As Nature well knows, being a host — or publisher — of data is expensive. Keeping a platform technologically up to date is costly, as are data validation and curation. The running costs of the preprint server arXiv in 2017 are about US$1.3 million, for example, and the 2015 budget of the UK Data Archive was about £5.5 million ($8.2 million). For too long, public discussions have overlooked the true costs of data openness. More tangible support from governments and funders would work wonders.