Arweave vs Skynet: Permanent Data Retrieval

One-time, upfront payment for permanent storage via the endowment model. Data is stored on the blockweave, a blockchain-like structure, guaranteeing verifiable, long-term persistence. This is critical for NFT metadata, legal documents, and historical archives where data must be immutable for decades.

Strong protocol-level tooling with standards like ANS-104 (Bundles) and ANS-110 (Tags). Supports SmartWeave lazy-evaluation smart contracts for on-chain logic. A mature ecosystem with projects like ArDrive, everVision, and KYVE building on top. Ideal for dApps requiring complex, verifiable data pipelines.

Sub-second latency for data retrieval via a global network of portals. Built on Sia's underlying storage, it's optimized for dynamic web apps, streaming, and user-generated content. The Skylink system provides immutable pointers, but storage contracts are renewable, not permanent. Best for performance-sensitive frontends and social feeds.

Pay-as-you-go, renewable storage model (typically monthly). Significantly lower upfront cost for data that may need to be updated or removed. Native support for mutable data via Skynet Registry. This is optimal for web hosting, collaborative documents, and application state where files change over time.

One-time, perpetual storage fee: Pay once for ~200 years of guaranteed data persistence, backed by the endowment model and Proof of Access consensus. This matters for NFT metadata, legal documents, and protocol archives where data must be immutable and accessible forever. Projects like Solana and Polygon use Arweave for permanent state snapshots.

Significant initial capital outlay: Storing 1GB can cost ~$35-$50 upfront, making it expensive for large, dynamic datasets. Developer experience is more complex versus object storage APIs, requiring integration with bundlers like Bundlr or ArDrive. This matters for high-volume applications (e.g., user-generated content platforms) or teams needing simple S3-like interfaces.

Pay-as-you-go pricing: Costs are ~$2/TB/month, making it economical for large-scale, mutable data. Sub-second retrieval speeds via a global CDN of Skynet portals. This matters for decentralized frontends (dApps), video streaming, and dynamic web apps where performance and cost predictability are critical. Used by Filecoin for retrievability layers.

Renewable leases: Data is stored on Sia network hosts with renewable contracts (typically 90 days); persistence requires active management or payment. Centralized points of failure: Relies on the Skynet Labs portal infrastructure for optimal performance. This matters for truly permanent archives or set-and-forget data where the guarantee of Arweave's endowment is required.

One-time, perpetual storage fee: Pay once for 200+ years of guaranteed storage via the endowment model. This matters for NFT metadata, legal documents, and protocol archives where data must be immutable and accessible for decades without recurring costs.

Dynamic, usage-based pricing: Pay only for the data you retrieve, not just store. This matters for high-traffic web apps, video streaming, or CDN-like use cases where data is accessed frequently and low-latency retrieval is critical.

Built-in content distribution network: Data is automatically replicated and served from geographically distributed portals. This matters for global applications requiring fast load times (<100ms) and high availability, acting as a direct alternative to centralized CDNs like Cloudflare.

Significant initial capital outlay: The one-time fee, while economical long-term, can be prohibitive for storing large datasets (e.g., 1TB+) upfront. This is a trade-off for projects with limited initial funding or highly variable storage needs.

Relies on portal economics: Data persistence depends on a network of incentivized portals, not a cryptoeconomic endowment. This is a trade-off for use cases where absolute, cryptographically guaranteed permanence for centuries is non-negotiable, such as foundational legal or financial records.