no retention value |
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Archive data |
Moves historical records out of active storage |
Long-term record retention |
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Archive files |
Moves inactive files/attachments to another storage layer |
File-heavy organizations |
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DataArchiva |
Supports native and external Salesforce archiving |
Organizations needing retention + access + storage control |
Salesforce itself recognizes data archiving as an alternative to simply increasing storage for certain use cases.
The Bottom Line
Salesforce File Storage vs Data Storage isn’t just a terminology difference. It’s a capacity and cost decision.
If records are filling your Data Storage, investigate the objects driving that growth. If files and attachments are filling File Storage, investigate your content footprint. And if both are growing, you need a storage strategy that handles both separately.
That’s where Salesforce data archiving becomes useful. DataArchiva can move historical Salesforce data and files away from active production storage while keeping that information searchable, accessible, and restorable when the business needs it.
