Box Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
Box alternatives: Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Google Drive and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 25, 2026.
•3 min read•Cloud Storage & Backup
Verdict:Box's free plan is a single-user account with 10 GB, a 250 MB cap on each file and one version kept. Leave it when that file cap stops you, when you need several users on the free tier, or when you want to pay a flat rate for storage rather than a per-user rate. Nextcloud and Seafile both run on your own server, and both are free to self-host under AGPL-3.0. Seafile's Professional edition is free for up to three users, which covers a small team without a bill. Google Drive is the closest free swap, with 15 GB pooled across Google services and a 100 GB plan at $1.99 a month. Dropbox looks cheap, but its Basic plan has 2 GB, which is too small for most of Box's use cases. Microsoft 365 gives 5 GB in OneDrive and suits teams that also want the Office apps. Stay on Box if your team relies on its admin and sharing controls and your files are small.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nextcloud | Free (Community server is free to self-host and the Nextcloud-branded desktop and mobile apps are free); paid from EUR 71.29 per user/year (Enterprise Standard at 100 users, 100-user minimum) | Web, Self-hosted, Desktop app, Mobile app | Self-hosted team files | Docs only |
| Seafile | Free (Community Edition is free and open source; Professional Edition is free for up to 3 users); paid from $48 per user/year (Professional, 10-249 users) | Self-hosted, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Small teams on their own server | Docs only |
| Dropbox | Free (Basic plan with 2 GB of storage); paid from $9.99 per month for 1 person, 2 TB (Plus, billed monthly) | Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Simple desktop sync | Docs only |
| Google Drive | Free (15 GB of storage per Google account, shared with Gmail and Photos); paid from $1.99 per month (Google One Basic, 100 GB) | Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | Teams on Google Workspace | Docs only |
| Microsoft 365 | Free (Word, Excel and PowerPoint for the web with a Microsoft account, 5 GB of OneDrive, files must be saved in OneDrive); paid from $7 per user/month, paid yearly (Business Basic; $8.40 billed monthly) | Web, iOS, Android | Teams that also need Office | Docs only |
| Sync.com | Free (A free plan exists; its size is not stated on the Teams pricing page); paid from $4.5 per user/month, Teams 1 TB, billed yearly, minimum 3 users ($6 monthly) | Web browser | File storage | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
See the tools in action
Images from the linked documentation. Versions and features may differ from current plans.
Good fit if
- You need several users on a free server you run (Seafile is the pick)
- Your files are larger than 250 MB (Google Drive is the pick)
- You want self-hosted storage with a single admin (Nextcloud is the pick)
- Your team also needs Word and Excel in the browser (Microsoft 365 is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Box features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Box today: Free (Free single user: 10 GB storage, 250 MB maximum file size, 1 file version, 5 Box Sign requests a month); paid from $5 per user/month (Business Starter, minimum 3 users; page headline 'From $5 Per User/Month'; exact billing term not stated in the extracted text) (Box pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Why people look for Box alternatives
Box's free Individual plan is single-user, with 10 GB of storage, a 250 MB upload limit, one file version and 5 Box Sign requests a month. Business Starter needs at least 3 users and caps storage at 100 GB with 2 GB uploads. Unlimited storage starts at Business, which allows 5 GB uploads, while Business Plus allows 15 GB and Enterprise 50 GB. The page shows no per-user prices beyond a 'From $5 Per User/Month' headline.
Nextcloud
Compared with Box: Community server is free to self-host under AGPL-3.0, with no file-size cap set by a vendor. Box's free single-user plan caps files at 250 MB and keeps one version, so Nextcloud trades that limit for running your own server.
Price: Free (Community server is free to self-host and the Nextcloud-branded desktop and mobile apps are free); paid from EUR 71.29 per user/year (Enterprise Standard at 100 users, 100-user minimum) (Nextcloud pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Self-hosted, Desktop app, Mobile app. AGPL-3.0 (open source).
Project activity: 37.3k GitHub stars · latest release v33.0.10 (Oct 15, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Self-hosted team files.
Seafile
Compared with Box: Community Edition is free and open source under AGPL-3.0, and Professional is free for up to 3 users. Box's free plan has 10 GB for one user, so Seafile is the choice when you need several users on one server you control.
Price: Free (Community Edition is free and open source; Professional Edition is free for up to 3 users); paid from $48 per user/year (Professional, 10-249 users) (Seafile pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Self-hosted, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android. AGPL-3.0 (server core); GPL-2.0 desktop client (open source).
Project activity: 15.4k GitHub stars · latest release v9.0.5 (Feb 27, 2024) · last commit Oct 16, 2026
Best for: Small teams on their own server.
Dropbox
Compared with Box: Basic gives 2 GB free, which is less than Box's 10 GB free plan. Plus is $9.99 a month for one person with 2 TB, the nearest paid comparison to Box's per-user plans.
Price: Free (Basic plan with 2 GB of storage); paid from $9.99 per month for 1 person, 2 TB (Plus, billed monthly) (Dropbox pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Simple desktop sync.
Google Drive
Compared with Box: Free Google accounts get 15 GB pooled across Google services, more than Box's 10 GB free plan. Google One's 100 GB plan is $1.99 a month, which is cheaper than any Box paid tier listed on its page.
Price: Free (15 GB of storage per Google account, shared with Gmail and Photos); paid from $1.99 per month (Google One Basic, 100 GB) (Google Drive pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Teams on Google Workspace.
Microsoft 365
Compared with Box: Microsoft 365 includes 5 GB of OneDrive with a free account, and Business Basic is $7 a user a month billed yearly. It replaces Box's admin and sharing features only if you also want Office apps.
Price: Free (Word, Excel and PowerPoint for the web with a Microsoft account, 5 GB of OneDrive, files must be saved in OneDrive); paid from $7 per user/month, paid yearly (Business Basic; $8.40 billed monthly) (Microsoft 365 pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Teams that also need Office.
Worth knowing: Business Basic gives web and mobile versions of the Office apps plus business email, not the desktop apps.
Other popular options (paid)
Sync.com
Compared with Box: Teams 1 TB is $4.50 per user monthly on yearly billing with a 3-user minimum and 180-day file history. Box Business Starter also needs 3 users but caps storage at 100 GB. Sync offers a 30-day trial.
Price: Free (A free plan exists; its size is not stated on the Teams pricing page); paid from $4.5 per user/month, Teams 1 TB, billed yearly, minimum 3 users ($6 monthly) (Sync.com pricing, checked 2026-10-25).
Which one to pick
- You need several users on a free server you run: Seafile
- Your files are larger than 250 MB: Google Drive
- You want self-hosted storage with a single admin: Nextcloud
- Your team also needs Word and Excel in the browser: Microsoft 365
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft 365: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Box. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you buy or migrate.
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Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-25: Box, Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Google Drive, Microsoft 365, Sync.com. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.