Best Software-Defined Storage Software in 2026
Updated
In short: MooseFS is ranked #1 of 28 as of 4 October 2026, ahead of SeaweedFS and MinIO AIStor. The best-ranked option with a free plan is SeaweedFS. The lowest first paid tier on this page is SeaweedFS at $1.67/mo.
Software-defined storage products give you different ways to deploy and connect storage, with features that can matter for compatibility and resilience. Compare deployment model, storage protocols, S3-compatible access, and Kubernetes support. Replication and erasure coding are additional criteria, while maximum nodes offers another point of comparison. Check free-plan availability and paid-from pricing as well. Ceph leads the entries, followed by MinIO AIStor and SeaweedFS; StarWind Virtual SAN, Gluster, and MooseFS also appear near the top. Consider which listed capabilities fit your environment and storage requirements, rather than assuming that every platform supports the same deployment or access options.
28 software-defined storage software ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
#1 MooseFS Top pick · 7.3 Free plan · Free
#2 SeaweedFS Runner-up · 7.3 Free plan · $1.67/mo
#3 MinIO AIStor Also great · 7.2 Free plan · Free
- Free plan apiLinuxmacOSself-hostedWebWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Deployment model
- on-premises
- Storage protocols
- POSIX filesystem; block device; C API
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free planFree trial apiLinuxmacOSself-hostedWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- 2 /mo
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$1.67/mofirst paid tier About SeaweedFSVisit site - Free planFree trial apiLinuxmacOSself-hostedWebWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free planFree trial apiLinuxmacOSself-hostedWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- 0.02 /mo
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- POSIX, HDFS, S3, WebDAV
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free planFree trial Linuxself-hostedWebWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Storage protocols
- iSCSI, SMB3, NFSv4.1, NVMe-oF, iSER
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan Linuxself-hostedWindows
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- Block; NFSv3; NFSv4.1; SMB; S3-compatible object storage
- Maximum nodes
- 64
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan apiLinuxself-hostedWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatformsFree About CephVisit site - Free plan apiLinuxself-hosted
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan Linuxself-hosted
- Free plan
- Yes
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- Native GlusterFS, NFS, SMB/CIFS, iSCSI, Swift REST API
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free plan apiLinuxself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - apiLinuxself-hosted
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- key-value, POSIX, HDF5, MPI-IO, S3 API
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Free trial apiself-hostedWebWindows
- Free plan
- No
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - apiLinuxself-hosted
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms$83.33/mofirst paid tier About LINSTORVisit site - Free trial apiLinuxself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- No
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- NFS, SMB, S3, REST, FTP, FTPS
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - apiLinuxself-hostedWebRecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms
- Free trial apiLinuxself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- No
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - apiLinuxself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- No
- Deployment model
- on-premises
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - apiself-hostedWebRecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms
- WebRecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms
- Free trial LinuxmacOSself-hostedWindows
- Deployment model
- on-premises
- Storage protocols
- NFS 3.x, NFS 4.0, pNFS
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Linux
- Storage protocols
- Object Gateway, RADOS Block Device, CephFS, librados
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - WebLinux
- Free plan
- No
- Deployment model
- on-premises
- Storage protocols
- iSCSI
- Maximum nodes
- 1
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms - Web
- Free plan
- No
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- NVMe/TCP block storage
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms -
- Deployment model
- hybrid
- Storage protocols
- S3-compatible API, NFS, SMB
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms -
- Free plan
- No
- Deployment model
- on-premises
- Storage protocols
- NFS, SMB/CIFS, iSCSI, NVMe over TCP, S3
- Maximum nodes
- 12
- Replication
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planPlatforms
Is your app on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which software-defined storage software is ranked first on Everything Xiaomi?
MooseFS is ranked #1 of 28 with a score of 7.3. SeaweedFS is second and MinIO AIStor third.
How many of these have a free plan?
10 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, SeaweedFS has the lowest first paid tier we found: $1.67/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on what each maker publishes: documentation depth, a free tier and the platforms it runs on. Paid placements never change a rank.