The 10 best cloud storage services for 2024 (2024)

Price When Reviewed:Free (15GB), $1.99 (100GB), $2.99 (200GB), $9.99 (2TB) a month

If you have a Google account then you already have 15GB of free storage available to you in Google Drive. This can be used to back up documents, photos, videos, and anything else you want to keep safe.

Drive’s interface is simple, clean, and takes about two minutes to master. That’s not to say it’s basic, as Drive has useful features such as sharing links to folders (while setting the level of control the recipient has), accessing a file even if it’s opened on another device, plus apps for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

One of the real benefits is that Drive works seamlessly with Google’s free suite of office apps (Docs, Sheets, and Slides) which you can use in a web browser or via apps on your phone and tablet. It’s not tied to those though, with Microsoft Office files supported without the need to convert them. All can take advantage of Google’s real-time collaboration abilities too, so you can work with colleagues without creating messy duplicate files.

There are security measures in place: Drive scans any files for malware, spam or ransomware to help prevent any disasters. Data is protected using AES 256-bit encryption when on Google’s servers and TLS/SSL protocols when in transit. Unlike some others on this list, these are not private encryption keys, so Google can scan your files.

It means you probably shouldn’t use Drive for any really sensitive data, such as a list of your bank account or credit card numbers. But, this also means you should be able to recover files if you forget your password.

If 15GB isn’t enough space, which it won’t be if you back up your phone’s camera roll to Google Photos (which shares storage with Google Drive) then you can pay for the Google One service. There’s a choice of 100GB (£1.59 / $1.99 per month), 200GB (£2.49 / $2.99 per month), 2TB (£7.99 / $9.99 per month), right up to 30TB for a princely sum of £239.99 / $299.99 per month.

These all include the Google One VPN service too. It’s really basic, and designed only to offer an extra layer of privacy to help stop others snooping on what you’re doing online.

The best part is that Google One membership can be shared by up to five family members.

Bottom line: Google Drive is an excellent, reliable, and affordable cloud storage service. The only drawback is the lack of end-to-end encryption.

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Price When Reviewed:Free (5GB), $1.99 (100GB), $6.99 (1TB) a month

If you’re a Windows user, then you’re probably already familar with Microsoft’s OneDrive, as it’s baked into the system and integrates smoothly with Microsoft’s Office apps. The free tier is only 5GB, which will fill up, quickly, but there are plenty of storage options available. To be honest, the free tier is incredibly basic, lacking many of the features that you’d want from a modern cloud storage service.

Moving up to the paid plans, which start at £1.99 / $1.99 per month for 100GB, you start to get features such as backing up specific folders on your computer, syncing between devices, compatibility with OneDrive mobile apps, photo backups, file sharing, file versioning (so you can reload older versions of files), offline files, real-time collaboration and the Files On-Demand settings that can keep files stored solely online rather than taking up space on your device.

The real experience comes into play when you choose the Microsoft 365 Personal plan, which costs either £5.99 / $6.99 per month (one user) or the Family Plan that will set you back £7.99 / $9.99 per month but this time grants access for six users. This not only boosts your storage to 1TB per person, but also includes the full versions of all the Microsoft Office apps (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)

This brings with it a number of extras such as restoring the entire drive back to any point in the past 30 days, ransomware detection, password protection on shared files, expiration dates on shared links, offline folders on mobile devices, plus a secure vault for all your important files.

If you need 1TB of storage and want to use official Office products, then Microsoft 365 is good value, but Google is more generous with its free tier and also offers its own office apps.

Bottom Line: If you already use Windows and want to access Microsoft Office, then OneDrive is the obvious choice for storage.

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Price When Reviewed:Free (10GB), $4.99 (500GB), $9.99 (2TB) a month

pCloud doesn’t have the office suites or other extras offered by the likes of Google and Microsoft. Instead the Switzerland-based company sticks to what it knows best: keeping your files safe, secure, and available across all your devices.

The free tier gives you 10GB of storage, although 3GB of that needs to be unlocked by completing tasks such as downloading the mobile app, uploading a file, or sharing the service with friends.

There are no restrictions on file size, so you can upload anything that your storage space allows, and versioning means files can be restored back as far as 30 days.

You can preview common file types in the browser version of pCloud, and use it to listen to stored music. There’s also a built-in video player, so pCloud could act as a media centre for your music, TV and movies if you wanted.

Security is strong with pCloud stating that it keeps five copies of each files, distributed to different servers, with 256-bit AES encryption applied on the servers and TLS/SSL used when the files are travelling between devices. Additional client-side encryption is also on offer (meaning your data is encrypted before it leaves your device) for a fee of £49.99 / $49.99 per year or for a lifetime fee of £150 / $150.

Pricing is unusual, in that you can pay a yearly fee for 500GB (£49.99 / $49.99) or 2TB £99.99 / $99.99), but the focus is on the Lifetime plans which cost £199 / $199 for 500GB, £399 / $399 for 2TB or £1190 / $1190 for 10TB. It means that the service is effectively free after you’ve used it for about four years. You also combine Lifetime plans, so if you want to expand the 500GB storage amount at a later date, simply buy the 2TB one and you’ll have 2.5TB.

Bottom Line: pCloud is a stable, fast storage service with optional encryption. The lifetime pricing makes it good value.

See all pCloud plans

Price When Reviewed:Free (more storage from $12.50 a month)

Swiss-based Tresorit takes security and privacy very seriously indeed. There’s end-to-end encryption as standard, zero-knowledge authentication (meaning Tresorit doesn’t know your password and can’t access your data), multiple copies of files kept on multiple servers for backups, 2-factor authentication and servers based in the EU so that they benefit from rigorous privacy laws.

This means it’s quite a compelling package if you want to be assured that no-one will be prying into your business.

All of these precautions cost money of course, but Tresorit does offer a 14-day free trial. There also a free tier called Tresorit Basic which lets you connect two devices and gives you 3GB of storage (500MB maximum file size) and up to 50 share links per month.

Realistically, you’ll want to go for one of the paid tiers to get the most out of Tresorit. There’s the Personal package which costs £7.99 / $13.99 per month for 1TB, or Professional is a package aimed at freelancers and professionals that costs £18.99 / $33.99 per month and includes 4TB of storage, 15GB maximum file sizes, plus password-protected file sharing, granular permissions, Outlook and Gmail integration, and 100 file versions (as opposed to the 10 on the Premium tier).

Tresorit now lets users receive files in an end-to-end encrypted environment without requiring the sender to be a subscriber. Plus, there’s a choice of ‘residency options‘ which lets you pick where your data is stored, allowing local teams to store data on servers located in their own region.

We’ve mentioned it before, but the Outlook and Gmail integrations in the paid tiers mean that you can use Tresorit’s privacy and security features to encrypt and protect files you send through those services, without having to leave the apps first. This makes it far more likely that you’ll actually use this capability day-to-day.

Desktop and mobile apps are available on Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android.

Bottom Line: While more costly than some other services, Tresorit will appeal to those who put a premium on security and privacy.

See all Tresorit’s plans

Price When Reviewed:Free (more storage from $5.60 per month)

New Zealand-based Mega is one of the most generous when it comes to capacity of its free account. By signing up the service, you’re instantly given 20GB to play with, which is not bad at all. There’s also a nice clean interface, and the knowledge that your data is encrypted end-to-end, making Mega a zero-knowledge service where even the employees can’t gain access to your files.

The free tier includes secure sharing of files, 100 file versions, automatic backups, plus an encrypted messaging service where you can text, make video or audio calls with friends and colleagues without outside snoopers being able to know what you’re talking about.

Mega is quick and efficient in uploading and downloading files (obviously dependant on your own internet connection), and this is maintained by download/streaming limits imposed by the service. You can only export files up to a certain limit over every six-hour period. On the free account this is conditional on factors such as geography and the network you’re on, for paid services you can use the full allocation included in your plan.

To be honest, for most users, most of the time you won’t even notice this. But if you’re a power-downloader (is that a thing?), then you may need to think about which plan suits you best, as they have different transfer limits included. Uploading is a different prospect, as Mega allows unlimited file sizes for data you send to its servers.

If you want more storage and transfer allowance, the Pro 1 tier costs €9.99 (around £8.56 / $10.76) per month and includes 2TB of both, Pro 2 expands them to 8TB for €20 (around £17.14 / $21.50) per month or there’s the Pro 3 plan at €30 (around £25.71 / $32.29) which delivers a sizable 16TB of storage and transfer capacities. Even larger ones are available on the Pro level plans for teams and small businesses.

Mega is about to roll out some new features too, such as account rewind to recover data from earlier dates if you get hit with a ransomeware attack or just need to restore deleted files, plus what it calls ‘complimentary privacy-focussed products’, so things seem to be moving in the right direction for the service.

There are dedicated apps for iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, Linux and plug ins for Chrome and Edge.

Bottom Line: Fast, easy to use, with nice additional features. A solid competitor to the big names.

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Price When Reviewed:Free (more storage from $8 per month)

Sync.com is based in Canada and offers plans for individuals as well as businesses. It’s a ‘zero knowledge’ platform, which means data is encrypted on your own device before being uploaded to the cloud, where it remains encrypted. So it’s like Mega and Tresorit.

As the name suggests, you can sync files from your device to the cloud and there are apps for Windows, macOS, Android and iOS. Weirdly, despite the name, it also offers unsynced storage, which is perfect if you want to back up some files. Most cloud storage is synchronised, so if you delete a file on one device, it’s deleted everywhere, and is no longer in the cloud.

That’s no good if you need a backup, or if you want to save space locally, but with Sync.com you can specify which files exist only in the cloud and which are also available on the device itself. The mobile apps will automatically upload photos and videos, and it’s possible to preview office and PDF documents in the apps and on the web version.

One of the slight drawbacks is a limited choice of paid plans. Sync offers 5GB for free, but the cheapest paid plan is for 2TB (Solo Basic), and there’s nothing in between. However, the price for this is very reasonable at £6 / $8 per month – but note that you pay annually, not monthly.

If you go for the Solo Basic plan, you get 180-day file history for undeleting files and also accessing previous versions, while Solo Professional (£18 / $20 per month) offers 365-days, not to mention 6TB of storage.

For sharing files in the cloud, there are plenty of options such as password protecting links, and granular permissions to limit access to viewing documents, for example, and not downloading them. You’re also able to remotely wipe files you’ve shared, and lock-out devices if they get lost or stolen.

If you should suffer a ransomware attack, then the Account Rewind option can take your data back to an earlier time from before the attack, so you get everything back (at least up until that date).

Individual subscribers have limited support, but if you’re ok with emails and help guides, then you may get along just fine with Sync.com

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Price When Reviewed:Free (5GB), 99c (50GB), $2.99 (200GB), $9.99 (2TB) a month

Apple’s iCloud works a little differently to other cloud storage services in that it is effectively part of both macOS and iOS. You can access it via a web version if you’re using non-Apple products, but really it only makes sense as a service if you’re on a Mac, iPhone or iPad.

Many of the Apple apps that are standard across most devices – Mail, Notes, Remiders, Photos, Safari, Calendar, Contacts, Pages, Numbers, Keynote – all have integration into iCloud, using it as their default place to store data. You can use it with non-Apple apps too, as it appears as a virtual drive on your device where you can drag the files or send them directly when useing the Save As option. Bascially, if you’re an Apple fan, iCloud is the got-to way to keep your data safe and synced up.

The advantage of this is that so much of it is happening behind the scenes, that you’ll never need to fiddle with it once the service is up and running. Plus, when you come to move to a new Apple device, you’ll instantly be able to sync all the information from your old one in a few minutes.

Of course, the 5GB that comes free with iCloud isn’t going to be anywhere near enough, especially if you like to take photos and videos, but there are reasonable prices for extra storage.

These are as follows, 50GB (£0.99 / $0.99 per month), 200GB (£2.99 / $2.99 per month), 2TB (£8.99 / $9.99 per month), 6TB (£26.99 / $29.99 per month) and 12TB (£54.99 / $59.99 per month) with the all eligible for inclusion in Apple’s Family Sharing feature.

The paid tiers also grant access to iCloud+ features such as Private Relay and Hide My Email that work with Apple apps to enhance your privacy and security online.

Bottom Line: If you use only Apple products, then iCloud is well worth your attention, otherwise steer clear.

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Price When Reviewed:Free (2GB), $9.99 (2TB), $16.99 (2TB each for 6 family members) a month

Dropbox is one of the biggest names in cloud storage, helping popularise the concept during its early years. Today it has grown into a business-orientated service with powerful tools such being able to collaborate on PowerPoint and Photoshop files in real-time, create mood boards and team-based plans on its own Paper platform, plus the usual online file storage options.

Massive third-party app support (including Google Docs), plus integration with Windows and macOS, means that if you’re looking for a service you can rely on and know that works with pretty much everything, then Dropbox is a solid choice.

Individual users face more of a dilemma, with the free tier being a lowly 2GB of space or 5GB if you choose the option with more tools (which is all rather confusing). Either way, you’re restricted to three devices, and hampered by a lack of even the most basic features such as setting the permissions someone can have to a shared file. The real Dropbox appears when you opt for one of the paid tiers.

These start with the Plus plan that costs £7.99 / $9.99 per month and gives you a much more usable 2TB of storage, plus a range of other tools. These include sharing files up to a size of 2GB, 30 days to restore deleted files, 256-bit AES and SSL/TLS encryption, automated backups, 30-day versioning history, PDF editing, video recording and a bunch of other stuff that is cool but you might not use unless you’re working in professional environment. If you need more storage, then there’s the Essential tier, which boosts capacity to 3TB but extends the versioning to 180-days plus lots of additional features for £18.99 / $19.99 per month.

If you have teams, then there are features that expand the feature-set even more, showing off the power of Dropbox’s software.

For many people, Dropbox may be overkill, as the business-focus means that the available tools are best used in those environments. But, it’s easily one of the most features rich and mature cloud storage products available.

Bottom Line: For small teams and businesses Dropbox has a lot to offer, and it’s not bad value for individuals who need 2-3TB of storage.

See Dropbox plans

Price When Reviewed:Free (10GB, limited to 250MB files), $4.50 (100GB, limited to 2GB files), $12 (100GB) a month

While Box offers personal storage options, it’s primarily aimed at businesses. Nevertheless, the free package still gives you 10GB of free space, although there is a limit of 250MB for file sizes. This is fine for most documents, spreadsheets, and even hi-res photos, but not video.

The free account doesn’t support versioning either (being able to restore previous versions of a file) but you can update to the Personal Pro plan for 10 versions of each file. That tier costs £8 / $10 per month for 100GB of storage and a file size limit of 5GB.Both come with Box’s e-sign feature for digitally signing forms, with Basic offering 5 per month and Personal Pro upping that to 15.

On the business side there’s a range of options, kicking off with the Starter plan for £4 / $5 per month, which also offers 100GB, a slightly lower 2GB file size, works with teams of 3-10 people, supports document encryption, granular permissions and stores previous versions of any file.

All plans include integration with Microsoft 365 and Google Workplace, 2-factor authentication, shared folders, secure file sharing, and the new Box Canvas which is a free-style collaborative space to make notes and plans in real-time with colleagues.

Functionally, Box is very good. The interfaces on the desktop and mobile apps (available on Windows, macOS, iOS, Android) are slick and well designed, with plenty of options for creating, uploading and sorting files.

Bottom Line: For documents and photos it’s a good service, but the best experience is the one for business users.

See Box plans

Price When Reviewed:Free (more storage from $0.89 per month)

Internxt is one of the newest cloud storage services, launching in 2020. The code used to run Internxt is open source, and the system is built on a blockchain. You don’t need to understand all the jargon: Internxt works just like other cloud storage services: you can upload files, access them on your other devices, share them with other people and more.

Compared to some of the more famous names on this list, Internxt is very basic. Beyond uploading and sharing files, there’s really not a lot else you can do. The focus is more on security and ease of use. All your data is end-to-end encrypted using AES 256-bit technology, and the remains protected when in tranist. It’s also a zero-knowledge service, so no-one, not even Internxt, can read your documents, which is good news if you want to store valuable or sensitive information.

As well as using the service in a web browser, you can download apps for mobile and desktop. These allow you to choose whether to sync or backup files from your devices. Sync is the default: it means if you delete a file from the corresponding folder on your device, it will be deleted in the cloud – and vice versa.Backups, on the other hand, let you pick specific folders and files to back up: these won’t be deleted if you intentionally or accidentally remove them from your device.

There’s also Internxt Photos, which is a secure alternative to Google Photos, syncing your photo library across your devices. It doesn’t have the search prowess of Google’s offering, but you can securely share images with friends, protecting them by passwords and links that can specify how many times the file can be accessed before the link expires. Internxt Send is another feature whereby you can send encrypted files via email. The recipient doesn’t need to have Internxt to open them, so you won’t have to bother friends to sign up just to see the pictures of the dog wearing a santa hat.

In terms of pricing: there’s a free tier that gives you 10GB (which is pretty generous) and access to all features. Moving up to 20GB costs £0.99 / $0.99 per month, 200GB is £3.99 / $3.99 per month, and 2TB £8.99 / $8.99 per month.

If you’re looking for a simple way to store, share and (importantly) protect your data then Internxt is well worth trying out.

Bottom line: A very secure but basic cloud storage service.

See all Internxt plans

1.

What is cloud storage?

Cloud storage sounds a bit mysterious, but really it’s just a hard drive on the internet. Instead of the traditional method of storing documents on your computer (or a USB drive) you save them to “the cloud”. In reality, your files are stored on hard drives in a data centre somewhere. You won’t always know which country they are in, but some cloud storage providers let you choose.

2.

Is cloud storage the same as a backup?

3.

Is cloud storage safe for my files?

4.

Which cloud storage is best?

With so many providers to choose between, it can be hard to pick one. But that’s where we come in. We’ve done the hard work of sifting through the options and have narrowed them down to what we consider to be the best cloud storage services out there. Our top pick is Google Drive.

5.

Is cloud storage encrypted?