Hosting & Infra

Cloudinary vs MinIO: Pricing Comparison 2026

Name: MinIO
Brand: MinIO
Availability: OnlineOnly
Rating: 4.4 (380 reviews)

Side-by-side pricing comparison of Cloudinary and MinIO. See all plans, features, and costs at a glance.

Bottom line: Both Cloudinary and MinIO offer free plans. Cloudinary has 4 pricing tiers while MinIO has 3.

Last updated: March 16, 2026

Data compiled by Arthur Jacquemin

Updated March 16, 2026

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Cloudinary vs MinIO: Quick Pricing Facts

Feature	Cloudinary	MinIO
Starting Price	$99/mo	Custom pricing
Number of Plans	4	3
Free Tier	Yes	Yes
Pricing Model	freemium	open-source
Annual Discount	N/A	N/A

Cloudinary and MinIO are both priced at $99/mo, making them equally accessible Hosting & Infra tools. Together they offer 7 pricing plans with 58 features compared, so the best choice comes down to which features match your needs.

Both tools offer free plans, making them accessible for teams on a budget. Cloudinary uses freemium pricing while MinIO uses open-source pricing, which may affect your total cost at scale.

Review the detailed tier-by-tier comparison above to see exactly which features are included at each price point and find the best fit for your Hosting & Infra needs.

Pricing Plans	Cloudinary Try it free	MinIO Try it free
Tier 1	FreePopular $0/monthCheapest Includes Upload widget, API, and search Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking Image and video transformations Video transcoding and adaptive streaming High performance delivery through a CDN Support — forums, tickets, and email Access to free add-ons Upload widget, API, and search Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking Image and video transformations Video transcoding and adaptive streaming High performance delivery through a CDN Support — forums, tickets, and email Access to free add-ons Access to MCP servers Start with Free	Free $0/monthCheapest Includes Full-featured, single-node deployment architecture Self-service community Slack and documentation support Free of charge Start with Free
Tier 2	PlusPopular $99/monthCheapest Includes Backup to your own S3 bucket Auto-tagging based search Access to free and paid add-ons Expedited support Allowlist/Blocklist asset access Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1 Role-based multi-user administration Backup to your own S3 bucket Auto-tagging based search Access to free and paid add-ons Expedited support Allowlist/Blocklist asset access Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1 Role-based multi-user administration Start with Plus	Enterprise Lite Custom pricing Includes Full-featured, horizontally scalable multi-node architecture Lite SUBNET subscription including health diagnostics and security reporting Optional add-on: Enterprise Lite Support with <5 day SLA Start with Enterprise Lite
Tier 3	AdvancedPopular $249/monthCheapest Includes Custom domain (CNAME) support Optional HTTPS SSL Certificate Authentication Options Custom domain (CNAME) support Optional HTTPS SSL Certificate Authentication Options Start with Advanced	Enterprise Custom pricing Includes Full-featured, horizontally scalable multi-node architecture Dedicated virtual onboarding Enterprise SUBNET subscription including health diagnostics, security reporting, team governance and more Proactive, 24/7/365 direct-to-engineer support with <4 hour SLA and Panic Button Start with Enterprise
Tier 4	EnterprisePopular Custom pricing Includes Backup to your own S3 bucket Auto-tagging based search Access to free and paid add-ons Expedited support Allowlist/Blocklist asset access Video Bandwidth Boost 2:1 Role-based multi-user administration Security and compliance review Multi-CDN and enterprise grade infrastructure Enterprise SLAs and support Designated customer success manager Custom contracts and invoicing User management (SSO, provisioning API) Start with Enterprise	—

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Cloudinary

Cloud-based image and video management platform

View all Cloudinary plans

MinIO

High-performance S3-compatible object storage server

View all MinIO plans

Our Pick

Cloudinary

Cloudinary offers a free plan, offers 4 tiers vs 3.

Based on pricing data only. Review the full comparison below for your specific needs.

Best value: Cloudinary

Try Cloudinary free

Which Should You Choose?

Choose Cloudinary if:

•You prefer Cloudinary's free tier features—Upload widget, API, and search, Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking
•You need 4 pricing tiers for flexible team sizing—more options mean less overpaying for features you don't need
•You want more features built-in—Cloudinary offers 38 additional features across its plans

Choose MinIO if:

•You prefer MinIO's free tier features—Full-featured, single-node deployment architecture, Self-service community Slack and documentation support
•You prioritize MinIO's user experience and interface over price (both tools are similarly priced)
•You want MinIO's approach to incremental feature unlocking across its 3 pricing tiers

Both Cloudinary and MinIO offer free plans [1], eliminating cost barriers for evaluation. This means you can test both tools thoroughly with your actual workflows before any financial commitment. The free tiers differ in scope: Cloudinary includes 15 features, while MinIO includes 3 features. Evaluate which free tier matches your evaluation needs before deciding to upgrade. Your best approach is to activate both free trials and evaluate which tool's workflow, integrations, and user experience align better with your team's needs before committing to paid plans.

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Frequently Asked Questions: Cloudinary vs MinIO

How many pricing plans does Cloudinary have vs MinIO?

Cloudinary offers 4 pricing plans, while MinIO offers 3 plans. More plans typically means more flexibility to match your exact needs and budget.

Does Cloudinary or MinIO offer a free plan?

Yes, both Cloudinary and MinIO offer free plans. Compare the feature limits of each free tier to see which better fits your use case before upgrading.

What is the most popular Cloudinary plan?

The Free plan is Cloudinary's most popular tier, priced at Free. Key features include Upload widget, API, and search, Remote fetch, auto-backup, and revision tracking, Image and video transformations.

Does Cloudinary or MinIO offer custom enterprise pricing?

Yes, both Cloudinary and MinIO offer custom enterprise pricing tiers with quote-based pricing. Contact each vendor for a tailored quote.

What pricing models do Cloudinary and MinIO use?

Cloudinary uses a freemium pricing model, while MinIO uses open-source pricing. The right model depends on your team size and usage patterns.

How do Cloudinary and MinIO compare for Hosting & Infra?

Both Cloudinary and MinIO are Hosting & Infra tools. Cloudinary offers 4 plans starting at $99/mo, while MinIO offers 3 plans starting at Custom pricing. Review the feature breakdowns above to see which better fits your Hosting & Infra needs.

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Sources

Cloudinary Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page
MinIO Official Pricing— Vendor pricing page

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