Dropbox Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
Dropbox alternatives: Syncthing, Nextcloud, Seafile, Proton and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•4 min read•Cloud Storage & Backup
Verdict:Dropbox Basic is only 2 GB, and Plus is $9.99 a month billed monthly for 2 TB, so most people who search for an alternative are paying for space they could get cheaper. If you only need a few dozen gigabytes, Google Drive's 15 GB free tier, or Proton's free tier of up to 5 GB with encryption, covers it at no cost. If you want to pay little for more space, Google One Basic is $1.99 a month for 100 GB. Syncthing is the right answer when your goal is moving files between your own machines without a company holding them, but it is not a sharing service, so you cannot send a link to a client. Nextcloud and Seafile do that job once you run a server; Nextcloud has a wider app ecosystem while Seafile is focused on file sync. Both ask for upkeep: backups, updates and a domain with HTTPS are now your responsibility. The trade-off to accept is polish. Dropbox's selective sync, file recovery and third-party integrations are hard to match, so list the integrations you rely on before leaving. Expect to move files by downloading and re-uploading unless you use a sync folder. For a family, Google Drive or Proton is the low-effort exit; for a small team that wants control, try Nextcloud on a small VPS first.
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Syncthing | Free (Free; syncs directly between your own devices with no central server or hosted storage) | Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, OpenBSD | Free sync between your own computers | Docs only |
| 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 Dropbox-style cloud and sharing | 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 | Self-hosted sync for small teams | Docs only |
| Proton | Free (Free plan with 1 GB of Mail, up to 5 GB of Drive, 1 encrypted email address and 3 personal calendars); paid from $3.99 per month, billed annually (Mail Plus) | Web, iOS, Android | Encrypted cloud storage on a free plan | 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 | Cheap storage and Google Docs sharing | Docs only |
| Box | 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) | Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android | File storage | Docs only |
| pCloud | Free; paid from $219 per one-time, Premium 500 GB lifetime plan (Premium Plus 2 TB lifetime is $499) | Web, Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS, Android | Cloud storage | Docs only |
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See the tools in action
Images from the linked documentation. Versions and features may differ from current plans.
Good fit if
- More free storage with no setup (Google Drive is the pick)
- Encrypted storage and privacy (Proton is the pick)
- Sync folders between my own devices only (Syncthing is the pick)
- Self-hosted sharing with web access (Nextcloud is the pick)
- Small team sync on a server (Seafile is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Dropbox features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Dropbox today: 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).
Why people look for Dropbox alternatives
Dropbox Basic is free but holds only 2 GB. The first paid step, Plus, is $9.99 per month for one person with 2 TB, while team plans start at Standard, $15 per user per month, and Advanced at $24 per user needs at least three people. Deleted-file recovery runs 30 days on Plus, 180 days on Standard and one year on Advanced, and transfers are capped at 50 GB on Plus and 100 GB above it.
Syncthing
Compared with Dropbox: Syncthing is MPL-2.0 and free, syncing straight between your own devices with no hosted storage, unlike Dropbox's 2 GB cloud. You lose cloud links, web access and sharing, and both devices must be online to sync.
Price: Free (Free; syncs directly between your own devices with no central server or hosted storage) (Syncthing pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris, OpenBSD. MPL-2.0 (open source).
Project activity: 89.8k GitHub stars · latest release v2.1.7 (Oct 21, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Free sync between your own computers.
Nextcloud
Compared with Dropbox: Nextcloud is AGPL-3.0 and free to self-host, with the desktop and mobile apps also free. You gain web sharing and apps on your own server but lose Dropbox's zero-maintenance hosting.
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 Dropbox-style cloud and sharing.
Seafile
Compared with Dropbox: Seafile Community is free open source and the Professional edition is free for up to 3 users, then $48 per user per year. It is known for sync-focused file handling; you lose Dropbox's polished consumer apps.
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: Self-hosted sync for small teams.
Proton
Compared with Dropbox: Proton's free plan includes up to 5 GB of Drive, more than Dropbox Basic's 2 GB, with encrypted storage. You lose Dropbox's integrations and gain privacy; paid starts at $3.99 a month for Mail Plus.
Price: Free (Free plan with 1 GB of Mail, up to 5 GB of Drive, 1 encrypted email address and 3 personal calendars); paid from $3.99 per month, billed annually (Mail Plus) (Proton pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web, iOS, Android. Proprietary hosted service.
Best for: Encrypted cloud storage on a free plan.
Google Drive
Compared with Dropbox: Google Drive gives 15 GB free per Google account, shared with Gmail and Photos, against Dropbox Basic's 2 GB. Google One Basic is $1.99 a month for 100 GB, far below Dropbox Plus at $9.99 for 2 TB.
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: Cheap storage and Google Docs sharing.
Other popular options (paid)
Box
Compared with Dropbox: Free single-user plan gives 10 GB with a 250 MB file limit. Business Starter is listed from $5 per user per month with a three-user minimum, which undercuts Dropbox Standard at $15 per user for a small team.
Price: 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).
pCloud
Compared with Dropbox: Sells a one-time Premium 500 GB lifetime plan at $219 (2 TB lifetime is $499) instead of a recurring fee like Dropbox Plus at $9.99 per month for 2 TB. You prepay, so it only pays off if you keep it for years.
Price: Free; paid from $219 per one-time, Premium 500 GB lifetime plan (Premium Plus 2 TB lifetime is $499) (pCloud pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Which one to pick
- More free storage with no setup: Google Drive
- Encrypted storage and privacy: Proton
- Sync folders between my own devices only: Syncthing
- Self-hosted sharing with web access: Nextcloud
- Small team sync on a server: Seafile
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Syncthing, Nextcloud, Seafile, Proton, Google Drive: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Dropbox. 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 2026-10-23: Dropbox, Syncthing, Nextcloud, Seafile, Proton, Google Drive, Box, pCloud. 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.