This inefficiency occurs when an EC2 instance is stopped but still has one or more attached EBS volumes. Although the compute resource is not generating charges while stopped, the attached volumes continue to incur full storage and performance-related costs. These volumes are often overlooked in cost reviews, especially if the instance is temporarily paused or has been left in a stopped state long-term. Without regular validation, these volumes may represent unused capacity that delivers no value.
S3 buckets often persist after projects complete or when the associated workloads have been retired. If a bucket is no longer being read from or written to—and its contents are not required for compliance, backup, or retention purposes—it represents ongoing cost without delivering value. Many organizations overlook these idle buckets, especially in shared or legacy accounts, leading to unnecessary storage costs over time.
Some S3 lifecycle policies are configured to transition objects from Standard storage to Intelligent-Tiering after a fixed number of days (e.g., 30 days). This creates a delay where objects reside in S3 Standard, incurring higher storage costs without benefit. Since Intelligent-Tiering does not require prior access history and can be used immediately, it is often more efficient to place objects directly into Intelligent-Tiering at the time of upload. Lifecycle transitions introduce unnecessary intermediate costs that can be avoided entirely through configuration changes.
Storage accounts can accumulate blob data that is no longer actively accessed—such as legacy logs, expired backups, outdated exports, or orphaned files. When these blobs remain in the Hot tier, they continue to incur the highest storage cost, even if they have not been read or modified for an extended period. Without lifecycle management in place, these inactive blobs often go unnoticed and accumulate cost. In many cases, the data could be safely transitioned to a lower-cost tier or deleted altogether, depending on retention needs. Additionally, misconfigured default tier settings at the account or container level can cause even new uploads to be stored in the Hot tier unnecessarily. Azure lifecycle transitions do not incur additional fees, making automation a low-risk optimization method.
GCS buckets often persist after applications are retired or data is no longer in active use. Without access activity, these buckets generate storage charges without providing ongoing value. Leaving stale data in Standard storage—designed for frequent access—results in unnecessary cost. If the data must be retained for compliance or future reference, colder tiers offer substantial savings. If it is no longer needed, the data should be deleted.
Managed Disks frequently remain detached after Azure virtual machines are deleted, reimaged, or reconfigured. Some may be intentionally retained for reattachment, backup, or migration purposes, but many persist unintentionally due to the lack of automated cleanup processes. When these detached disks are also inactive—showing no read or write activity—they represent unnecessary ongoing costs. Identifying and removing these orphaned disks can produce meaningful savings without affecting any active workloads.
EBS volumes frequently remain detached after EC2 instances are terminated, replaced, or reconfigured. Some may be intentionally retained for reattachment or backup purposes, but many persist unintentionally due to the lack of automated cleanup. When these detached volumes are also inactive—showing no read or write activity—they represent unnecessary ongoing costs. Identifying and removing these orphaned volumes can produce meaningful savings without affecting running workloads.
S3 Standard is the default storage class and is often used by default even for data that is rarely accessed. Keeping large volumes of infrequently accessed data in S3 Standard leads to unnecessary costs. Data such as backups, logs, archives, or historical snapshots are often strong candidates for migration to colder tiers like S3 Glacier or Deep Archive. If access patterns are unknown or variable, S3 Intelligent-Tiering can reduce costs without requiring manual transitions.