Picking a cloud service looks simple until you try to live with it for a few years. Then the real differences show up. Some services are collaboration hubs that happen to store files. Some are privacy products that happen to sync folders. Some are cheap bulk storage lockers that look generous until you ask harder questions about trust, encryption, export, or long-term fit. The brands in your list do not all compete on the same field, and that is the first thing most comparisons get wrong.
Table of Contents
Cloud storage is no longer one market
The old way of comparing cloud storage was straightforward. You looked at free space, paid tiers, maybe sync speed, and called it a day. That is no longer enough. Google Drive and Microsoft OneDrive are really ecosystem products. Their biggest strength is not raw storage. It is the way they tie storage to email, office suites, identity, search, AI features, and device backup. Google gives every account up to 15 GB shared across Drive, Gmail, and Photos through Google One, while Microsoft gives 5 GB free and then pushes users toward Microsoft 365 bundles where storage is joined to Office apps and account features.
Dropbox sits in a different lane. It still feels like the cleanest pure file-sync product in the mainstream market. Its free tier is tiny at 2 GB, which makes it look weak on paper, but that misses the point. Dropbox has spent years refining sync, sharing, recovery, and business-friendly handoff rather than trying to be the default home for your whole digital life. It is less of a platform than Google and Microsoft, and more of a polished workhorse.
Proton Drive, pCloud, and Sync.com are the counterargument to the ecosystem giants. They are for people who care more about privacy boundaries, jurisdiction, or control than tight integration with Google Docs or Microsoft 365. Proton is the clearest privacy-first option in your list because it explicitly markets end-to-end encryption for files and metadata. pCloud is more mixed: it is strong, flexible, and Swiss-based, but its zero-knowledge layer comes through pCloud Encryption rather than blanketing the whole service by default. Sync.com belongs in this same conversation even though you did not list it, because its pitch is also zero-knowledge encrypted storage rather than app-suite gravity.
Then there are the services that attract attention with sheer generosity. TeraBox is the loudest example, because 1 TB free storage is a huge headline and still unusual in this market. Yandex Disk is less dramatic, but it also competes hard on practical storage, large file uploads, and a broader Yandex 360 package. The trouble is that big free allowances do not answer the harder question: would you trust this service with your most sensitive files, your long archive, or your family photos ten years from now? The official material for TeraBox talks about encryption and data protection, but it does not make the same plain end-to-end or zero-knowledge promise you get from Proton Drive or Sync.com. Yandex talks about encrypted connections and antivirus checks, which is useful, but again not the same thing as private-by-design storage.
Samsung Cloud is the outlier. It should not really be ranked beside Drive, Dropbox, or pCloud as if it were a normal standalone cloud drive. Samsung’s own support material makes clear that Gallery Sync, Samsung Cloud Drive, and premium storage were discontinued and replaced by Microsoft OneDrive, while Samsung Cloud continues as a Galaxy backup, restore, and sync service for supported data types. That makes it useful, but it is a companion utility now, not a real general-purpose cloud storage winner.
Quick fit for the main services
| Service | Free storage | Strongest reason to choose it | Main caution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Drive | 15 GB | Best collaboration and Google ecosystem fit | Privacy model is not privacy-first by default |
| Microsoft OneDrive | 5 GB | Best choice for Windows and Microsoft 365 users | Feels average outside the Microsoft world |
| Dropbox | 2 GB | Excellent sync, sharing, and recovery workflow | Weak free plan |
| Proton Drive | 5 GB | End-to-end encryption for files and metadata | Collaboration still trails Google and Microsoft |
| pCloud | Up to 10 GB | Flexible storage, lifetime plans, media-friendly feel | Zero-knowledge encryption is an added layer |
| Yandex Disk | 5 GB | Cheap space and large file handling | Not a privacy-first product |
| TeraBox | 1 TB | Massive free storage headline | Trust and encryption clarity are weaker |
| Samsung Cloud | Not a normal drive tier | Useful Galaxy backup and restore | Not a real standalone drive rival |
That table is the fastest honest version of the market. Google Drive and OneDrive are daily-usage defaults, Dropbox is a workflow tool, Proton and pCloud are the privacy-leaning alternatives, Yandex and TeraBox are value plays, and Samsung Cloud is a special case.
Google Drive still owns the collaboration default
Google Drive remains the easiest recommendation for people who live in Gmail, Android, Google Photos, Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Its advantage is not subtle. Drive is deeply tied to the best browser-native collaboration stack in the consumer market. Google’s own product pages frame Drive around secure file storage and sharing, while the Drive help documentation highlights version history, search and organization, offline access, sharing, and collaboration. In real life, that means fewer moments where you stop to think about files at all. They just sit inside the broader Google workflow.
The free tier is still generous enough to matter. A Google account gets up to 15 GB, and that is a better starting point than OneDrive’s 5 GB or Dropbox’s 2 GB. That said, Google’s free storage is shared across Gmail, Drive, and Photos, so heavy email users or people who auto-back up phone media can burn through it faster than they expect. Paid expansion runs through Google One, which is more than a storage upsell now; it is also the place where Google bundles extra account features and, in some plans, AI-related add-ons. For households already pulled into Google’s orbit, that bundle logic is powerful.
Where Google is weaker is privacy framing. Google does encrypt files at rest and in transit, and its documentation is clear that organizations can add client-side encryption for Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides in Google Workspace. That matters, but it also reveals the limit. The strongest encryption story is largely a Workspace story, not the default personal-account story. If you are a business with the right setup, Google can go much further. If you are a regular personal user, Google Drive is still primarily a convenience and collaboration product, not a zero-knowledge vault.
That trade-off is why Google Drive is so easy to recommend and so easy to reject, depending on the buyer. For students, freelancers who share drafts, families on Android, and almost anyone who edits documents with other people every week, Google Drive is still the practical default winner. You get a large free starting tier, good search, native web editing, simple sharing, version history, and broad familiarity. The friction is low. People know what a Drive link is. That matters more than enthusiasts like to admit.
For privacy-first buyers, the same strengths can feel like weaknesses. Google is excellent when you want files to be legible, linkable, searchable, and collaborative inside a giant platform. It is less attractive when your main goal is to keep file contents and metadata away from the service itself. So the right verdict is not “Google Drive is best” in the abstract. It is narrower and more accurate: Google Drive is best for people who want storage to disappear into the rest of Google. If that is your world, very little else feels as smooth.
OneDrive makes the most sense inside Microsoft’s world
OneDrive has the same broad shape as Google Drive, but the personality is different. Google feels like a web-native collaboration layer. OneDrive feels like the storage arm of Microsoft 365 and Windows. That makes it unusually strong for people who already use Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Windows file explorer as their default environment. If your digital life already sits inside Microsoft accounts, OneDrive is less a separate product than the storage backbone holding the rest together.
The free tier is modest at 5 GB. Paid tiers make more sense. Microsoft’s plan pages position 100 GB through Microsoft 365 Basic, 1 TB for one person with Microsoft 365 Personal, and up to 6 TB total with Microsoft 365 Family, typically 1 TB per person for up to six users. That is one of the clearest value stories in mainstream cloud storage, because you are rarely paying for storage alone. You are paying for a bundle that includes Office apps and account features many households already use. For families that truly use Word, Excel, and Outlook, OneDrive’s value is often better than it looks in a storage-only comparison.
Microsoft also does a better job than many rivals at explaining its extra-security layer for sensitive files. Personal Vault is a protected area inside OneDrive that uses stronger authentication and adds another hurdle before your most sensitive content is opened. Microsoft describes it as an extra security layer with two-factor authentication and automatic locking. That is genuinely useful, especially for passports, tax files, or identity documents. It is not the same thing as end-to-end encryption across your whole drive, but it is a practical security feature that normal users actually understand and use.
OneDrive’s weakness is that it can feel merely fine if you are not already committed to Microsoft. It is competent on mobile, solid on the web, and comfortable on desktop, yet much of its appeal comes from context rather than raw product charisma. Google Drive is more naturally collaborative in the browser. Dropbox is often cleaner for pure sync. Proton is far stronger on privacy. OneDrive wins when Microsoft is already the center of gravity.
That point becomes even clearer for Samsung phone owners, because Samsung’s own gallery sync flow now routes into OneDrive rather than Samsung’s old native cloud drive approach. So OneDrive is not just Microsoft’s storage service anymore. In practice, it has become part of Samsung’s photo-sync story too. That gives it a wider real-world footprint than many buyers notice. If you use Windows on your laptop, Office for documents, and a Galaxy phone for photos, OneDrive is the closest thing to a default answer you will get without being fully inside Apple.
Dropbox is still the cleanest sync engine for general file work
Dropbox no longer wins the spec-sheet battle. Its free plan starts at 2 GB, which looks stingy next to Google’s 15 GB, OneDrive’s 5 GB, pCloud’s up to 10 GB, or TeraBox’s almost absurd 1 TB. Yet Dropbox has survived years of much louder competition because it still solves a boring problem better than most rivals: keeping files synced, shared, restored, and moved around with very little drama. That is the core Dropbox experience, and it still has a real audience.
The current personal lineup is straightforward. Basic gives 2 GB. Plus gives 2 TB. Professional pushes to 3 TB, larger transfers, and longer recovery. Dropbox also offers a Family tier with 2 TB for multiple users. You can feel the product philosophy in those tiers. Dropbox is not trying to be your email provider, office suite, identity hub, or AI operating system. It is trying to be the place where files stay accessible, shareable, and recoverable across devices and work contexts. That narrower scope is part of its appeal.
Security is decent, but privacy buyers should read the words carefully. Dropbox’s security documentation is clear about 256-bit AES encryption at rest and TLS or SSL in transit. That is standard, serious infrastructure security. It is not the same as a zero-knowledge design where the provider cannot read your files. Dropbox does not pitch itself that way, and buyers should not pretend it does. Dropbox is secure enough for mainstream work and personal use, but it is not the service to choose because you want the provider itself locked out of file contents.
What Dropbox still does exceptionally well is workflow polish. Shared links, restore windows, large transfers, password protection on higher plans, branded file delivery for professionals, and a general lack of clutter still make it attractive to freelancers, agencies, creative teams, and anyone who constantly hands files to other people. Google Drive can feel better for collaborative documents. OneDrive can feel better when Office files dominate. Dropbox feels best when “the file” is the job. That is still a big category.
So where does Dropbox land in a serious ranking? Not at the very top for most people. The free plan is too small and the broader ecosystem is too thin to beat Google or Microsoft as a default family recommendation. But Dropbox remains one of the safest choices for users who want a mature sync-and-share product without being absorbed into a larger platform. It is no longer the obvious mainstream winner. It is something more specific and, for the right buyer, more durable than that.
Proton Drive and pCloud are the serious privacy contenders
These two services belong in the same conversation, but they should not be confused with each other. Proton Drive is privacy-first from the ground up. pCloud is flexibility-first with a privacy add-on path. Both can be great. The right choice depends on what kind of problem you are solving.
Proton’s case is clean and easy to state. The service offers 5 GB free, paid plans that scale upward into larger personal and family bundles, and a security model built around end-to-end encryption. Proton explicitly says that no one, not even Proton, can access your files and folders or see their names without permission. Its file-sharing pages go even further, saying the encryption covers file contents and metadata such as names, extensions, sizes, and thumbnails. That is the strongest plain-English privacy promise in your must-have list.
The trade-off is maturity on productivity. Proton has added document and spreadsheet editing in its paid offering, and it continues to expand, but it still does not match Google Docs or Microsoft 365 as a collaboration environment. A privacy-first service often pays a convenience tax. That does not make Proton weak. It makes it focused. If your files are contracts, archives, records, private drafts, legal material, or anything else where confidentiality outranks live co-editing polish, Proton Drive becomes much more convincing than Google Drive or OneDrive.
pCloud is more mixed, and that mix is part of the appeal. The service gives users up to 10 GB free, offers subscription and lifetime options, supports large files, and markets itself heavily around Swiss privacy and broad device coverage. Its pricing pages highlight storage plans that reach high capacities, recovery of deleted data, and previous file versions. For a lot of buyers, especially people who dislike endless subscriptions, the existence of lifetime plans is pCloud’s killer feature. Very few major services make that pitch seriously.
The catch is encryption design. pCloud’s zero-knowledge pitch sits inside pCloud Encryption, sometimes called pCloud Crypto, rather than across the whole account by default. pCloud’s own pages are clear that the encrypted folder works through client-side encryption and that only you hold the key. That is real privacy, but it is targeted privacy. You have to understand where the boundary is. If you want blanket end-to-end storage with the provider locked out by design, Proton is cleaner. If you want a flexible mainstream-feeling cloud with an optional private vault and a lifetime payment route, pCloud may fit better.
Privacy snapshot for the services that talk security the most
| Service | Default privacy stance | What the official material clearly says |
|---|---|---|
| Proton Drive | End-to-end by design | Proton says it cannot access file contents or names |
| pCloud | Mixed by default, private folder option | Zero-knowledge applies through pCloud Encryption |
| Sync.com | Zero-knowledge design | Sync says it includes end-to-end encryption and zero-knowledge authentication |
| Google Drive | Standard encryption, advanced client-side options in Workspace | Client-side encryption exists, but as a Workspace feature |
| Dropbox | Standard encryption at rest and in transit | Dropbox documents infrastructure security, not zero-knowledge storage |
That table is the easiest way to stop fuzzy marketing language from blurring together. “Secure” is not one thing. Proton, pCloud, Sync.com, Google Drive, and Dropbox all secure data, but they do not all place the same limit on provider visibility. For privacy buyers, that difference is the whole purchase decision.
Yandex Disk and TeraBox win on generosity but not on trust
These services are interesting because they attack the market from the angle many mainstream brands no longer emphasize: plain storage value. Yandex Disk gives 5 GB free and pushes users toward 200 GB, 1 TB, and 3 TB expansion through Yandex 360. It also promotes large uploads, with official material pointing to file uploads up to 100 GB on its paid side, plus photo-oriented and document-oriented features in the larger Yandex ecosystem. For users who mostly want space, media handling, and reasonable pricing, that is attractive.
Yandex’s official security language is functional rather than privacy-ideological. The company says Yandex Disk transfers data over encrypted connections and checks uploaded or stored files with built-in antivirus in its business documentation. That is perfectly respectable as a mainstream storage-security model. It is just not the same as saying the service cannot read user data. So Yandex Disk lands in a middle zone: better treated as a pragmatic storage and collaboration product than as a privacy sanctuary.
TeraBox is the more dramatic case because the headline is so strong. Official pricing and landing pages still advertise 1 TB free cloud storage, and that alone guarantees attention. It is hard to overstate how unusual that looks next to the rest of the field. Even if you never pay, TeraBox gives you an amount of free space that makes Google, Microsoft, Dropbox, Proton, and Apple look conservative. TeraBox also sells larger paid options, including a 5 TB tier on its official material.
But the right reaction to TeraBox is not simple excitement. It is scrutiny. The official privacy and security pages say TeraBox uses encryption technology, protection mechanisms, and HTTPS transmission encryption. Those are real claims, and I am not ignoring them. What I did not find on the consumer pages I reviewed was the kind of blunt, repeated zero-knowledge or end-to-end language that Proton and Sync.com use, or the clearly scoped client-side private folder model that pCloud uses for its encrypted area. That absence does not prove something sinister. It does mean the trust story is much less explicit.
That is why I would separate “bulk storage” from “sensitive storage.” For low-risk media, temporary sharing, overflow archives, or non-critical files, TeraBox may be a rational value play simply because the free allowance is so large. For passports, contracts, sensitive family records, source material, or long-term private archives, I would rather pay for a service with a clearer privacy model and a longer-established trust narrative. Yandex Disk sits in a milder version of the same category. These are services you choose for capacity economics first, not for peace of mind first.
Samsung Cloud belongs in a different category now
Samsung Cloud is still useful. It is just not useful in the way many people remember. Samsung’s support pages still describe Samsung Cloud as a place to back up, restore, and sync Galaxy device data, including things like messages, call logs, and settings on supported devices and markets. That can save you after a lost phone, a reset, or a device upgrade. As a backup utility for Galaxy users, it still has a job.
The confusion starts when people treat Samsung Cloud as a normal cross-platform drive competitor. Samsung’s own notice makes the situation clear: Gallery Sync, Samsung Cloud Drive, and premium storage were discontinued and replaced by Microsoft OneDrive. Separate support pages explain how to sync Gallery photos with OneDrive instead. So if your mental model is “Samsung Cloud is Samsung’s answer to Google Drive,” that model is old. Samsung delegated the file-and-photo storage fight to OneDrive and kept Samsung Cloud as a device-service layer.
That matters because it changes the buying advice completely. Nobody should pick Samsung Cloud instead of Dropbox, Proton Drive, or pCloud for general file storage. That is the wrong comparison. The real comparison is Samsung Cloud plus something else. A Galaxy owner might use Samsung Cloud for settings and device backup, OneDrive for Gallery sync and Microsoft documents, Google Drive for general Android sharing, or Proton Drive for private records. Samsung Cloud is now part of a stack, not the whole stack.
There is also a practical limitation buried in Samsung’s support material that shows how specialized the service is. Samsung notes that some items may be unavailable by carrier or country, and one support page points to a 1 GB file size limit in some Samsung Cloud backup contexts. That is not the language of a general-purpose storage platform meant to compete on large media archives, external sharing, or desktop-centric sync. It is the language of a device backup service.
So the verdict is simple. Samsung Cloud should stay in your setup if you own Galaxy hardware and value restore convenience. It should not sit near the top of your ranked cloud-storage shortlist. The better Samsung-related decision is usually whether your main drive should be OneDrive, Google Drive, Proton Drive, or something else alongside Samsung Cloud.
The important services missing from most comparisons
Your must-have list covers the obvious names plus a few interesting edge cases, but a serious 2026 comparison needs at least three more services in the room: iCloud+, Sync.com, and Box. Each fills a real niche that the main list does not fully cover.
iCloud+ matters because Apple users often do not really choose cloud storage in the same way Windows or Android users do. iCloud is woven into device backup, photos, files, private-relay features, email privacy tools, and family sharing logic. Apple gives 5 GB free, then scales through 50 GB, 200 GB, 2 TB, 6 TB, and 12 TB tiers in iCloud+. For households deep in iPhone, iPad, and Mac hardware, iCloud+ is often the least painful answer even when it is not the most generous or the most private in absolute terms. It is the Apple equivalent of OneDrive inside Microsoft’s world.
Sync.com deserves more attention than it usually gets because it is one of the clearest privacy-first mainstream alternatives. Sync says its service includes end-to-end encryption and zero-knowledge authentication, and its pricing pages show a ladder that runs from smaller individual tiers up to 5 TB and unlimited team options. That combination matters. Proton Drive gets more buzz in privacy circles, but Sync.com is arguably the more mature “serious encrypted storage for normal business use” alternative in this wider market segment.
Box is the opposite kind of missing service. It is not the best consumer deal. In fact, its free individual tier is relatively tight, with 10 GB of storage, a 250 MB upload limit, and only one file version on the pricing page. That sounds weak until you remember what Box actually is. Box is an enterprise-first content management and collaboration platform that happens to offer personal entry points. If you work in regulated sectors, large organizations, or security-heavy content workflows, Box belongs in the discussion. If you are just trying to store family photos and PDFs, it probably does not.
Three extra services worth adding to any shortlist
| Service | Why it matters | Who should care most |
|---|---|---|
| iCloud+ | Tight Apple integration and broad storage ladder | iPhone, iPad, and Mac households |
| Sync.com | Clear zero-knowledge encrypted storage model | Privacy-conscious individuals and teams |
| Box | Enterprise-first content and permissions culture | Business and regulated-work buyers |
These are not fringe additions. They fill real gaps in the market map. iCloud+ is the ecosystem option you cannot ignore, Sync.com is the privacy alternative many lists forget, and Box is the enterprise-weight option most consumer lists flatten into the background.
The right choice depends on the kind of mess you need to control
People often ask which cloud service is best, but the sharper question is what sort of mess you need it to handle. Do you need shared documents, private archives, phone backups, huge free space, or painless family storage? Those are different jobs, and one service rarely wins all of them at once.
If your life runs through web collaboration, Google Drive still has the cleanest answer. Docs, Sheets, Slides, sharing links, browser editing, version history, and search remain the strongest general package for people whose files are really collaborative workspaces. OneDrive is close when Word and Excel are your default tools. That is not a small distinction. A person who drafts in Google Docs and a person who lives in Excel are not buying the same product, even if both are buying “cloud storage.”
If your files are sensitive and you hate vague privacy promises, the field narrows fast. Proton Drive and Sync.com are much easier to defend because their official language is direct about end-to-end or zero-knowledge design. pCloud can also make sense, but only if you are comfortable with its layered model and understand that the private encrypted area is a specific feature, not the whole account by default. For buyers who never want to think about whether their provider can read a file or its name, clarity matters more than clever bundles.
If price and capacity rule the decision, TeraBox forces its way into the conversation because 1 TB free is impossible to ignore. Yandex also looks good for practical storage value. Yet cost-only decisions often get expensive later if the service is not where you want your long-term archive to live. Migrating terabytes is annoying. Rebuilding sharing habits is annoying. Re-teaching family members is annoying. Storage is cheap compared with moving your digital life twice.
If you are buying for a household, the ecosystem services keep pulling ahead. OneDrive Family, iCloud+, and Google’s broader account ecosystem all have an advantage because they fit how families actually behave. They tie together identity, devices, and storage. That is less exciting than privacy architecture, but it is often more important for non-technical users. Families care about whether photos appear on the right phone, whether files open where expected, and whether someone can recover a deleted document without drama. That is why pure storage comparisons so often miss the real winner in actual homes.
The ranking I would actually use
If I had to rank the services in your list for real-world use, not just for headline specs, my order would start like this.
First place for most people goes to Google Drive. Not because it is the most private or the cheapest, but because it is still the broadest blend of usable free space, collaboration, sharing, and everyday familiarity. If you want one answer that will satisfy the highest number of normal users, Google Drive still gets there more often than the rest.
Second place goes to Microsoft OneDrive. For Windows and Microsoft 365 users, you could swap this with Google Drive and I would not argue hard. The bundle value is strong, the storage ladder is sensible, and the Samsung link now gives it even more practical relevance for phone-photo workflows.
Third place is Proton Drive. If privacy is the main criterion rather than a side preference, Proton jumps much higher and can easily become first. Its plain-language encryption model is better than the mainstream giants, and that matters. It ranks third here only because its collaboration and daily-workflow gravity are still lighter than Google or Microsoft.
Fourth place is Dropbox. It stays high because the product is mature, predictable, and strong at the basic job of synced files and clean sharing. It loses ground on free space and platform gravity, not on competence.
Fifth place is pCloud. This is the wildcard recommendation. For the right buyer, especially someone tempted by lifetime plans and a flexible storage-first service with optional private encryption, pCloud can feel like a smart long-term purchase. For the wrong buyer, it can feel like a service that asks too much of you to understand its privacy boundaries.
Sixth place is Yandex Disk. It looks practical, usable, and price-conscious, with solid support for large uploads and broader Yandex 360 functions. It just does not rise into the top tier because it is neither the collaboration king nor the clearest privacy play.
Seventh place is TeraBox. The free 1 TB offer is real and grabs attention for a reason. If the ranking were based on free storage alone, TeraBox would destroy the rest. But trust, privacy clarity, and long-term confidence matter more than raw allowance once your files become important.
Samsung Cloud is not rankable in the same normal way. It belongs off to the side as a Galaxy backup and restore companion, not as a direct Drive or Dropbox replacement.
So the cleanest buying advice is this. Choose Google Drive if you want the best all-round default. Choose OneDrive if you live in Microsoft. Choose Proton Drive if privacy is non-negotiable. Choose Dropbox if file sync and handoff are the real job. Choose pCloud if lifetime value and optional private storage appeal to you. Choose TeraBox only if huge free space matters more than a first-class trust story. And keep Samsung Cloud in its own smaller box. That is the comparison I would trust with my own files.
FAQ
For most people, Google Drive is still the safest broad recommendation because it combines a relatively generous free tier, strong sharing, native document collaboration, version history, and tight integration with Gmail, Android, and Google’s office tools. OneDrive is just as strong for users who already live inside Microsoft 365.
Proton Drive is the clearest privacy-first pick in your must-have list because Proton explicitly says its end-to-end encryption prevents even Proton from accessing your files and file names. Sync.com also deserves attention in that same privacy-first category.
Not in the same way. pCloud’s zero-knowledge privacy is tied to pCloud Encryption, which protects the encrypted folder through client-side encryption. That is a serious privacy feature, but it is not identical to Proton’s broader end-to-end privacy model across the service.
TeraBox’s official materials say it uses encryption technology and HTTPS transmission encryption, and it still offers the standout 1 TB free tier. The harder issue is clarity. Its consumer-facing material does not make the same explicit zero-knowledge or end-to-end promise that Proton Drive and Sync.com make, so I would treat TeraBox as better for low-risk bulk storage than for sensitive archives.
Not really. Samsung’s own support pages say that Gallery Sync, Samsung Cloud Drive, and premium storage were discontinued and replaced by Microsoft OneDrive. Samsung Cloud still matters for Galaxy backup and restore, but it is not the kind of standalone file-storage rival it used to resemble.
The three most important additions are iCloud+, Sync.com, and Box. iCloud+ matters for Apple households, Sync.com matters for privacy-conscious users who want zero-knowledge encrypted storage, and Box matters for enterprise-heavy workflows rather than ordinary personal storage.
By a huge margin in this comparison, TeraBox gives the most free storage with 1 TB. Google Drive gives up to 15 GB, pCloud up to 10 GB, OneDrive 5 GB, Proton Drive 5 GB, Yandex Disk 5 GB, iCloud 5 GB, and Dropbox 2 GB.
Author:
Jan Bielik
CEO & Founder of Webiano Digital & Marketing Agency
This article is an original analysis supported by the sources cited below
Plans and pricing to upgrade your cloud storage
Google’s official Google One storage plan page, used for free storage and paid-tier context around Google Drive.
Google Drive Share files online with secure cloud storage
Google Workspace’s official Drive product page, used for collaboration and platform-integration context.
Learn about accessibility in Google Drive
Google Drive Help page that lists version history, search, offline access, sharing, and collaboration features.
Get started with encrypted files in Drive, Docs, Sheets & Slides
Google’s official help page explaining default encryption and Workspace client-side encryption.
Cloud Storage Plans and Pricing Microsoft OneDrive
Microsoft’s official OneDrive pricing page, used for free and paid storage tiers.
Personal Vault Store sensitive files
Microsoft’s product page for OneDrive Personal Vault, used for the extra-security discussion.
How OneDrive safeguards your data in the cloud
Microsoft Support page explaining Personal Vault protections and OneDrive security framing.
Dropbox Basic
Dropbox’s official free-plan page, used for the 2 GB free tier.
Dropbox personal plans for individual use
Dropbox’s official personal plan page, used for storage tiers and product positioning.
How Dropbox keeps your files secure
Dropbox’s official security documentation, used for encryption-at-rest and in-transit details.
Yandex Disk for what matters
Yandex’s main Disk product page, used for free storage and core feature details.
Yandex 360 plans
Yandex’s official plan page, used for paid storage tiers and large-upload positioning.
Create, open, and edit documents online for free
Yandex’s official documents page, used for the productivity and editing feature discussion.
Yandex Disk for Business Cloud space for your files
Yandex’s official business Disk page, used for encrypted-connection and antivirus references.
pCloud Secure cloud storage for files, photos & documents
pCloud’s official homepage, used for Swiss privacy language and free storage context.
pCloud Pricing Lifetime & Subscription Plans
pCloud’s official pricing page, used for plan structure, lifetime offers, file recovery, and version history.
pCloud Encryption Zero-Knowledge Client-Side Security
pCloud’s official encryption page, used for the client-side zero-knowledge model.
Proton Drive Free secure cloud storage
Proton’s official Drive homepage, used for free storage and general product positioning.
Proton Drive cloud storage pricing and plans
Proton’s official pricing page, used for free and paid storage tiers and editor features.
Encrypt your files with Proton Drive’s secure cloud storage
Proton’s official security page, used for the end-to-end encryption claim.
Secure file sharing with end-to-end encryption
Proton’s official file-sharing page, used for encrypted metadata and privacy details.
1 TB Free Cloud Storage for Basic & 7-days Trial for Pro
TeraBox’s official pricing page, used for the 1 TB free plan and paid-tier context.
Privacy policy
TeraBox’s official privacy page, used for the service’s published encryption and protection language.
How safe is TeraBox
TeraBox’s official blog post describing transmission encryption and its safety framing.
Samsung Cloud
Samsung’s official Samsung Cloud support page, used for backup, sync, restore, and upgrade context.
Back up and restore data or files on your Galaxy phone or tablet
Samsung Support page used for backup scope and the note about limitations such as file-size restrictions.
Sync your Gallery photos with OneDrive
Samsung Support page used to explain the current OneDrive-based Gallery sync flow.
Changes to Gallery Sync, Samsung Cloud Drive and Premium Storage
Samsung’s official notice explaining that key Samsung Cloud storage features were discontinued and replaced by OneDrive.
iCloud+
Apple’s official iCloud+ product page, used for plan sizes and Apple ecosystem positioning.
iCloud+ plans and pricing
Apple Support article used for free and paid iCloud storage details.
Private and secure cloud storage
Sync.com’s official security page, used for the zero-knowledge and end-to-end encryption positioning.
Compare plans and pricing for individuals
Sync.com’s official individual pricing page, used for current storage-plan context.
Box plans and pricing
Box’s official pricing page, used for the free individual tier, upload limits, and file-version limits.
Create Box account for free
Box’s official personal page, used for free-plan capabilities and Box’s positioning for individual users.
