Google Cloud Storage

Plan snapshot

Google Cloud Storage

FREECARD

Free storage / trial

Free Tier includes 5 GB-months of Standard storage, but only in us-east1, us-west1 and us-central1.

Separate limits

The monthly free allowance is 5,000 Class A and 50,000 Class B operations plus 100 GB egress from North America (excluding China and Australia). Allowances reset monthly and unused quota does not roll over; a bucket outside the three eligible regions gets none of this.

Billing trigger

Requires a Google Cloud billing account; usage outside free limits is pay-as-you-go.

Best fit

S3-interoperable HMAC access to Google Cloud buckets and small always-free test buckets.

Cost hygiene:Keep free-tier buckets in eligible regions and add budget alerts before enabling public downloads.

Checked 2026-07-30: Google Cloud Storage pricing

Google Cloud Storage (GCS) provides S3-compatible access through its XML API interoperability layer. AeroFTP includes a dedicated Google Cloud Storage preset with pre-configured endpoint and path-style addressing.

Why Use AeroFTP with Google Cloud Storage

• Dedicated GCS preset with auto-configured endpoint
• Desktop bucket browsing and object transfer workflows
• Works alongside Google Drive (separate protocol) in the same interface
• One interface for GCS, AWS S3, Azure, R2, and other S3-compatible services

What You Need

• a Google Cloud project with Cloud Storage enabled
• an HMAC Access Key and Secret
• your target bucket name

Creating HMAC Keys

1. Open the Google Cloud Console.
2. Go to Cloud Storage > Settings > Interoperability.
3. If prompted, click Set project as default.
4. Under User account HMAC or Service account HMAC, click Create a key.
5. Copy the Access Key and Secret immediately (the Secret is shown only once).

How to Connect

1. Open AeroFTP.
2. Select Google Cloud Storage from the S3 provider presets.
3. Enter your HMAC Access Key and Secret.
4. Enter your bucket name.
5. Select a location (or leave as Auto).
6. Connect and save the profile.

The endpoint is pre-configured as:

storage.googleapis.com

Recommended Defaults

Setting	Value
Endpoint	storage.googleapis.com (auto-filled)
Path style	Enabled (required for GCS)
Region	auto (recommended)

Troubleshooting

Problem	Cause	Solution
Access denied	Wrong HMAC keys	Regenerate keys in Cloud Storage > Settings > Interoperability
Bucket not found	Wrong bucket name	Verify exact name in Cloud Storage > Buckets
Connection timeout	HTTP/2 negotiation	AeroFTP forces HTTP/1.1 automatically for GCS compatibility
Project not set	Missing default project	Set your project as default in the Interoperability tab

Related Documentation

• S3-Compatible Storage
• Google Drive (separate OAuth-based protocol)
• Quick Start