Dropbox Review 2026: Is the OG Cloud Storage Company Still Good?

As a pioneer in cloud storage services, Dropbox has been around for nearly 20 years. Over time, Dropbox has refined its offerings for professionals and businesses alike, with a proprietary infrastructure, key workflow integrations, and collaborative tools. Now, Dropbox has even integrated its own AI-powered search tool, called Dropbox Dash, to better serve modern, "virtual-first" organizations.

After testing, we think Dropbox is best suited for individuals or businesses that need a large amount of storage and an easy-to-use platform. Plans start at 2 terabytes (TB) of storage space. For context, that's about 500,000 photos, 500 movies, or 13 million document pages. 

Learn more about pricing, pros and cons, and whether this is the best cloud storage provider for you in our Dropbox review.

Dropbox review at a glance

Price	$9.99-$24/mo
Free plan	Yes — 2 GB
Storage space	2 TB – 15+ TB
Encryption	256-bit AES (at rest) and SSL/TLS (in-transit). Advanced plans can enable end-to-end encryption.
Local storage	Yes
Details	Get Dropbox

Star rating summary

We last tested Dropbox on February 16, 2026.

Our experience with Dropbox

Our first impression was that Dropbox had an easy-to-use interface, and creating a file organization system was painless.

But we had a mixed experience with importing files. We could upload files stored locally on our computer and maintain our current file organization. But while importing files from Google Drive, we couldn't upload folders, which made organizing files more difficult.

However, Dropbox offers many useful tools for quickly organizing files. You can create rules for auto-organizing files. Dropbox can even recommend how to organize files into subfolders with its Smart Move tool.

Dropbox leans toward the expensive side of cloud service providers, most likely because it offers a large amount of storage. It's most beneficial for individuals or small businesses with large files who expect them to grow even further in the future.

Getting started

Dropbox works in a browser, but you can also download an app for your device. We tested Dropbox on a Chrome browser. It was an easy experience, and we didn't need to download the app to use most of the core features. However, you will need the app for real-time file synchronization.

Dropbox has an easy-to-use interface; we never struggled to find what we were looking for. It helped that Dropbox offered helpful hints while we moved through the platform.

File storage and organization

Uploading files from our device was seamless. We could upload individual files or an entire folder, and we never had to wait long for files to import into Dropbox.

There are also a lot of tools to help organize files. Multi-file organization lets you create rules to sort files. You can also add tags to folders. We tried Smart Move, which analyzes files and determines which relevant subfolders to move them to. It worked quickly and made accurate suggestions.

We tested a naming convention that renamed all our files to begin with a specific keyword. It was much quicker than having to do it manually.

However, the process was a bit more difficult when we tried to import files from Google Drive. Dropbox showed only individual files for upload, so we couldn't upload folders. This means we would have to organize our files into folders again. And since we have hundreds of files, this would be a time-consuming task.

Syncing and sharing files

Sharing files is easy with a link. Even if you are sharing files with someone who doesn't have Dropbox, you can use the transfer tool to give them a copy. There is a limit on file size, though, so you may have a problem sharing large files.

For automatic and real-time file synchronization, you'll need to install the Dropbox app on your device. It will create a folder that syncs to the Dropbox cloud. When you make a change on one device, it will update on all other devices. You can also change settings to store files on your device, Dropbox, or both.

Dropbox prices and plans

From personal use to large organizations, Dropbox has a plan for everyone. Even a free version is available, but many people may find the 2 GB storage space too limited.

Dropbox paid plans range from $9.99-$24/mo, with storage space from 2 TB to over 15 TB. To pick the right plan for you, consider how much storage you need. From there, you can look into finer details like the number of users per account or end-to-end encryption.

Plan	Plus	Professional	Standard	Advanced
Monthly price	$9.99/mo	$16.58/mo	$14/mo per user user	$24/mo per user
Free trial
Storage space	2 TB	3 TB	5 TB	Starts at 15 TB
Local storage
Secure sharing
Secure file deletion
Device syncing
File organization
# of users	1	1	3+	3+
Restore deleted files	30-day history	180-day history	180-day history	1-year history
Transfer file limit	50 GB	100 GB	100 GB	100 GB
End-to-end encryption
Customer support	Live chat and email	Live chat and email	Live chat and email	Live chat, email, and phone
Details	View Plan	View Plan	View Plan	View Plan

Dropbox may be more expensive than competitors. On the Plus plan, you get 2 TB of storage for $9.99/mo paid annually.

NordLocker also offers a 2 TB plan, but at a lower cost of $6.99/mo paid annually. Total Drive offers a whopping 10 TB for $8.25/mo.

However, if you choose a monthly plan, Dropbox is a better option at $11.99/mo compared to NordLocker's $19.99/mo.

If you don’t need up to 10 TB of storage, you might want to try a provider like Google Cloud. You can get 100 GB of storage for $19.99/yr.

Dropbox doesn't have a money-back guarantee, but you can use the free plan to test out features. Another option is to sign up for a 30-day free trial of the Professional, Standard, or Advanced plans.

Dropbox features

Let's take a deeper look at Dropbox features and whether they are worth it.

Local and cloud storage

With the Dropbox app, you can decide if you want to store files locally on your device or on the cloud. Storing files locally means you don't need an internet connection to access them. But this does take up storage space on your device. You could also choose to store files on your device and in the cloud simultaneously.

If you don't use the app, you won't have auto-sync features. You can use the Dropbox website to manually move files between your device and cloud storage.

When you cancel a personal plan, your files and folders remain available (even if you exceed Basic's 2 GB storage limit), but files stop syncing to devices. Cancelled business plans will enter a locked state, with files available but many team features disabled. 

File sharing

Recipients don't need a Dropbox account to access shared files. You can create a link to share with them. They won't have editing access, but they can view the files.

You can also create advanced privacy settings with shared links:

• Create an expiration date.
• Add a password to view a page.
• Disable downloads.
• Limit access to folders from links.
• Allow access to anyone with the shared link or limit it to team members.

Secure file deletion

Secure file deletion ensures that your files are deleted everywhere. Using a file-syncing service like Dropbox can mean files end up on the cloud and multiple devices, so you’ll want to use a cloud storage service with a clear deletion policy.

Dropbox does keep copies of your files after you delete them. This enables you to restore deleted files later. The files are moved to a "Deleted files" folder until the retention period expires (30 to 365 days, depending on the plan). Once the date passes, files are permanently deleted.

For companies with sensitive data, you can create data retention policies to govern when and how data is deleted.

Extras

Dropbox goes further than most cloud storage services when it comes to productivity tools. The Smart Move feature — which we tested during our review — analyzes your files and recommends which subfolders to move them to, saving a lot of manual sorting time. You can also create naming convention rules to bulk-rename files automatically, which is a handy time-saver for anyone dealing with large file libraries.

Dropbox also integrates with hundreds of third-party apps, including Slack, Google Workspace, and Microsoft 365, making it a natural fit for teams that already rely on those tools.

Rounding things out is Dropbox Dash, an AI-powered search tool that lets you find files across Dropbox and connected apps using natural language — a genuinely useful feature that none of its main competitors currently offer.

Is Dropbox safe to use?

All Dropbox plans include 256-bit AES encryption (when files are stored) and SSL/TLS encryption (when files are moved). End-to-end encryption and advanced key management are available only on the Advanced or Enterprise plans.

Besides file security, there are other features to secure your account:

• Enabling two-factor authentication (2FA)
• Creating and managing passkeys
• Getting security codes for account lockouts
• Running a security check to find weak spots
• Choosing how many devices can connect
• Limiting how long a session can last before an automatic log out

Our biggest concerns with Dropbox involve its history of security issues. Dropbox has been breached more than once, with the most recent incident occurring in April 2024. A hacker accessed customer information related to users of Dropbox Sign, including account settings, names, and emails.^[1]

When Dropbox became aware of the issue, it notified all impacted users with step-by-step instructions to protect their data. Dropbox also launched an investigation with forensic investigators to determine how this happened and what actions it should take to protect its users. 

Dropbox compatibility

Dropbox has an app that works with popular operating systems. It also has a website dashboard for browsers, although there are no extensions. Here is what supports Dropbox:

• Windows
• macOS
• Linux
• Android
• iOS
• Chrome
• Firefox
• Edge
• Safari

Dropbox customer support

Dropbox has an extensive online support system. The learning center offers courses on using Dropbox for businesses. There is also a help center to answer FAQs and help troubleshoot problems.

If you still need help, you can ask a question at the active Dropbox community forum. Community moderators always answer, and we noticed they would even follow up if the poster didn't reply.

All paid plans include live chat and email support. Only the Standard and Advanced plans have phone support.

Dropbox user reviews

• Apple App Store rating: 4.8 out of 5
• Google Play Store rating: 4.4 out of 5
• Trustpilot rating: 1.4 out of 5

Dropbox has generally good ratings on iOS and Android, suggesting that the cloud storage works as intended. However, the Trustpilot rating is low, and Dropbox doesn't respond to negative reviews. Many of the low ratings point out technical issues with little help from customer support.

Top alternatives

Dropbox is a well-known cloud storage provider that’s been in business for years. But other cloud storage services let you bundle your security software and offer up to 10 TB of storage. We think Proton Drive is the best Dropbox alternative, but there are other providers as well.

Proton Drive

Proton Drive goes further than NordLocker in terms of features, adding built-in document and spreadsheet editing, a polished web interface, and higher-tier plans that bundle Proton VPN, Proton Mail, and Proton Pass. It's the better choice if you want a full privacy-focused productivity suite rather than storage alone.

Learn more in our Proton Drive review.

Total Drive

Total Drive is the best option in this group if raw storage is your main priority, offering significantly more storage per dollar than Dropbox's entry-level plan. It's a straightforward, no-frills service that handles the basics well, though it lacks the collaboration tools and workflow integrations that make Dropbox stand out for teams.

Learn more in our Total Drive review.

NordLocker

NordLocker is the more stripped-back of the two privacy-focused options, making it a good fit for users who just want secure, encrypted storage without any bells and whistles. It's also the easiest to bundle with other Nord security products like NordVPN and NordPass.

Learn more in our NordLocker review.

Bottom line: Is Dropbox good?

Dropbox offers generous storage space and powerful tools for organizing files. For businesses, Dropbox can enable team collaboration while keeping files secure.

However, Dropbox is on the expensive side for personal use. You may not need 2 TB of storage, and competitors offer smaller storage sizes at a more affordable price.

Dropbox offers the best value for people with a large number of photos, videos, or other large files. You'll have plenty of storage space, and Dropbox makes it easy to create a folder organization system.

Dropbox FAQs