What it actually costs to be protected.
WHAT YOU PAY FOR
Cloud storage, which for a typical website is modest Your time configuring and checking Occasionally a paid backup service
WHAT IT COSTS TO BE UNPROTECTED
A rebuild, at whatever a developer charges Lost business while offline Lost data that cannot be recreated Customer trust
The comparison is not close.
ESTIMATING STORAGE
Take one backup and note the size. Multiply by your retention count.
A site with a 500MB backup, keeping fourteen dailies, eight weeklies and twelve monthlies, needs roughly 17GB. Most free cloud storage tiers cover a small site; a modest paid tier covers several.
REDUCING IT
Exclude caches and logs Back up the database more often than files Move video off the server Compress properly
WHEN COSTS GROW
Media-heavy sites. Consider whether originals need backing up from the server at all, if you hold them elsewhere.
THE PRINCIPLE
Spend proportionately. For most small business sites, adequate backups cost very little.
