The short version: A single base Dataverse licence includes 10 GB of relational database capacity, 20 GB of file and image storage and 2 GB of log, as at 22 September 2026. That is a tenant-wide pool, not a per-app or per-environment allowance, and for a firm under 20 staff it is rows and years, not gigabytes, that run out first.
10 GB, 20 GB, 2 GB: the base entitlement
| Capacity type | Included with one base licence | What lives there |
|---|---|---|
| Database | 10 GB | Table rows, metadata, relational data |
| File | 20 GB | File and image columns, attachments, notes |
| Log | 2 GB | Audit history, plugin trace logs |
| Default environment top-up | 3 GB DB, 3 GB file, 1 GB log | Included free on top, for the tenant's default environment only |
Every extra Premium user or per-app licence adds a further slice to the pool, and the capacity is pooled at the tenant, not tied to one environment. Creating a second environment, a development copy of production, which is worth having, needs at least 1 GB of free database capacity before Power Platform will let it be created at all.
What actually fills it for a firm under 20 staff
Microsoft doesn't publish a rows-per-gigabyte figure because it depends entirely on the columns, but a plain row of text, number, date and lookup fields runs one to two kilobytes. 10 GB of Dataverse database capacity is roughly five to ten million rows of a job register, client list or asset table, a ceiling a firm under 20 staff is unlikely to reach in the life of the business. What fills the capacity faster than rows is audit history left switched on for every column, multiline text columns holding pasted email threads, and full-size images stored in the database tier rather than routed to file storage. A ten-year-old Access database migrated in full is usually well under 1 GB once it lands in Dataverse.
File and attachment volume is the more common trigger for buying extra capacity, since photos, PDFs and scanned documents burn through the 20 GB file allowance far faster than table rows burn the 10 GB database allowance. The exact ceilings on a single file, image or Notes attachment, and where each one is set, are covered in the file and attachment limits post.
Buying more, and what it costs
Extra Dataverse database capacity is NZ$64.70 per GB a month, paid yearly and before GST, taken from Microsoft's own NZD price list rather than a converted figure. That price, and the full licence breakdown it sits inside, is worked through properly in Dataverse pricing in NZ, including a worked example of what a 5, 12 and 20-person firm on Premium actually gets before paying a cent more. Most firms this size never need to buy it: the included 10 GB, stacked with what a second or third Premium licence adds, is enough for years of normal use.
Common questions
How much storage does a Dataverse licence actually include?
A single base licence carries 10 GB of relational database capacity, 20 GB of file and image storage and 2 GB of log storage, pooled at the tenant rather than per environment. The tenant's default environment additionally ships with its own 3 GB database, 3 GB file and 1 GB log included on top.
What actually fills 10 GB of Dataverse database capacity?
Rarely rows on their own. A plain row of text, number, date and lookup columns runs one to two kilobytes, so 10 GB is roughly five to ten million rows of a job register or client list, far more than a firm under 20 staff will generate. What fills it faster is audit history left switched on, multiline text columns holding pasted emails, and full-size images stored in the database tier instead of file storage.
How much does extra Dataverse capacity cost in NZD?
Extra database capacity is NZ$64.70 per GB a month, paid yearly and before GST, on Microsoft's own NZD price list rather than a currency conversion. Most firms under 20 staff never buy it: the included 10 GB, plus what a second or third Premium licence adds, is enough for years.
Not sure how close you are to the ceiling?
Free 30-minute call. Tell me roughly what the tables hold and I'll tell you whether capacity is years away or worth watching now.