Which cloud storage service is for you? Sarah Mitroff/CNET Storing your files in the cloud has many advantages. You can view your files from any phone, tablet or computer that's connected to the Internet, and the cloud can also provide backup for files so they'll never disappear if your phone gets lost or your computer crashes. Using the cloud is a no-brainer, but picking which service to use is a bit more difficult.
For that reason, I've compiled a guide to the most popular cloud storage services, covering how they work and their strengths and weaknesses. I've also highlighted some lesser-known options if you want to get away from the mainstream. Editors' note, March 25, 2016: This guide originally include cloud storage service Copy, but we've removed it because it is.
Cloud storage comparison. OneDrive Dropbox Google Drive Box Amazon Cloud Drive File size restrictions? 10GB 10GB with website, none with Dropbox apps 5TB 250MB for free plan, 5GB for paid personal plan 2GB.
Free storage? 5GB. 2GB 15GB 10GB No. Can I earn extra free storage? No.
Yes No No No Paid plans $2/month for 50GB. $10/month for 1TB $2/month 100GB, $10/month for 1TB $10/month for 100GB $12/year for unlimited photos, $60/year for unlimited files OSes supported Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Windows Phone Windows, Mac, Linux, Android, iOS, Windows Phone, BlackBerry, Kindle Fire Windows, Mac, Android, iOS Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Windows Phone, BlackBerry Windows, Mac, Android, iOS, Kindle Fire.There is no file size limit with desktop apps.In early 2016, Microsoft will change its free storage from 15GB to 5GB and offer a $2 per month for 50GB paid plan instead of its earlier offerings. It will also no longer let you earn free storage.Amazon Cloud Drive offers limited free storage with an Amazon Prime subscription. Before we get started, just a note about Apple's iCloud Drive. I didn't include it here because the service is not available for Android and it's really meant to be used within the Apple ecosystem, meaning if you use Mac computers and iOS devices together. If you do use mostly Apple products, it's a solid choice for cloud storage. For a full run-down of its features, pricing and availability, check out.
OneDrive's Android app. Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET OneDrive First up is OneDrive, Microsoft's storage option. Those who use Windows 8 and 10 have OneDrive built into their operating system, where it shows up in the file explorer next to all of the files on your computer's hard drive. However, anyone can use it on the Web, by downloading a desktop app for Mac and earlier versions of Windows, or the OneDrive Android, iOS, Windows Phone and Xbox apps.
You can store any kind of file in the service, including photos, video and documents, and then access them from any of your Windows PCs or mobile devices. The service organizes your files by type for you, so it's easy to find what you need. The Android, iOS and Windows Phone apps all have automatic photo uploads, meaning that when you shoot a photo with your phone, it's automatically saved to your account. OneDrive's biggest strength is that it works closely with Microsoft Office apps, such as Word or PowerPoint, so when you launch one of those applications you'll see a list of recent documents saved to OneDrive.
If you have an Office 365 subscription and open a document saved in OneDrive, you can collaborate on it in real time with other people. You'll even be able to see the changes they make as they make them. Microsoft is hoping that OneDrive will be the place where you store your photos, and the company is working on technology that will eventually sort all of the photos you take based on how important and meaningful they are. For instance, if you take a photo of your kids, a picture of a special meal and a shot of your parking space so you can find your car later, OneDrive would be able to understand the importance of each picture, save the ones it thinks are the most useful, and trash the rest. That's still big-picture stuff for OneDrive, but it gives you an idea of the direction Microsoft is moving in. In late 2015, Microsoft made an announcement that it would no longer offer unlimited cloud storage to Office 365 subscribers.
Instead, they are limited to 1TB. Additionally, beginning in early 2016, the 100GB and 200GB paid storage plans will be discontinued, replaced with a 50GB for $1.99 per month plan. You will no longer get extra space if you allow the OneDrive apps to automatically backup photos on your phone. Finally, anyone with a Microsoft account will only get 5GB of free storage, instead of 15GB. We will update this guide in 2016 when those changes are made.
Where it excels. Works seamlessly with Windows devices because it's built in to the Windows operating system. It's easy to open and edit files from OneDrive in Microsoft's other applications, such as Word or Excel. Signing up for OneDrive gets you a Microsoft account, which gives you access to Outlook, Xbox Live, and other Microsoft services. Where it falls flat. OneDrive's automatic file organization doesn't always put files in the correct folders.
Best for: If you have a Windows PC, tablet and phone, and need to get to your files from any device with little effort. Dropbox on Windows. Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET Dropbox is a favorite in the cloud storage world because it's reliable, easy to use, and a breeze to set up. Your files live in the cloud and you can get to them at any time from Dropbox's website, desktop applications for Mac, Windows and Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora or compile your own), or the iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Kindle Fire mobile apps. You can store any kind of file in Dropbox, by either uploading to the website or adding it with the desktop apps.
Those apps live in your file system so that you can easily move files from your computer to the cloud and vice versa by dragging and dropping them into your Dropbox folder. The service automatically and quickly syncs your files across all of your devices, so you can access everything, everywhere. There is no size limit on files you upload to Dropbox with the desktop or mobile apps, but larger files can take several hours to upload, depending on your connection speed. Dropbox gets a lot of praise for its clean design, and rightfully so. Though I am not a fan of Dropbox's website because the design is very basic and it doesn't give you many options to view and organize your files, its mobile apps and desktop apps are beautiful and easy to navigate. Dropbox gives its users plenty of opportunities to get extra storage to beef up the paltry 2GB you get when you sign up.
If you participate in the quick Getting Started tutorial, you get 250MB. Turn on the automatic photo upload feature on any of the mobile apps to get 3GB of extra space (you can get only 3GB total, not per device). You can earn 500MB for each friend you refer to Dropbox who actually signs up for the service, up to 16GB total, or 32 referrals. Where it excels. Dropbox works equally well on PCs and Macs, Android and iOS. The service is so simple and elegantly designed, that it's easy for anyone to master.
Its desktop applications seamlessly blend with your computer's file system. Where it falls flat. Dropbox's website doesn't let you control how your files are displayed.
Best for: Simple sharing when you use tons of different kinds of devices. Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET Google Drive Google combines a complete set of office tools with cloud storage in Drive. You get a little bit of everything with this service, including a word processor, spreadsheet application, and presentation builder, plus 15GB of free storage space. If you already have a Google account, you can already access Google Drive. You just have to head to and enable the service. You get 15GB of storage for anything you upload to Drive, including photos, videos, documents, Photoshop files and more. However, you have to share that 15GB with your Gmail account, photos you upload to Google+, and any documents you create in Google Drive.
While you can access any of your files from the Drive Web site, you can also download the Drive desktop app for Mac and PC to manage your files from your computer. You can organize all of your files in the desktop app, and they'll sync with the cloud so you can get to them anywhere. Drive is built into Google's Web-based operating system Chromium, so if you have a Chromebook, Google Drive is your best cloud storage option. Like other cloud storage services, Drive has apps for iOS and Android for viewing and managing your files from your phone. Google Drive has the benefit of a built-in office suite, where you can edit documents, spreadsheets, and presentations, even if you created the document in another program. The service also a large collection of extras, such as third-party apps that can send faxes or sign documents. Google also recently introduced, an online photo locker, where you can organize photos into albums.
Google Photos is built into Drive in a separate tab, but you're really better off going straight to googlephotos.com to see and organize photos. However, you don't need to download the Google Photos app on your phone or tablet to back pictures you take there. The Google Drive app can take care of that. What I like most about Google Drive is that you can drag and drop files into the Drive Web site and they'll be uploaded automatically. You can also preview attachments from Gmail in Google Drive, and save those files to your cloud.
Where it excels. Google Drive requires very little setup if you already have a Google account. If you use Gmail, it's easy to save attachments from your e-mail directly to Drive with just a few clicks. The app can automatically back up your photos on its own, without the need for the separate Google Photos app. Where it falls flat. If you use Google Drive's tools to create documents, spreadsheets or presentations, you must export those files to edit them in another program.
You have to share your storage space with Gmail, so if you're inbox is overflowing, you'll get less cloud storage space. Best for: Google diehards, or anyone who wants a few office tools with their cloud storage.
Box on Android. Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET Box Anyone can sign up for a free individual account on, but the service's endless list of sharing and privacy features were built specifically for business and IT users. Beyond the basic cloud storage setup, where you can store just about any kind of file, Box lets you share files with colleagues, assign tasks, leave comments on someone's work, and get notifications when a file changes.
You can preview files from Box's website and even create basic text documents in Box. Like other cloud storage services, you can download a desktop app and sync your files between your hard drive and the cloud.
Box also gives you a lot of control over the privacy of your files. For example, you can decide who in your business can view and open specific folders and files, as well as who can edit and upload documents. You can even password-protect individual files and set expiration dates for shared folders. Business users can also connect other apps, such as Salesforce and NetSuite, so that you can easily save documents to Box. There are also plug-ins for Microsoft Office and Adobe Lightroom that let you open and edit files saved to Box from those applications. Where it excels.
Box comes with tons of tools for businesses, including collaboration and file privacy control. Where it falls flat. The service's endless list of sharing and privacy features can be lost on someone who's just using the service for personal storage. Because of all those features, it can feel overwhelming to navigate the Box website if you're only trying to manage a few files and folders. Best for: Teams of employees working together on projects, and large companies that need a place to securely share documents with everyone.
Amazon Cloud Drive's website. Screenshot by Sarah Mitroff/CNET Amazon Cloud Drive Amazon already sells you nearly anything under the sun, and it wants to be the place you store all of your music, photos, videos and other files too. Amazon Cloud Drive has been around for a few years, but the company introduced; one just for photos and one for all other kinds of files. Neither plan is free, but both have three-month trials. Unlimited Photos is available for free for all Amazon Prime members or anyone with a Fire device. If you don't have a Prime subscription or a Fire phone or tablet, you'll need to pay $12 per month for the storage. True to its name, Unlimited Photos gets you unlimited storage for your photos (GIF, JPEG, BMP, TIFF and so on) and 5GB of free storage for other file types, including videos, PDFs and documents.
Unlimited Everything gets you storage for an unlimited number of files of any type, for $60 per year. There is no limit for how many files you can upload, but each file needs to be under 2GB unless you use the Cloud Drive desktop apps. The Cloud Drive desktop apps are available for PC and Mac, and let you upload or download files. However, unlike other cloud storage services, the Amazon Cloud Drive app doesn't let you view your files from a folder on your computer.
You can upload individual files and download your entire library, but if you want to view them or make changes, you'll need to go to Amazon's website. Amazon Cloud Drive has apps for iOS and with automatic upload so videos and photos you take with your phone get saved to the cloud right after you shoot them. The service is also baked into Amazon's Fire tablets and phone. Where it excels.
If you already have an Amazon account, you don't need to sign up for a new service, you can simply sign into Cloud Drive. Where it falls flat.
The desktop app doesn't work with your file system, you can only use it upload or download files. You can only view and manage files from the Cloud Drive website, but you cannot upload files larger than 2GB there. Best for: Anyone with an Amazon Fire tablet or Fire phone, because it's part of the operating system. Unlimited Photos is good for Amazon Prime members, because you get it for free as part of that subscription. Extra cloud options Of course, OneDrive, Dropbox, Google Drive and Box aren't your only options for cloud storage.
One is, a Dropbox-like alternative with apps for every mobile platform. The catch is that after your 90-day free trial, where you can play around with 5GB of storage, you need to pay at $7.50 per month for 60GB to keep using the service (you can upgrade to more storage for extra money).
There's also, which has an entirely different take on cloud storage. For $200, you buy a 2-terabyte (TB) hard drive from the company. You get to use 1TB of the drive's space to store any and all of your files as a local backup. Your files also get encrypted and broken into bits that are sent to other Space Monkey users' hard drives, so that you can access your files from another computer or mobile device. That's where that extra 1TB of space on your drive comes in - it's used to store bits of other people's files. The service is free for the first year, then costs $49 per year to keep storing your files in the cloud.
Thanks to cloud storage and file syncing apps, you can create a file on your computer at work, edit it on your phone on the subway home, and then finish working on that same up-to-date file from your laptop in your living room. Or, in minutes, you can share a 20 GB folder of photos and videos with colleagues who are halfway around the world. This is the virtual hard drive on the internet that ensures the latest version of your files are at the ready on all your devices. You're probably already using one, if not more, of these services, such as Dropbox or Google Drive. But there are dozens of cloud storage and file syncing apps available today, and each has its own special features.
If you're looking for additional free space or wondering what's the best place online to stash your files without having to buy a plan, here are your top options today. What Makes a Great Cloud Storage and File Syncing App? At their core, cloud storage and file syncing apps all do the same thing: copy files in your selected folder or folders to an online server—and then to any other device where you've installed the apps. Any new files you add or changes you make are instantly replicated across your computers, phone, and tablet. While these apps all act similarly, however, some are more generous with the amount of free storage space they provide and are easier to use than others. We researched over 30 cloud storage and file syncing services, looking for the most important features for most people:. Free plan: We're sticking with services that offer free plans, in the interest of showcasing options that will benefit the most people.
(A guide for cloud storage for small businesses/teams is in the works.). Fast syncing: For these apps to be truly useful, any changes you make in the files or folders on one device should be immediately available on your other devices. We tested syncing performance across these services and different devices with a 1 Gigabyte (GB) folder containing 95 files of various types and sizes. Easy to use: If the app is hard to use or the interface clunky, you're less likely to use it. The point of apps like these is they should just work in the background without you having to fuss with them.
Generous file size and transfer size limits: The last thing you want to see is a notification that a file you tried to save and sync with your other devices is too large or exceeds your bandwidth limits. The apps we've chosen here should give you confidence that all your files will be synced. Security and file access control: The best cloud storage apps let you share files but also control exactly how others can access them, such as whether others need to enter a password to see the file.
We also took into consideration how much free storage space each service provides and how much it would cost per GB to upgrade to their lowest-cost free plan. The Best Free Cloud Storage and File Syncing Apps. for unlimited storage for photos, videos, and Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. for advanced security features and unlimited file sizes. for Microsoft Office and Windows users. for fast syncing over your local network Honorable Mentions:. for teams who need more access control options.
for automatically importing bank statements and bills from service providers in Europe. for keeping your iOS and Mac apps up to date Best for unlimited storage of photos, videos, and Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. If you want to use just one cloud storage and file syncing app, we recommend Google Drive, for several reasons. If you have a Google Account, you've got Google Drive already. It offers the most amount of free storage space of the apps on this list—15 GB, shared with your Gmail and Google Photos. Photos and videos stored using the 'high quality' setting—up to 16 megapixels for photos and 1080p for video, rather than the original resolution—don't count towards your storage quota, nor do any of your Google Docs, Sheets, Slides, Forms, or Sites files. Beyond the generous amount of storage space, though, Google Drive had the fastest syncing speed from desktop to web in our tests.
And once in the web app, you can work with your files and folders much like you can on your desktop computer: search within folders, share multiple files at once, right-click for contextual menus, and add a description or notes. You can even color-code folders and disable downloading, printing, or copying of files you share with others. Many of these features are unique to Google Drive. And the, which you can share with your family, are competitive, particularly when you need a large amount of space (e.g., $9.99/month for 2 TB compared to Dropbox's same price for 1 TB).
Google Drive Protip: Install and then you can right-click on images, links, and more to save them directly to Google Drive. Google Drive Pricing: Free for 15 GB; from $1.99/month for 100 GB For a deeper look at features and pricing, see our. See on Zapier Best for advanced security features and unlimited file sizes.
If security is your top concern for files you store in the cloud, give open-source Sync a look. The Canadian-based company offers end-to-end encryption, which means that all your data is encrypted at all times: on your computer, while in transit, and on their servers. Sync's 'zero knowledge' privacy means that your password is never stored by the company and it can't access your encryption keys. You get 5 GB of storage for free, plus the ability to gain more space via referrals (1 GB per referral). The web app and other apps are basic (no starring folders or sharing files directly from your computer's file menus), but on the plus side there's no individual file size or bandwidth limits. Note that you'll need a Pro plan to get Sync's more robust security options—setting expiration dates on links, limiting downloads, getting link activity via email, HIPPA compliance, and more. Sync Protip: After setting up your account, head straight to where you can enable password reset; due to Sync's zero knowledge privacy, if you forget your password, your account will be inaccessible forever—unless you set this up.
Note that password reset does give Sync temporary access to your encryption keys when you attempt to reset your password. Sync Pricing: Free for 5 GB; from $49/year for 500 GB (no monthly plan options) Best for Microsoft Office and Windows Users. If you buy a Microsoft Office 365 subscription, you get 1 TB of storage space on OneDrive and premium features like password-protected sharing links and expiring links.
Online Photo Storage For Mac
So it's a no-brainer to use OneDrive if you need to use Microsoft Office software anyway and want seamless syncing and storage with Microsoft products. For free cloud storage, OneDrive is still a solid option. You get 5 GB of free storage space to start and up to 10 GB additional space for referring others to OneDrive. You can edit and annotate Office files within OneDrive and access some unique nifty features. For example, if you have a Windows PC with the OneDrive desktop app installed, you can remotely access your files and folders on that computer—even if you haven't stored them in the OneDrive folder.
This is a setting you'll need to enable in the desktop app, but it makes sure the files you need are always at the ready, no matter where you store them. OneDrive Protip: Easily embed documents like Word or PDF files into a web page or blog: Just right-click on the file in OneDrive and select the embed option. Then you'll get HTML code you can copy and paste onto your page.
OneDrive Pricing: Free for 5 GB; from $1.99/month for 50 GB storage only or $6.99/month for 1 TB plus Microsoft Office 365 For a deeper look at features and pricing, see our. See on Zapier Best for fast syncing over your local network. Founded in 2007, Dropbox was one of the first services to make saving and syncing your files dead simple. Store a file in your Dropbox folder and it's instantly available on all your devices.
The app hasn't changed much since then, except for integration with Dropbox Paper, a collaborative word processing tool. Compared to the other apps on this list, Dropbox offers the least amount of free storage space out of the gate: 2 GB, but you can earn up to 16 GB on the free account by referring new members and completing other tasks. Also, files and folders shared with you count towards your storage space, which is a bummer. File sharing is easy with Dropbox because it's been around so long that most people already are familiar with it. And perhaps the biggest advantage Dropbox offers is that it shaves time off of syncing over your local network. Transferring a 1 GB file from desktop to web, for example, took about four minutes, but it was about a quarter of that time faster when syncing between two computers on the same Wi-Fi network, thanks to. Dropbox Protip: Dropbox has a that lets you see all the files and folders, including ones shared with you, in your Dropbox account—without them taking up space on your hard drive.
To access a file, click on the cloud icon on the file and it will then be synced to your computer. This feature, however, requires a paid plan. Dropbox Pricing: Free for 2 GB; from $9.99/month for 1 TB For a deeper look at features and pricing, see our. See on Zapier Honorable Mentions Google Drive, Sync, OneDrive, and Dropbox are our picks for cloud storage and file syncing for most people, but there are a few others that you might want to consider if you need more space or are looking for other features:.: You get 10 GB of free storage space with Box and the service offers more access control for files and folders than most cloud storage services. For example, you can specify if people you share a file link with can download the file and can even set a custom URL for your shared files. Box is also well integrated with other apps (for example, you can create a Word Doc or Google Doc straight from Box.com), and you can embed Box files on a web page using its widget.
However, with a 250 MB file size limit on the free plan, Box is more ideal for teams on a paid plan, where that file size limit is raised to 5 GB.: Cozy is a unique cloud-storage-meets-personal-finance app. You get 5 GB of free storage, plus it can automatically import your bank statements and bills from service providers in Europe.
Mac Storage Is Full
This open source app also offers end-to-end encryption. Sharing, however, is more limited—links only and no access controls, so this is best for personal versus collaborative file access.: If you have a Mac, iPad, or iPhone, you've got 5 GB of free storage space on iCloud Drive. That's great for backing up your iOS device and sharing your iTunes purchases with your family with the app's file sharing feature. It also can keep your apps (such as Mail, Calendar, Contacts, and Safari, along with many third-party apps that store files in iCloud Drive) up to date across your Apple devices. It's a bit more limited when it comes to sharing features, however, and not as user friendly compared to other cloud storage apps.
When it comes to cloud storage and file syncing apps, there's no right or wrong answer. Often, the choice you make boils down to what ecosystem you're invested in: Google (Google Drive), Microsoft (OneDrive), Apple (iCloud).
Or if you're looking for additional storage with an app dedicated to cloud storage, Dropbox, Box, and Sync are solid options. Each app has its unique strengths and weaknesses, and hopefully the above will help you decide where to stash your files in the cloud. But is there such a thing as having too much free storage space? We don't think so. You can sign up for all the free space available from these providers and others.
Managing where to put your files might be cumbersome, though. That's where comes in. Connect your cloud storage apps into one workspace—and to automate your file management.