Alternatives to Dropbox
Dropbox alternatives for the sharing half.
Nobody leaves Dropbox over sync — that part remains best-in-class. The alternatives hunt starts at the edges: the free Basic plan’s 2 GB, Dropbox Transfer capping free sends at 100 MB with week-long expiry (as of June 2026), and share links that land recipients inside Dropbox’s interface rather than on anything that looks like yours.
The fix depends on which edge bites. When the share is the product — a client gallery, a portfolio, a download page — Nippy publishes the folder as a real page at your own address, with no expiry and no platform chrome. When the job is a one-off heavy send, SwissTransfer moves up to 50 GB free with 30-day links, embarrassing every transfer allowance in the Dropbox lineup. WeTransfer stays the household name for casual parcels inside its tighter free limits. Google Drive answers the storage maths with 15 GB free, accepting the same lands-in-an-interface trade-off.
And Proton Drive is the move when the discomfort is privacy rather than presentation, with end-to-end encryption by default. Keep the sync; re-route the shares.
Last reviewed: 12 June 2026
Why people look for a Dropbox alternative
- Free Basic storage is 2 GB — the smallest of the major clouds
- Dropbox Transfer free sends cap at 100 MB and expire within about a week
- Share links open Dropbox’s interface around your work
- Outward-facing shares deserve an address of their own
The alternatives
The honest shortlist.
- 1
Nippy
that’s usShares that are the product — galleries, portfolios, download pages
Nippy publishes the folder you’d have shared: photos become a gallery with a lightbox and original-quality zip downloads, documents a tidy page, sites are hosted as-is — at yours.nippy.site or a custom domain on paid plans, with no expiry and no account walls for visitors.
Pros
- A page at your address, not a folder in someone’s interface
- No expiry; the same link stays current as files change
- Galleries and download pages generated automatically
Cons
- Free plan is one site and 25 MB — it’s not bulk storage
- No sync, versioning or collaboration — publish-on-purpose only
- 2
SwissTransfer
One-off heavy sends that dwarf Transfer’s free 100 MB
Free transfers up to 50 GB with expiry configurable to 30 days, no account needed, funded by Swiss host Infomaniak. For moving big files once, it simply outclasses free transfer allowances elsewhere (as of June 2026).
Pros
- 50 GB per transfer, free
- 30-day expiry versus Dropbox Transfer’s week
Cons
- Still a transfer — links always die
- No storage, sync or presentation
- 3
WeTransfer
Casual parcels under a name every recipient knows
The default verb for “I’ll send it over”: free transfers up to 3 GB, capped at ten sends (or 3 GB total) per rolling month with 3-day links. Recognition is the feature; the maths now favour rivals.
Pros
- Universally recognised
- Bigger free sends than Dropbox Transfer
Cons
- 3-day free links
- Monthly caps on free senders
- 4
Google Drive
Winning the free-storage maths
15 GB free against Dropbox’s 2 GB, with persistent links and strong collaboration. The receiving experience is Google’s interface, and permission settings stay the classic tripwire.
Pros
- 15 GB free
- Links don’t expire; great collaboration
Cons
- Recipients land in the Drive UI
- “Request access” friction is real
- 5
Proton Drive
Privacy-first storage with end-to-end encryption
From the Proton Mail team: storage encrypted so the provider can’t read it, with sharing that prioritises confidentiality over polish. The move when trust, not interface, is the complaint.
Pros
- End-to-end encryption by default
- Credible privacy-focused vendor
Cons
- Smaller free tier and plainer sharing than the majors
- No publishing or presentation
How to choose
- The share faces an audience → publish it as a page with its own address
- One-off heavy send → SwissTransfer’s free 50 GB
- It’s really about free storage → Google Drive’s 15 GB
- It’s really about privacy → end-to-end encryption, not a bigger interface
Want the direct head-to-head instead? Nippy vs Dropbox
Putting Nippy to work for a specific job? For designers
FAQ
Questions, answered.
What are Dropbox’s free limits in 2026?
Basic storage is 2 GB, and Dropbox Transfer’s free sends cap at 100 MB with links expiring within about a week (as of June 2026). Paid plans raise both considerably.
Should I actually cancel Dropbox?
If sync and version history earn their fee, no — none of these match it. The honest play for many people is keeping Dropbox for work-in-progress and routing public-facing shares through a host.
What’s the best free way to send something big right now?
SwissTransfer: up to 50 GB free, 30-day links, no account (as of June 2026). Dropbox Transfer’s free 100 MB is for attachments-grade files.
How do I move a Dropbox folder to a hosted page?
Download the folder, drag it onto Nippy, pick an address. Photos become a gallery and documents a download page automatically; the Dropbox copy can stay as your working version.
More alternatives
Other tools, same honesty.
Try the first pick now.
Free to start — no card, no setup, and nothing expires.