Google Drive vs. Dropbox — What to Choose

These days, the use of cloud storage has become increasingly pervasive. This isn’t surprising in the least, considering that the aforementioned offers users a slew of benefits.

Utilising cloud storage allows one to save space in all of their devices — from external hard drives to smartphones to laptop computers and what have you. Cloud storage also has a convenient sync feature which you can activate across your different gadgets. And of course, who doesn’t love the fact that cloud storage (for the most part) is absolutely free? Finally, cloud storage makes sharing multiple or large files a hassle-free and secure process as your information is shielded from public computers.

In this article, we contrast and compare Google Drive and Dropbox and see how these two cloud storage giants stack up against one another. So, what are we waiting for? Let’s get started:

Storage space

With regard to storage space, both Google Drive and Dropbox differ in terms of complimentary capacity. Each also offers its own unique brand of premium storage space.

Upon registration, Dropbox offers its users 2GB of free storage. For every friend of yours that signs up for Dropbox and credits you as the referrer, you receive 500 MB of extra storage space. If run out of friends to persuade, there’s always the Pro Dropbox feature. Here you can select from different capacity options and payment terms.

Moving on to Google Drive, you are initially afforded 5GB of storage space. Moving forward you have myriad plans to choose from that range from 25GB to 16TB of storage space.

Features

In terms of features, free space can also be had on Dropbox by making use of their Camera Upload feature. Integration with Facebook Groups is also one cool feature that users of the social media app would appreciate.

For Google Drive, the service allows for disabling of automatic deleting of older versions. This keeps you from maxing out your storage space. Google Drive also features an online document editor for Microsoft Office files.

Security

Hackers and online security issues abound as of late and you don’t want to fall prey to such perpetrators. We’re happy to report that both Google Drive and Dropbox have two-step verification features. This means that you’ll need to verify your identity by first, entering your email and password on the website, and second, by entering the code that is sent to your cellphone.

The Verdict

All in all, Dropbox has been in the game longer than Google Drive. Its referral system is certainly an ingenious way to get more people on board. Security is also a non-issue. Unlike Google Drive, Dropbox supports Blackberry and Linus users.

Nevertheless, Google Drive is not without its perks either given that it uniquely offers support for Adobe and AutoCad files. Editing documents online is possible, but you run the risk of messing up the formatting for Microsoft Office files. Security is on-point as well.

With this in mind, which service is “better” is really dependent on what your needs are. Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.