On-chain cloud storage
ICBucket
Store files on-chain with an S3-compatible API. No servers, no AWS bills — simple 30-day plans paid in ICP from your ICPay balance.
Sign options via Internet Identity
Integration guide
How to Integrate ICBucket?
Create a bucket, upload files with the SDK, and serve public assets over HTTPS — all from your ICPay balance with an S3-compatible API.
Package Manager Installation
Install the official icBucket client for your favorite package manager or language.
npm install icpay-bucketQuickstart Integration
Upload files directly to decentralized on-chain canisters with automatic edge CDN routing.
import { ICBucket } from "icpay-bucket"
// Initialize on-chain storage client
const bucket = new ICBucket({
bucketId: "my-app-assets",
apiKey: process.env.ICBUCKET_API_KEY,
})
// Upload asset directly to the IC canister
const { publicUrl } = await bucket.uploadFile("banner.webp", fileBuffer, {
contentType: "image/webp",
visibility: "public",
})
console.log("Edge CDN URL:", publicUrl)
// Output: https://cdn.icpay.app/cloud/my-app-assets/banner.webpAPI & Environment Configuration
Configure your environment variables and client options for production deployment.
NEXT_PUBLIC_ICBUCKET_API_URL=https://cdn.icpay.app
ICBUCKET_API_KEY=icp_live_sec_994a8e2b
NEXT_PUBLIC_DEFAULT_BUCKET=my-app-assetsThe Problem & The Solution
Traditional cloud storage is expensive, centralized, and complex. ICBucket fixes that with on-chain storage, 30-day ICP plans, and an S3-style API.
| The Problem | The Solution |
|---|---|
Expensive Monthly Bills AWS S3, Google Cloud Storage, and Azure Blob charge monthly. Costs compound over years — a 10 GB project can exceed $240 over five years. | Simple 30-Day Plans Pay from your ICPay balance in ICP — from 0.5 ICP for 1 GB per 30 days. No credit card. Renew anytime and stack unused time. |
Centralized Control Your files live on someone else's servers. Providers can suspend accounts, raise prices, or shut down services without notice. | Decentralized & Censorship-Resistant Files are stored across Internet Computer replicas. No single point of failure — only you can delete your data. |
Complex Setup Setting up S3 requires an AWS account, IAM roles, bucket policies, and CORS config — just to upload a file. | S3-Compatible API Drop-in replacement for S3 with familiar methods: createBucket, uploadFile, downloadFile. Migrate existing code in minutes. |
Vendor Lock-in Each provider uses different APIs. Moving from S3 to Azure means rewriting code — no real portability. | On-Chain Verifiability Every upload is traceable on-chain. Content-addressable via canister URLs — immutable and auditable. |
Storage Economics
Pay upfront in ICP from your ICPay balance — no credit cards, no foreign bank holds, and zero surprise egress bandwidth bills. Bound directly to your Internet Identity Principal.
Personal backups, avatars & developer sandboxes
- 1 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Public & private buckets
- API key authentication
- Chunked parallel uploads
- Global CDN edge URLs (<150ms)
- Encrypted at rest in stable memory
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Most popular for growing apps, media & user vaults
- 5 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Multiple API keys with scoped access
- File metadata, custom headers & tags
- Search & folder tree listing
- Bulk copy, move & delete operations
- Official TypeScript, Python & Go SDKs
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Production web applications & digital asset libraries
- 10 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Multiple isolated buckets
- Team API keys with audit trail
- High-throughput chunk pipelines
- On-chain cryptographic audit proof
- Direct HTTPS boundary streaming
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Fast-scaling SaaS, media catalogs & document archives
- 25 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Up to 25 scoped API keys
- Automated lease expiry alert webhooks
- Dedicated canister partition backing
- Parallel multi-part upload streaming
- Zero egress bandwidth surcharges
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Heavy production dApps, NFT collections & high-volume media
- 50 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Dedicated 400 GB canister allocation
- High-throughput concurrent writes
- Priority global CDN boundary routing
- Multi-principal consensus controller support
- Zero egress bandwidth surcharges
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Maximum single-bucket capacity with institutional sovereignty
- 100 GB reserved on-chain capacity
- Maximum single-canister storage tier
- Sovereign threshold cryptography
- Unrestricted API throughput limits
- DAO / multi-sig governance integration
- Zero egress bandwidth surcharges
- Renew anytime — unused time stacks
Every bucket is cryptographically anchored to your Internet Identity Principal. No root admin, centralized bot flag, or foreign entity can freeze or tamper with your storage canister.
Renew anytime without losing a single second. Unused lease days stack directly onto your canister expiry. Choose annual upfront for 2 months free (~17% savings).
Say goodbye to surprise cloud invoices. Public CDN delivery and direct canister streaming are 100% included in the base lease price with zero per-gigabyte egress fees.
Latest from ICPay
Follow our journey building on-chain storage for the Internet Computer
Introducing ICPay Bucket ✨
Fast, secure, and fully on-chain storage built directly on the @dfinity Internet Computer.
Store files on-chain and serve them through a dedicated CDN — without relying on traditional centralized object storage.
ICPay Cloud API keys are live 🔑
Automate uploads to the Internet Computer — no wallet session, no manual clicks.
icp_cloud_* keys · scoped per bucket · Write/Delete permissions
Why it matters: CI/CD deploys assets straight to on-chain storage.
Centralized storage vs. On-chain storage ⚡
ICPay Bucket brings file storage directly to the Internet Computer:
- Encrypted storage per bucket
- Public or private access controls
- Pay in ICP with simple 30-day plans
- Scoped API keys for CI/CD automation
Everything You Need for On-Chain Storage
ICBucket provides enterprise-grade cloud storage features without the enterprise complexity or monthly bills.
Choose from 1GB to 100GB. Start small, scale as needed. Renew anytime to extend storage duration.
Upload large files in chunks (up to 2MB per chunk). Parallel uploads for faster transfer. Resume on connection drop.
Create multiple API keys per bucket with granular permissions (read/write/delete). Revoke and regenerate anytime.
Public buckets serve files via HTTPS. Private buckets require auth. Perfect for both static sites and secure backups.
Drop-in replacement for AWS S3. Familiar methods: createBucket, uploadFile, listFiles. Migrate existing code in minutes.
Files stored across IC replicas. Canister-level access control. No server breaches, no data leaks.
Tag files, add custom metadata. Search by name, tag, or prefix. List folders, filter by date or size.
Files served directly from IC canisters. No CDN setup needed. Global distribution via IC boundary nodes.
How Storage Works
Files live inside the ICPay wallet canister on Internet Computer — not on a traditional cloud VM. Your app talks to the canister; the subnet stores encrypted data.
Browser App
Internet IdentityClient SDKs
Agent + API KeyCI & Automation
Signed Updates
ICPay Bucket Canister
Motoko Bucket Engine
Subaccount IsolatedUpload Session
Chunk → EncryptStable Memory
Encrypted BlobsHTTPS Gateway
*.raw.icp0.io · CDNWrite path
Create a bucket once (pay ICP for capacity).
beginFileUpload → send 2 MB chunks → completeFileUpload.
Canister encrypts each file and writes to stable memory.
Read path
Private files: signed downloadFile update from your app.
Public files: plain HTTPS GET on the canister gateway URL.
No AWS bucket, no separate storage server — one on-chain canister.
How ICBucket Compares
ICBucket vs. traditional cloud storage providers. See what makes us different.
| Feature | ICBucket | AWS S3 | Google Cloud | Azure Blob |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 30-Day ICP Plans | ||||
| Pay with ICP (no credit card) | ||||
| Decentralized | ||||
| Censorship-Resistant | ||||
| On-Chain Verifiable | ||||
| No Account Suspension Risk | ||||
| S3-Compatible API | ||||
| Public HTTPS URLs | ||||
| API Key Auth | ||||
| Chunked Uploads |
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about ICBucket. Can't find an answer? Contact us.