Google ending unlimited cloud storage for Google Photos from June, 2022 came like a bolt from the blue. Google Photos has been a go to tool to maintain photos’ cloud backup for many people like me. Though it came as a shocker, this isn’t going to be disastrous because we, for you, have the best Google Photos alternatives, both free and paid in this list.
Why is Google Ending the Free Unlimited Storage?
Because, obviously, Google is finding it hard to meet the ever-increasing demand of cloud storage for free. To give you an idea “Google has over 4 Trillion images and videos saved already with 28 Billion multimedia uploads every week.” That’s huge. To keep up with the rising demand for infrastructure, Google has decided to charge customers for the storage.
Free Google Photos Alternatives:
Who doesn’t like FREEBIES! In this section, we are going to discuss the free online photo storage options, their ease of use, and the amount of storage they provide. So, let’s not waste any more time and get straight to it.
1. Microsoft OneDrive
You expected it, Didn’t you? Microsoft OneDrive was first launched in 2007. Microsoft claims to have over 250 Million active users at the moment.
Microsoft OneDrive offers 5GBs of Free Cloud Storage when you sign up. So, if you only backup your wildly important media and not each one of them, you will be good with the free plan. That’s the way I use it.
However, if you want more storage, you will have to subscribe to the paid plans. The interesting bit is, if you have already subscribed to Microsoft Office 365, which many people have, you already get up to 6 TB of storage, so that’s basically free with Microsoft Office 365. Hence, Microsoft OneDrive makes for the best Google Photos alternative and an awesome free online photo storage option.
Awesome Integration with Windows Operating System
People with Microsoft Office 365 get up to 6 TB of free storage
Minimalistic and user-friendly interface
Offers only 5 GB of Free Storage
Pricing:
- 5 GB: Free
- 100 GB: $1.99/month
- Up to 6 TB Free with Microsoft Office 365.
Visit: OneDrive for more information.
2. Degoo Cloud Storage
If you want a huge online photo storage and for free, Degoo is the app for you. Degoo Cloud Storage offers over 100 GBs of free online photo storage. Degoo photos storage can be configured to automatically backup photos to cloud as soon as they are clicked. It helps maintain backup without you having to do it.
There is also an ultimate version with a whopping 10 TBs of cloud storage. Though the Degoo Cloud Storage is an awesome online photo storage solution, it doesn’t have any software for PCs. You can access all your images over Degoo Web. With such humungus free online photo storage, Degoo Cloud Storage is an absolute
100 GBs of Free Cloud Storage
Option of upgrading to a whopping 10 TBs
Users can buy the upgrade for lifetime
No dedicated app for PCs
Pricing:
- 100 GBs: Free
- 10 TBs: $99.99/100 Years (Yes 100 Years)
Visit: Degoo for more information.
3. Icedrive:
Icedrive is yet another awesome free Google Photos Alternative. Icedrive offers 10 GBs of cloud storage for free. For a person like me, 10GBs is a generous space for photos cloud storage. Icedrive has a pretty cool interface and has dedicated apps for both PCs and Mobile devices.
The ultimate selling point of Icedrive is the sheer number of options that it has for every kind of user and the encrypted storage. All the data saved on Icedrive is encrypted, be it media or documents, to offer ultimate secure cloud storage.
Plans to Suite everyone’s needs
Encrypted Storage
Up to 5 TBs of Plans
None that I could think of
Pricing:
| monthly | yearly | life time | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 GB | FREE | FREE | FREE |
| 150 GB | – | $19.99 | $59 |
| 1 TB | $4.99 | $49.99 | $149 |
| 5 TB | $17.99 | $179.99 | $499 |
Visit: Icedrive for more information.
4. pCloud:
pCloud is another free online photo storage solution and a worthy Google Photos Alternative. pCloud offers 10 GBs of free cloud storage as soon as you sign up. pCloud is considered to be one of the most secure cloud storage solutions because of the high standards of encryption to safeguard user’s data and privacy.
It has dedicated apps for all different operating systems. Its one-click-upload feature allows automatic syncing which makes pCloud one of the best cloud storages for photos. The paid plans are available for up to 2 TBs of space.
Automatic Syncing
Encrypted Storage for Safety and security
None that I can think of
Pricing:
| Plans | Monthly | Yearly | Lifetime |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 GBs | Free | Free | Free |
| 500 GBs | $4.99 | $47.88 | $175 |
| 2 TB | $9.99 | $95.88 | $350 |
Visit: pCloud for more information.
5. Mega
Mega is one of the leading Google Photos Alternatives that offer a straightforward web/desktop interface and a great free plan with a significant amount of storage space of 20 GB Free for all users.
However, the cloud storage platform has a history of controversy related to its zero-knowledge encryption. But, despite this, Mega is quite transparent about your privacy and the company even complies with the GDPR.
Its dashboard provides a slick and smooth experience since all the tabs and buttons are neatly laid out and clearly labeled. Talking about the upload and download speeds, it’s comparatively fast. Users can throttle how much bandwidth it is using. Hence, you have the option to exclude certain files and attachments from getting synced.
Support for numerous extensions, including Thunderbird client.
Comes with an integrated, encrypted chat platform called MegaChat.
Use two-factor authentication to enable an extra layer of security.
Mega caters to both absolute beginners of cloud storage & advanced users.
Lacks collaboration options.
Pricing:
- 20 GB free to all users w/ 5GB sign-up bonus
- 400GB storage priced at $5.89/month
Visit Mega for more information.
Paid Google Photos Alternatives:
Though all the Cloud Storage solutions offer some free storage, less than 5GBs is rarely of any use for anyone. So, in the list below, we are going to discuss the best Google Photos Alternatives which you have to pay for. Let’s get moving:
6. Right Backup
When you pay for premium, you get premium. Right Backup by Systweak is an amazing cloud storage tool and a premium Google Photos Alternative. Right Backup offers many advanced features like Automatic Backup and Swift restore to make it a seamless online photo storage solution.
Though Right Backup offers 100 MB of free storage for you to try it out, you have to buy the plan to actually start using it. Right Backup offers plans for up to 1TB. The biggest selling point for me was its interface and ease of use. First of all, it has dedicated apps for all the different operating systems. Second, it is really easy to use with an automatic backup option which makes it the best Google Photos Alternative.
Dedicated Apps for Different Operating Systems
Immensely easy to use interface
Automatic Backup
Not enough variety of Plans
Pricing:
1 TB: $14.95/month
1 TB: $149.97/year
Click Here to Download Right Backup
7. Dropbox:
Dropbox is another paid Google Photos Alternative. Dropbox has been around for more than a decade now and first made its presence in 2008. Since then, Dropbox has become a favorite and daily go to tool for many business and individual users. “Dropbox has over 14.5 million paying users.” Though the number looks small when compared with Microsoft OneDrive and Apple iCloud, it is a great feat for a stand-alone application.
Dropbox features an easy-to-use and easy-to-sync interface. Dropbox offers 2GBs of Free Space and up to 2TB of paid plans. The Dropbox features an encrypted storage to protect all your data from various cyber-threats. Dropbox’s minimalist design, intuitive interface, and automatic backup make it one of the best Google Photos alternatives.
2 GBs of Free Space
Minimalistic and easy-to-use interface
Automatic Backup
Encrypted Storage
Not Enough Variety of Plans
Pricing:
2 GBs: Free
2 TB for 1 User: $9.99/month (Billed Annually)
2 TB for 6 Users: $16.99/month (Billed Annually)
Visit: Dropbox for more information.
8. iDrive:
iDrive is another premium cloud Storage option. iDrive offers a sleek interface and 5GBs of Free Space. iDrive provides ‘Snapshot and Versioning’ which helps you restore data to a certain point in time. This feature is especially beneficial against ransomware attacks because you can recover all your data to a specific point in time. iDrive has dedicated apps for different operating systems which makes it easy-to-use and sync on all devices.
iDrive offers storage space for up to 10 TBs and has plans for multiple years too. All the data on iDrive gets synced to all your different devices in real time making it a perfect Google Photos Alternative.
Can login into unlimited devices with one account
Easy Collaboration options
Separate User Accounts within the single user account
No Monthly Plans
Pricing:
| Plans | 1 Year | 2 Year |
|---|---|---|
| 5 GB | Free | Free |
| 5 TB | $52.12 | $104.25 |
| 10 TB | $74.62 | $149.25 |
Visit: iDrive for more information.
9. Livedrive:
If space matters to you the most, Livedrive is the worthy Google Photos Alternative for you. Livedrive uses two-factor authentication and 256-bit encryption to safeguard the data from various online and offline threats. Also, it has a built-in recycle bin from where you can restore all your deleted data within 30 days. It offers the storage capacity of up to 10 TB in various different plans. Also, it has distinct plans based on users’ needs.
The people who just want to create backup of their data and don’t require it on the go, Livedrive has the cloud storage option of which has unlimited storage. It especially helps in scenarios where you want to protect your data from Ransomware attacks or if you lose your PC or data.
The other Plan, named briefcase, works as a usual Cloud Storage which can be accessed from any device, simply add files to it and edit them on the go. With all these different options and customizations, Livedrive is one of the best Google Photos Alternatives for online photo storage.
Various different plans to suite everybody’s needs
256-Bit Encrypted Storage to safeguard data
Easy-to-use and sync interface
No Free Storage
No yearly plans
Pricing:
| Cloud Storage | Briefcase | Cloud Storage + Briefcase | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £6.99/month | £15/month | £10/month |
| Storage | Unlimited | 2TB | Unlimited + 5TB |
Visit: Livedrive for more information.
10. Piwigo
Piwigo can be better known as the professional alternative to Google Photos. Why professional? Well, you need to have little technical knowledge to use the app and it’s designed keeping in mind the needs for advanced users.
Piwigo works beyond just a cloud storage platform. It is equipped with all the features of a photo management app. You can upload pictures and categorize them as per location, date, name and other tags. In fact, it supports popular photography software like Lightroom, Shotwell, digiKam and allows you to directly transfer pictures from these platforms to Piwigo.
Not only this, with this great Google Photos Alternative, you can even showcase your work in the form of attractive presentations. It supports various templates, plugins and other features to enhance your collection. Amateur & advanced photographers can even share their content within the app to their clients and get direct feedback in form of ratings, comments and so on.
Source code is available, editable, auditable and extendable.
Supports batch management.
Variety of themes & plugins are offered.
Make your photos private and decide who can see each of them.
Not a suitable option for novice users.
Pricing:
| Piwigo | Cloud Storage | Price | Trial Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| For Individuals | Unlimited | €39/1 Year | 30-Days |
| Unlimited | €70/2 Years | 30-Days | |
| Unlimited | €94/3 Years | 30-Days | |
| For Enterprise Users | 50 GB | €45/Month | 30-Days |
| 100 GB | €70/Month | 30-Days | |
| 500 GB | €170/Month | 30-Days | |
| 1000 GB | €250/Month | 30-Days |
Visit Piwigo for more information.
Frequently Asked Questions: About Google Photos Alternatives (2024)
Why shouldn’t you use Google Photos?
Well, Google Photos often becomes a part of controversies related to user’s sensitive data getting leaked and so on. Since it's a data company, a lot of people hesitate to upload and save their data on their servers. Also, the platform has ended its unlimited free storage policy for photos and videos, so people are hunting for its free alternatives.
Which app is best for storing photos?
Consider using Right Backup, a cloud storage platform for storing your pictures, videos, documents and other multimedia files. It provides a secure space for all your confidential and sensitive files.
Is Degoo any good?
Absolutely! Degoo is a brilliant Google Photo Alternative that you can try using right away and offers good value for money.
So, these are all the amazing free/paid Google Photos Alternatives that can work as suitable online photo storage options. These are few of the best cloud storage for photos available in the market. Do let us know if we were able to provide you the information you were looking for.
Matthew
Though I never Used Google Photos ever, I would now like to try Right Backup and iDrive for backing up my important Photos. Thank you for this incredible article.