Decentralised storage is one of the most mature dePIN categories, with multiple production networks processing real enterprise and developer workloads. But Filecoin, Arweave, and Storj are solving fundamentally different problems with fundamentally different economic models.
| Protocol | Model | Payment | Target Use Case | Retrieval |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filecoin | FIL | Pay per storage deal | Large data, archival | Paid separately |
| Arweave | AR | One-time permanent fee | Permanent web, NFT metadata | Free forever |
| Storj | STORJ | Monthly subscription | S3-compatible app storage | Free egress |
Filecoin is the largest decentralised storage network by capacity at 20+ exbibytes. Storage providers commit specialised hardware rigs and lock FIL as collateral to make verified storage deals. The model is complex but serious: Filecoin targets archival storage for scientific datasets, government records, and Web3 data availability.
Arweave takes a radically different approach. Users pay a one-time fee that funds perpetual storage through an endowment model — the network earns interest on stored funds to pay miners indefinitely. This makes Arweave ideal for NFT metadata, historic web archiving, and anything that must genuinely persist. The trade-off: storage is more expensive upfront than periodic payment models.
Storj is the most developer-friendly option, offering an S3-compatible API that existing applications can integrate with minimal code changes. Node operators contribute spare HDD capacity; Storj handles erasure coding, distribution, and encryption. The model most closely resembles traditional cloud storage — just without the centralised data centre.