Top 5 Free Cloud Storage and Backup Providers

Technology No Comments

In this digital age, when every thing is stored digitally, there is a risk that we all are aware of. The risk that I am talking about is of course, the risk of losing the digitally stored file. Due to electronic failures, hard drive crashes and the chance of losing our electronic devices, there is a possibility that we might lose our important files. This risk has helped to recognize the need of online backups. Online backups can be as simple as emailing yourself the important file to storing them in online storage services.

Cloud Storage

Whether you want to back up a family picture or an important college report, online storage is the way to go. People do different things to back up files online. One of the simplest way is to email yourself the file, but this is not a convenient option for many. We have different services which allow us to store files online. These services provide several gigabytes of storage. There is an ample amount of space that you can get for free. Although, emails even claim to provide infinite storage, different complications might arise in the storing and retrieving email attachment files. Emails are meant for communication and not for storage. So the smart thing to do is to go for reliable online backup and storage services from reliable providers. These are also known as cloud backup.

But some people might also ask “Why should one opt-in for cloud backups?”, “Why not store the files in different mediums like flash drives, computer, laptop, external hard drives and so on?”. The answers is simple. Online backups means more accessibility. They allow you to access files from anywhere in the world as long as you have an internet connection. You might forget to take your flash drive with you or might not have it with you always. In such cases cloud drives and the internet will come to the rescue.

Which Cloud Storage to Choose?

There are hundreds and hundreds of online backup services that are present. A Google search will yield results that can even confuse you on which service to choose for online storage. But the answer to this is simple. When choosing online storage, choose one from a reliable company and one that has existed successfully for a long time. Do not choose those new services which offer unlimited, or a lot of gigabytes of space as it might be difficult for them to sustain.

Also remember to choose online storage as per your requirement. If you require hundreds of gigabytes of online storage then the best option is to go for paid services but then not everyone requires such large a disk space. People will normally find it enough to have a gigabyte of online storage to save their important files. So most people can get their online backup services for free. Lots of these online backup companies will provide you a few gigabytes of space for free.

The top five reliable and best cloud storage providers are listed below:

1. Dropbox

Dropbox is one of those reliable online file storage providers. With the help of this service, you can easily store files online for easy retrieval from anywhere in the world. Backing up with drop box is a great choice. When you sign up with Dropbox, you get 2 GB of free online storage. That is enough to store a lot of files for a lot of people. To store files, you can simply upload them via the online uploading tool or you can also download the Dropbox client software which creates a special folder on your PC. You can then simply drag or copy your files into the special Dropbox folder. The smart Dropbox software will then sync online and your file(s) will be backed up. With Dropbox, you will also be able to synchronize between different computers or even share your files with your friends.

The great thing about Dropbox is that you can do different things to increase your 2 GB online file storage limit. One of the best and easiest way to add more space to your Dropbox account for free is by referring friends. Find your referral link and then pass it to your friends and other people that you may know who require online file storage. If they sign up under you and install the Dropbox client, you get additional free storage. The amount of space that you get per referral is 500 MB. You can increase your free space from 2 GB to a maximum of upto 18 GB. This is a huge amount of online storage that you get for free.

Dropbox not only gives you additional free space by referring people, but you can also get more free space by following them on Facebook, Twitter, tweeting about them, answering why you love Dropbox and doing different other activities. You get around 125 MB of free space per activity. If you still find your free space not enough, you can always purchase additional space.

2. Google Drive

Google drive is also an online file backup and cloud storage service from Google. You can store different types of documents, spreadsheets, pictures and other files in Google drive. You get 5 GB of free storage with Google drive and additional space can be purchased. You can easily store thousands and thousands of files with the help of Google drive. If you store documents in the native google docs format, it will not even count towards your file limit.

Google drive is available for all types of devices namingly PC, Mac, Chrome OS, iPhone, iPad and Android devices. You also get an offline client and a special folder to backup your files which automatically synchronizes online. So no matter what you use, you can always access Google drive. You can easily upload and backup files from your Android powered phone or from your Apple devices. The beauty of Google drive is that you can also collaborate amongst different people. That means, more than one person can edit and contribute towards creating a document file for example. So use Google drive if you want free and reliable online cloud storage.

3. Microsoft SkyDrive

Microsoft SkyDrive is also an excellent online storage service provided by another reliable company, Microsoft. When you sign up to Microsoft SkyDrive you get access to 7 GB of free online storage. New users get this amount of free cloud storage upon signup and additional storage can be purchased if required. You can access your files stored online via a web browser or you can also access them easily from your own computer if you have a desktop application installed. You can also easily share those files with others.

Hotmail users will find it easy to integrate between their email and Microsoft SkyDrive. It means that you can easily store attachment from your hotmail emails to Microsoft SkyDrive. SkyDrive also offers different other features related to office documents, pdfs, sharing, Bing integration, social network sharing, photo slideshows, download as .zip files and many more. This is therefore an excellent service by Microsoft and is highly recommended.

4. Amazon Cloud Drive

Amazon Cloud Drive is an online file storage service by, you’ve guessed it, Amazon. This company which also specializes in cloud storage services has offered us with free online storage space where we can backup our files and documents. You can backup files, pictures, videos and other documents in this service.

You get free 5 GB of space to start with. You can store an ample amount of files with the free space available. But if you need more, like the rest of the services, Amazon Cloud Drive also offers additional space for purchase.

5. Box

Box is also one of those reliable free online cloud storage provider. This service provides users with 5 GB of free storage space upon signup. You can upload files to your file storage and then share it with friends with the file sharing link. The size of single file for free users is limited to 1 GB. You also get the option of using Box in your mobile with the free Box app. Online collaboration is also possible with this file storing service.

Top 5 Free Cloud Storage and Backup Providers