There’s no shortage of great options when you’re looking for free cloud storage. Many companies allow you to store gigabytes in the cloud and all you have to do is create an account. We’ve put together our five favourites.
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What Makes the Best Free Cloud Storage?
We’ve put our picks in no particular order: they all have something to offer, from Google Drive’s excellent tool suite to Sync.com’s security features. In each case, we’ll go over what the free storage allotment is and what extras are on offer.
You might notice that Dropbox Missing from our list because it only offers 2GB of free storage, which isn’t much. Also missing is Apple’s iCloudwhich is a bit more generous at 5GB, but is mainly intended for people who own Apple devices – Apple offers only 1 GB if you don’t have an Apple device. Since most other picks can be used on any device, we felt it was a bit more fair.
Also note that we have not taken into account bonuses obtained by performing specific actions in our calculations. For example, pCloud you can cobble together up to 10GB of free storage provided you recommend the service to friends. However, the base allocation is only 2GB, which is too low for this list. However, we will mention when such options exist.
Google Drive: 15GB
Our first choice is Google Drive, as it’s a great option for many reasons, not the least of which is the 15GB of storage you get for free just by creating a Google account. Also included is a Gmail address and access to all of Google’s Office products such as Google Docs, Sheets and Slides. It’s a full package, including Google Photos, which sadly no longer offers unlimited photo storage. Photos you save count towards your 15GB limit.
Of course there are conditions attached. A Google account follows you wherever you go unless you log out – or use incognito mode – and that can even include your location. However, if you’re not too worried about the panopticon, Google Drive is a great deal as it offers plenty of storage space and ease of use at the same time.
Microsoft OneDrive: 5GB
Our next entry is another industry giant, that of Microsoft A ride. Like Google Drive, it’s part of a larger suite of apps and you access it through a free Microsoft account. If you have a Windows computer or use other Microsoft products, including Skype, you already have one. When you sign up, you get 5GB of storage via OneDrive, as well as access to a range of apps in the Office 365 bundle.
Overall, we like Microsoft’s offering less than Google’s apps. In our experience, Microsoft’s web-based Office apps are often slower to respond than Google’s. Additionally, OneDrive only offers a third of Google’s storage allocation, so even looking at those numbers, Redmond’s offering is disappointing.
MEGA: 20 GB for the first year
Our third entry is MEGA, and it’s also the one that offers the most free storage space: 20 GB. You can even extend this with certain achievements, like installing the mobile and desktop apps or referring a friend, each of which earns you an additional 5 GB of storage space. That extra storage only lasts for a year, though, which is a shame.
Although MEGA doesn’t offer Office-style apps like Google and Microsoft, it has much better security. It encrypts all your files when you send them to the cloud, which means that even if your files are intercepted, no one can see what’s inside. However, it is worth noting that several years ago, the MEGA browser extension was hacked and found while stealing passwords So the company has no bulletproof security record.
IceDrive: 10GB
IceDrive is a relative newcomer to the cloud storage market but has made a name for itself thanks to solid security and, more importantly, a whopping 10GB of free storage. All you have to do is provide your email address to create an account and it’s all yours. There are no referral offers like MEGA, but 10GB is nothing to scoff at.
Like MEGA, IceDrive is a very secure service, but it has some nifty features that the competition doesn’t have. For example, you can preview encrypted files, which is usually not possible. It does this by temporarily decrypting files on your end, a neat trick indeed. If that kind of high-tech magic sounds good to you, IceDrive is a solid choice.
Sync.com: 5GB
We end this list with a look at Sync.com, a cloud storage provider that prides itself on being extremely secure — though many of its advanced features are missing from the free plan. With just 5GB of storage, it’s more of a way to get to know the service before committing – although like MEGA, you can increase your quota by installing the app and referring friends.
Since most of Sync.com’s best features are locked in until you start paying for them, the free plan isn’t all that special. Still, 5GB of free storage is pretty decent, and Sync.com’s secure sharing features might just hit the spot for a group of people looking to move sensitive files around.
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