4 Free Alternatives to Dropbox

By Ishan on June 22, 2010

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Here are some of the free software that are good free alternatives to Dropbox. These provide similar functionality to Dropbox, and some features that even Dropbox does not provides.
Dropbox is one of the most popular data backup and data synchronization software.  It backs up your data online in real time, and can also keep it in sync with multiple computers.
The software given below are good replacement for Dropbox.

1) Live Mesh

Live Mesh is unarguably the best free alternative to Dropbox. It provides 5 GB of free online backup space, as compared with 2GB of Dropbox. It also keeps your data in sync online, as well as on multiple computers.

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In addition to that, Live Mesh also lets you connect to your computer remotely using any browser. Here is a detailed comparison of Live Mesh and Dropbox.

2) SpiderOak

SpiderOak is another good free alternative to Dropbox. SpiderOak is almost same as Dropbox in terms of features provided. It also offers 2GB of free storage space, can sync multiple computers, and provide version history of files. Apart from that SpiderOak supports multiple platforms, including Windows, Mac, and Linux.

One good advantage of SpiderOak is that it measures data size of compressed data, and not uncompressed one. So, 2GB of SpiderOak might actually store more data than 2GB of other services.

3) Syncplicity

Syncplicity is another good alternative to Dropbox. Free version of Syncplicity offers 2GB of free online storage. Syncplicity also keeps versions of files, as Dropbox does, and it can keep your data in sync online, and on multiple computers. Another good advantage of Syncplicity is that it gives you 1GB extra (up to a total 3GB) for each of your friend that signs up for free account with your referral. This can increase your Syncplicity free storage limit to 5GB.

However, disadvantage of Syncplicity is that it works only with Windows. So, if you want to use it on Mac or Linux, or want to keep data in sync across multiple OS, Syncplicity won’t work for you.

4) SugarSync

SugarSync is another replacement for Dropbox. Like Dropbox, SugarSync also offers 2GB of free space. SugarSync also backs up your data online, and syncs across multiple computers. SugarSync supports both Windows as well as Mac. Apart from that, SugarSync supports all mobile devices, including, iPhone, Android, Blackberry, and Windows Mobile. SugarSync also provides file versioning. Free account keeps 2 versions of each file.

Only limitation of SugarSync is that free account does not gives option to increase space to more than 2GB.
All these software are good and worthy alternatives to Dropbox. So, if you do not want to go with Dropbox, you can go with these. If you have different storage needs, read this comprehensive article about free backup software. Some people consider Mozy also as a replacement for Dropbox, but I do not think so. You can see Mozy vs. Dropbox comparison to know more.