The other night, a group of my friends, all professional photographers, were discussing the best place to store their digital photos. I couldn't relate: most of the photos on my camera roll are awkwardly framed photos of my dogs, and I store them…on my phone.
It did get me thinking about where I should store everything else, though.
Dropbox comes to mind because it's a low-maintenance app packed withhidden features that make file syncing and sharing a breeze. And people love it because it just works. But, in my opinion, you can say all of this about a lot of other Dropbox alternatives.So whether you're looking for a place to store your professional photos, your business documents, or your awkwardly framed dog portraits, these are the best Dropbox alternatives for the job.
5 Dropbox alternatives
- Google Drive for Android and Google Workspace users
- OneDrive for Windows and Microsoft 365 users
- iCloud for Apple users
- Box for businesses
- Jottacloud for unlimited photo storage
The best Dropbox alternatives at a glance
|
Best for |
Standout feature |
Free storage amount |
|
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Drive |
Android and Google Workspace users |
Advanced search features that suggest files and return file names and contents |
15GB (shared with Gmail and Google Photos) |
| OneDrive |
Windows and Microsoft 365 users |
Deep integration with Microsoft 365 |
5GB |
| iCloud |
Apple users |
Larger storage plans offer up to 12TB |
5GB |
| Box |
Businesses |
Bundled with business tools like document signing and collaborative documents |
10GB |
| Jottacloud |
Unlimited photo storage |
Truly unlimited storage space and automatic photo backup on any device |
5GB |
How we evaluate and test apps
Our best apps roundups are written by humans who've spent much of their careers using, testing, and writing about software. Unless explicitly stated, we spend dozens of hours researching and testing apps, using each app as it's intended to be used and evaluating it against the criteria we set for the category. We're never paid for placement in our articles from any app or for links to any site—we value the trust readers put in us to offer authentic evaluations of the categories and apps we review. For more details on our process, read the full rundown of
how we select apps to feature on the Zapier blog.The best Dropbox alternative for Android and Google Workspace users
Google Drive
Google Drive pros:
-
Search returns file names and contents
-
Google Photos offers advanced sharing and editing capabilities
Google Drive cons:
Google has been competing in the cloud storage space since the early 2000s—well before Dropbox entered the scene in 2007. But here's the difference: Dropbox was built for cloud storage, whereas Google Drive's features indicate it was made to support the Google software suite.
For example,
Google Drive doesn't offer much in terms of folder organization. You can change folder colors and sort them a few ways, but that's it. Dropbox, on the other hand, lets you set naming conventions for files and create automated folders.Still, Google Drive offers plenty of other
powerful features that make it a strong Dropbox alternative. For example, Google's advanced search features will suggest files as you type and return file names and contents—this is especially handy if spending hours organizing your folders isn't your thing. You can also leverage the power of Google Search in Chrome. Start typing in the browser address bar for Google Drive files, and you'll see them as suggestions.If you live on Google and don't have any intense file storage needs, you probably don't need to look further than Google Drive. And you can use
Zapier's Google Drive integration to connect Drive with thousands of other apps, so you can automatically do things like save email attachments to the cloud and post files to your social channels. Here are some pre-made workflows to get you started. For more inspiration, check outhow to automate Google Drive.Zapier is the leader in workflow automation—integrating with 6,000+ apps from partners like Google, Salesforce, and Microsoft. Use interfaces, data tables, and logic to build secure, automated systems for your business-critical workflows across your organization's technology stack.
Learn more.Google Drive pricing: Get 15GB for free. Personal Drive storage alone starts at $1.99/month (billed annually) for 100GB. Google Workspace, which includes Drive, starts at $6/month for 30GB.
For a deeper dive into how these two apps stack up, check out our app showdown:
Dropbox vs. Google Drive.The best Dropbox alternative for Windows and Microsoft 365 users
OneDrive
OneDrive pros:
-
Automatically organizes photos into categories
-
Ability to create Microsoft Word and Google Docs files from within Dropbox
OneDrive cons:
-
Personal plans lack more advanced file sharing, collaboration, and management features
If you're a Windows user and love your Microsoft 365 apps, like Word and Excel, OneDrive's deep integration with Microsoft makes it a solid Dropbox alternative. Plus, if you have a Microsoft 365 account, you already have OneDrive, eliminating the need to add another item to your growing list of subscriptions.
But even if you're not a Microsoft or Windows user, OneDrive is still a strong contender based on its reliability and ease of use. It also has some unique features, like its redesigned Photos tab. It automatically organizes your photos into categories, like screenshots and selfies, and displays everything in a nice gallery.
One potential drawback to OneDrive: its user interface leaves a lot to be desired. While Dropbox's interface offers an airier, more modern feel, OneDrive offers a traditional Microsoft look. It's not pretty, but it is familiar. If you don't care about the overall aesthetics, this is a moot point. But if you do, it's something to consider.
OneDrive also integrates with Zapier, which means you can automatically store files from other apps to the cloud—no fussy downloading and uploading required. Learn more abouthow to automate OneDrive, or check out these pre-made workflows for some ideas.OneDrive pricing: Get 5GB for free. Paid plans start at $19.99/year for 100GB and go up to $99.99/year for 6TB (shared with 6 users, split 1TB each).
For more details, check out Zapier's app showdown:
Dropbox vs. OneDrive.The best Dropbox alternative for Apple users
iCloud
iCloud pros:
-
Offers larger storage plans—6TB and 12TB—at a competitive price
-
Zero maintenance; it just works
iCloud cons:
-
Photos take up the bulk of your storage space
Dropbox offers 2GB of storage for free, which is not impressive when you realize that iCloud offers more than double that (5GB) for the same zero dollars. Of course, other apps on this list offer five times as much storage as Dropbox for free, which begs the question: Why is iCloud on this list of Dropbox alternatives?
The biggest reason to use iCloud is that it's already built into all Apple devices. There are no apps to install or update ever. It runs quietly in the background, syncing to perfection and never bothering you with a notification of any kind. It sounds simple, but it's the simplicity that makes it a dream to use.
iCloud is also one of only a few cloud storage providers that offer larger plans—up to 12TB. That's a ton of cloud storage. If you're maxing that out, it's more economical to set up a NAS (Network-Attached Storage) or other local storage solution. But if ease of use is your top priority and you plan to stick with all Apple everything, iCloud is the Dropbox alternative for you.
iCloud pricing: Get 5GB for free. Individual plans start at $0.99/month for 50GB and go up to $59.99/month for 12TB. Family sharing plans for up to 6 users are $3.99/month for 200GB and $12.99/month for 2TB.
For more options, check out our roundup of the
best cloud storage apps.The best Dropbox alternative for businesses
Box
Box pros:
-
Essentially unlimited storage for $60/month
-
Bundled with small business tools like document signing, collaborative online documents, and whiteboard
Box cons:
-
Unlimited storage is capped at 5GB per file
Box has a lot going for it, especially for businesses. Its plans come bundled with small business tools like document signing, collaborative online documents, and an online whiteboard.
It's also ridiculously easy to use. Its mobile app is the best compared to other Dropbox alternatives. The Favorites and Collections tabs allow you to quickly access key files or folders, without interfering with your directory structure anywhere else. File comments are easy to read and reply to. And you can edit
Box Notes (text documents) from the app, making it a great on-the-gonotes solution.Box also offers unlimited storage. But before you get too excited, there's a caveat: it's capped at 5GB per file. That's enough for most needs, but probably not enough if you plan to back up videos, since iPhones now record
6GB per minute of 4K video. Higher Box tiers allow up to 150GB per file, but there are more cost-effective apps at that price point.Like Dropbox, Box also combines cloud storage with the ability to sign and send documents via
Box Sign (it's integrated with every Box account). You can send up to five documents per month for free. If you need more, the cheapest paid plan gets you 15 signed documents per month.For even more flexibility, use
Zapier's Box integration to streamline the rest of your digital file management. Here are a few pre-made workflows to get you started.Box pricing: Get 10GB for free. Paid plans start at $10/month (billed annually) for 100GB and go up to $45/month (minimum 3 users at $15/each, billed annually) for unlimited storage with a Business account.
Looking for a dedicated eSignature app? Check out our roundup of the
best electronic signature apps.The best Dropbox alternative for unlimited photo storage
Jottacloud
Jottacloud pros:
-
Truly unlimited storage space
-
Automatic photo backup on any device
Jottacloud cons:
-
Desktop app can be a bit buggy and crash sometimes on macOS
If photo storage is mostly what you're after, you can't go wrong with Jottacloud. You can upload any kind of file to the app, but media organization is where it shines. Like Apple Photos and
Google Photos, the Jottacloud mobile app can automatically back up your phone's photos and videos. The mobile app also displays your memories in beautiful galleries, and you can stream media, including RAW files, to Apple TV and Chromecast.The biggest selling point for Jottacloud is arguably its that it offers the most bang for your buck. For just $10/month, you get truly unlimited storage—and there are no caps to file sizes, either. You're guaranteed 5TB of fast storage and unlimited storage after that with "reduced upload speeds."
You also don't have to worry about privacy as Jottacloud is fully Norwegian-owned and exempt from the
U.S. CLOUD Act.If that's not enough, you can also
extend Jottacloud with Zapier so you can automate your file management workflows. Here are a few examples.Jottacloud pricing: Get 5GB for free. Unlimited storage for personal use is €9.90/month. Family sharing plans (5 users) start at €6.90/month for 1TB and up, and business plans licensed for commercial use range from free (5GB) to €49/month for 1TB storage.
Other Dropbox alternatives
While the apps listed above are some of the best Dropbox alternatives, they're not the only ones. Depending on what you need out of your cloud storage solution, these alternatives may work better for you.
-
If you work with multiple platforms—for example, Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, and Android—and need to sync files across devices,
Tresorit offers multi-platform support. -
Working with sensitive data and files?
Mega offers user-controlled end-to-end encryption to protect your data. -
Perhaps you've been using
Dropbox Capture to capture screen recordings and screenshots, but you don't use it nearly enough to justify the price point.Loom lets you store up to 25 videos (up to five minutes each) for free. Meanwhile,Zappy lets Mac users take unlimited screenshots and store recordings locally for free. -
If you need a more lightweight
document management solution,ONLYOFFICE is a solid Dropbox alternative that also supports collaboration. -
Need a cloud storage app specifically for collaborating on audio files?
Filepass is a musician and audio nerd's dream.
Which Dropbox alternative should you use?
Many of the Dropbox alternatives listed above are pretty much on par with Dropbox itself—at least for personal use. (It gets a little trickier from a price perspective when you break it down for business accounts.) So you really can't go wrong with any one.
If you were to really twist my arm, I'd say go with the one that's most convenient for you. You might find that means using more than one app—I use Google Drive for my full-time job and OneDrive for my part-time job. If that's the case, you can use Zapier to automatically sync your files across apps and
keep everything organized.Related reading: