Size the Storage for a Frigate NVR
Cameras, bitrate and retention in; storage out
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Continuous recording is bitrate times time. One camera at 4Mbps records 43GB a day, so four of them kept for 14 days need 2.42TB. Frigate's documentation gives no formula of its own and points to a calculator; it does say that continuous recording uses the most space, that local storage is generally recommended over network storage for recordings, and that 8GB of memory is the minimum once its enrichment features are on, with 16GB highly recommended.
Storage for one camera recording all day
| Bitrate | A day | 7 days | 14 days | 30 days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Mbps | 11GB | 76GB | 151GB | 324GB |
| 2Mbps | 22GB | 151GB | 302GB | 648GB |
| 4Mbps | 43GB | 302GB | 605GB | 1.30TB |
| 8Mbps | 86GB | 605GB | 1.21TB | 2.59TB |
| 16Mbps | 173GB | 1.21TB | 2.42TB | 5.18TB |
What Frigate's documentation says
| Topic | Frigate's guidance |
|---|---|
| Storage per camera | No figure given; it says higher resolution and frame rate use significantly more, and links to an IP camera storage calculator |
| Recording mode | Continuous recording uses the most space |
| Where to record | Local storage is generally recommended for recordings |
| Hard drives | A cost-effective option for long-term video; it suggests drives designed for surveillance use, such as WD Purple or Seagate SkyHawk |
| SSDs | An excellent choice, for speed and responsiveness |
| Memory, basic setup | 4GB is generally sufficient for a very basic setup with a few cameras |
| Memory, with enrichments | 8GB should be considered the minimum; 16GB is highly recommended |
Using the result
Use the bitrate of the stream Frigate records, read from the camera's own settings, not the camera's headline resolution. Two cameras of the same resolution can differ several times over in bitrate.
Recording only on motion or on detected objects fills the disk more slowly than the continuous figure here, by an amount that depends entirely on the scene, so treat this as the ceiling.
Leave room. A recorder that fills its disk has to delete early, so size for the retention you want plus a margin.
Where this comes from
Frigate's "Planning a New Installation" page, read on October 12, 2026. The storage arithmetic is this page's: megabits a second, times seconds, divided by eight.
Checked on October 12, 2026. Sources: Frigate documentation: Planning a New Installation.
Megabits a second times seconds recorded, divided by eight, gives megabytes. Use the bitrate your camera reports for the recording stream; motion-only recording fills the disk more slowly than this continuous figure.
Surveillance hard drives, by price per TB
Drives sold for recorders. Frigate's documentation names WD Purple and Seagate SkyHawk as examples of the type.
Renewed, refurbished and used listings
Shown for reference. These are not counted in the best price per TB above, and warranty terms differ from new drives.
Frequently asked questions
How much storage does one camera use in Frigate?
Recording continuously, 22GB a day at 2Mbps, 43GB at 4Mbps and 86GB at 8Mbps. It scales directly with bitrate.
How much RAM does Frigate need?
Frigate's documentation says 4GB is generally sufficient for a very basic setup, 8GB should be considered the minimum with its enrichment features, and 16GB is highly recommended.
Should Frigate record to a NAS share?
Frigate's documentation says local storage is generally recommended for recordings.