Digital storage seems to be an issue that is coming up more frequently for me.
The wife wants all her photos backed up. Where to store them, forever?
I want all my historic files in one, searchable place. Where to access them, easily?
We don’t want to pay too much for the storage. What’s affordable, accessible, secure, and has staying power?
The answer for the last decade has been Dropbox. But, I wanted a reality check for any alternatives to Dropbox. So, I asked the community at Terkel for their best free Dropbox alternatives. Here’s their recommendations.
What are the best free Dropbox alternatives?
From MediaFire to Collect, here are six answers to the question, “What are the best free Dropbox alternatives?”
- MediaFire
- Nextcloud
- MEGA
- Google Drive
- Icedrive
- Collect by WeTransfer
MediaFire
Offering cloud storage, synchronization services, and file hosting, MediaFire is an all-in-one solution for everything digital. Users can also specify access control, integrate seamlessly with Finder, and easily share anything immediately after uploading.
Adam Bém, Co-Founder and COO, Victoria VR
Nextcloud
The best free alternative to Dropbox for storing your files is an open-source cloud system like Nextcloud. This option allows you to host your own data on a self-managed server, which adds an extra layer of privacy since no third-party company gets access to it.
The software provides features comparable to those of Dropbox and integrates with many other services, such as calendar, email, document editing, and more. It also offers excellent collaboration tools, like file sharing and real-time sync over the internet, which makes it ideal for working remotely.
With Nextcloud, you can increase the storage capacity by setting up additional storage solutions, such as external hard drives or network-attached storage devices.
Kate Duske, Editor-in-Chief, Escape Room Data
Google Drive
Google Drive is Google’s free cloud-based storage and collaboration platform that allows users to store, share, and collaborate on documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and other types of files.
This platform is great because it is accessible from anywhere (with an internet connection) and allows for seamless collaboration with colleagues, clients, or classmates. It also has good document management and security features, for example, file version history and sharing permissions.
Will Baker, Founder, Skirtings R Us
Icedrive
With Icedrive, you can access your files from any device, securely store them online, and share them with others.
It also has a great feature set that includes automatic file syncing across multiple devices, collaboration tools that let you work with other users in files and folders, and powerful security features such as encryption and two-factor authentication.
Ice Drive provides up to 10GB of free storage, with options for upgrading to 100GB or more. It also offers a range of paid plans with additional features and storage space. Icedrive is a good free substitute for Dropbox, with similar functions and an excellent user experience.
Derek Bruce, Senior Director, Newcastle First Aid Courses
Collect by WeTransfer
If you’re looking for a free, feature-rich alternative to Dropbox, Collect by WeTransfer is definitely worth checking out. Many use this service as a fantastic option for sharing photos, videos, and documents with clients and collaborators. It is a user-friendly and reliable platform at no cost.
It has a great web-based interface and is easy to use, and it is also available as an app for both iOS and Android devices. Collect by WeTransfer allows sharing and collaborating on creative projects with clients and collaborators to be easy, making it an ideal tool for content creators.
Austin Cofrancesco, Content Creator, Austin Cofran
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