Google Drive Alternatives 2026: 5 Free Options
Google Drive alternatives: Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Box and 1 more. Prices and licenses checked October 23, 2026.
•4 min read•Cloud Storage & Backup
Verdict:Google Drive gives 15 GB free per Google account, shared with Gmail and Photos, and it becomes a problem when that quota fills up. Leave it when you hit that cap, when you want your files on a server you run, or when your company wants admin controls it does not get on the free tier. Google One's 100 GB plan costs $1.99 a month, which is often the cheapest fix, so check it before switching. Nextcloud is the self-hosted choice: the server is AGPL-3.0 and free, but you run it, and the paid Enterprise Standard is EUR 71.29 per user a year at 100 users. Seafile suits team sync on your own server, with Professional free for up to three users. Dropbox is a weaker free option because Basic gives only 2 GB. Box offers 10 GB free but caps single files at 250 MB, which hurts large media. Microsoft 365 gives 5 GB in OneDrive and fits teams already on Office, though web files must live in OneDrive. Stay on Drive if you only need storage 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-hosting on your own storage | 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 | Team file sync on your 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 | Syncing a desktop folder | 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 | Managed sharing with admin controls | 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 already using Microsoft Office | Docs only |
| iCloud | Free (5 GB free); paid from $0.99 per per month, iCloud+ 50 GB plan (200 GB $2.99, 2 TB $9.99) | iOS, macOS, Windows, Web | Cloud 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
- You want to self-host your files on a server you control (Nextcloud is the pick)
- A team needs sync on its own server with a few free seats (Seafile is the pick)
- You only sync one desktop folder and need little space (Dropbox is the pick)
- Your company already runs Microsoft 365 (Microsoft 365 is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You rely on Google Drive features or integrations that these tools do not replicate
Google Drive today: 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).
Why people look for Google Drive alternatives
Every Google account includes up to 15 GB, and Photos, Drive and Gmail all draw on the same plan storage. Beyond that, Basic gives 100 GB for $1.99 per month, the 2 TB tier is sold as Google AI Plus at $9.99, and 5 TB is Google AI Pro at $19.99. The page says annual billing can save up to 16% but lists no annual prices.
Nextcloud
Compared with Google Drive: The community server is free to self-host under AGPL-3.0, and the desktop and mobile apps are free too. Google Drive's 15 GB free quota is hosted for you; Nextcloud makes you run the server, while the paid Enterprise Standard is EUR 71.29 per user a year at 100 users.
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-hosting on your own storage.
Seafile
Compared with Google Drive: Community Edition is free and open source under AGPL-3.0, and Professional is free for up to 3 users. Above that it is $48 per user a year for 10 to 249 users, a steadier cost than Google One's 100 GB plan at $1.99 a month.
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: Team file sync on your own server.
Dropbox
Compared with Google Drive: The Basic plan has 2 GB, which is far less than the 15 GB Google Drive shares across Gmail and Photos. Plus is $9.99 a month for one person with 2 TB, so you pay more for less free space.
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: Syncing a desktop folder.
Box
Compared with Google Drive: The free single-user plan has 10 GB storage, but caps files at 250 MB and keeps only one file version. Google Drive's free quota is larger and has no per-file cap on the page, so Box is the tighter free option.
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).
Platforms and license: Web, Windows, macOS, iOS, Android. Proprietary.
Best for: Managed sharing with admin controls.
Microsoft 365
Compared with Google Drive: Microsoft 365 includes 5 GB of OneDrive with a free account, and Business Basic is $7 a user a month billed yearly. Files must be saved in OneDrive for the web apps, which differs from Drive's open file access.
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 already using Microsoft 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)
iCloud
Compared with Google Drive: Gives 5 GB free; 50 GB is $0.99 per month, 200 GB $2.99 and 2 TB $9.99, against Google's 100 GB for $1.99 and 2 TB at $9.99.
Price: Free (5 GB free); paid from $0.99 per per month, iCloud+ 50 GB plan (200 GB $2.99, 2 TB $9.99) (iCloud pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
pCloud
Compared with Google Drive: Lifetime Premium 500 GB is a one-time $219 and 2 TB lifetime $499, so one payment replaces a recurring Google 2 TB plan at $9.99 a month; it breaks even after roughly 50 months.
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
- You want to self-host your files on a server you control: Nextcloud
- A team needs sync on its own server with a few free seats: Seafile
- You only sync one desktop folder and need little space: Dropbox
- Your company already runs Microsoft 365: Microsoft 365
Limits of this review
Docs-only for Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Box, Microsoft 365: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages and we did not test import from Google Drive. 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: Google Drive, Nextcloud, Seafile, Dropbox, Box, Microsoft 365, iCloud, 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.