To estimate the storage cost for Google Photos, we need to consider the total number of photos, their average size, and Google's storage pricing.
- Estimate the number of photos: A typical user might take 10-20 photos per day. Over a year, this could be around 3,650 to 7,300 photos. Let's assume an average of 5,000 photos per user per year.
- Estimate average photo size: Modern smartphone photos are often around 3-5 MB. Let's use 4 MB as an average.
- Calculate annual storage per user: 5,000 photos/user/year * 4 MB/photo = 20,000 MB/user/year, which is approximately 20 GB per user per year.
- Determine Google's storage cost: Google One storage plans start at $1.99/month for 100 GB. This equates to roughly $0.0199 per GB per month, or $0.2388 per GB per year.
- Calculate annual cost per user: 20 GB/user/year * $0.2388/GB/year = ~$4.78 per user per year.
Assumptions:
- This estimate assumes users are storing photos at their original quality, which counts towards Google account storage. Google Photos previously offered unlimited "high quality" storage, but this changed in June 2021.
- The cost is based on Google One pricing, which may vary by region and plan.
- This doesn't account for video storage, which consumes significantly more space.
- We are not considering the number of Google Photos users, only the cost per user.
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