We all use (one or more) cloud storage services these days. And given the plethora of features (e.g. availability of documents everywhere, sharing) they offer, there’s hardly a reason not to. Now, there are many great cloud storage services out there, with the Barracuda Networks owned Copy.com being one of the most popular of them. But it’s not going to be around anymore, pretty soon!
That’s right. Very recently, it was announced via an official blog-post that Copy.com (as well as the business focused CudaDrive) will be discontinued, effective May 1, 2016. Naturally, this has existing users of Copy.com worried, who are now looking for a new home for storing their documents & files.
If that includes you, this listing of the best Copy.com alternatives is exactly what you need. But before getting to that, here’s a little something to know regarding transferring your files from Copy, to whichever cloud storage service(s) you choose as its replacement(s).
Use “Mover” to move files between cloud storage services
Mover is an online service that lets you easily migrate files stored in one cloud storage service to another. Using Mover is extremely simple, and all you need to get started is a free account. Simply “connect” the source cloud service (Copy.com, in this case) to the destination service, and it’ll take care of the rest. Mover supports almost all popular cloud storage services, such as Box, Google Drive, and OneDrive.
Best Copy.com alternatives
1. Dropbox
Undoubtedly the most popular cloud storage service out there, Dropbox is perfect for storing all your documents. Although it only offers a tiny 2 GB storage at the free tier, you can easily earn up to 16 GB via referrals, and by completing some simple tasks (e.g. uploading a file). Dropbox has all the features you’d expect from a reliable cloud storage service, such as file sharing, revision history, unlimited file upload size (via Desktop client), and cross-platform apps and sync clients. Speaking of that, Dropbox also has a pretty good Linux sync client, which makes it a viable Copy alternative (as Copy was renowned for its Linux sync client).
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP, Mac OS X 10.6 and later, Linux (Desktop); iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Kindle (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $9.99 per month for 1 TB storage.
2. Google Drive
Simple and reliable, Google Drive is one of the better cloud storage services available. And if you use Google’s other products (e.g. Gmail) frequently, it makes all the way more sense, given its integration with other Google services. It provides 15 GB storage at the free tier, and allows you to upload files up to 5 TB in size. Just like Copy, Google Drive also has preview support for a wide variety of files, such as office documents (e.g. spreadsheets), images, and MP3 files. Other features include file revision history, collaborative sharing, and much more. However, there’s no referral system to get more space, which is a letdown.
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP, Mac OS X 10.7 and later (Desktop); iOS, Android (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $1.99 per month for 100 GB storage.
3. Hubic
For those worried about the privacy of their data, Hubic is just what you need. The France based cloud storage service offers an impressive 25 GB at the free level, and you can double that to 50 GB via referrals. Hubic is extremely simple to use, and touts a healthy bunch of features ranging from easy file sharing to multi-data synchronization. In addition, its unique data backup feature can be used to archive your important files regularly. Lastly, in addition to being available on all platforms, Hubic also has a nice sync client for Linux, albeit in beta. So if you used Copy.com on Linux, Hubic is definitely an alternative worth considering.
Platform Availability: Windows, Mac OS X, Linux (Desktop); iOS, Android, Windows Phone (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from €1 per month for 100 GB storage.
4. pCloud
Based in Switzerland, pCloud is a cloud storage service that takes the security of your data very seriously. It’s evident from the fact that it has a hack competition going on (as of this writing, for 128 days), offering anyone who can break their client-side encryption, a reward of $100,000. That said, the client side encryption is a paid feature, offered in conjunction with any of pCloud’s storage plans. But even without that, pCloud is an impressive Copy.com alternative, offering 10 GB storage at the free tier, which can be maxed to 20 GB via referrals and some easy tasks. Standard features like file sharing and cross-platform apps (including a Linux client) are also there. Oh, and it also lets you backup content from a handful of services, such as OneDrive, Facebook, and Picasa, to your pCloud account.
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista, and XP, Mac OS X 10.8 and later, Linux (Desktop); iOS, Android (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $3.99 per month for 500 GB storage.
5. OneDrive
OneDrive is a robust cloud storage solution, offering a healthy number of features. And if you use Microsoft’s other productivity tools such as Office 365 and Outlook, OneDrive gets even better, due to the seamless integration. It’s worth noting that OneDrive is recommended by Copy.com, as the preferred alternative. The free tier grants 5 GB of free storage, and you can get an additional 5 GB via referrals. and you can upload files up to 10 GB in size. You can easily share the uploaded files with others, and also configure viewing/editing permissions. That said, OneDrive’s starting paid plans aren’t that much value for money.
Note: Even though the free level OneDrive storage is limited to 5 GB, during our testing, our test account still showed 15 GB (storage plan before the recent changes to OneDrive’s storage allocation policy) as the free storage. This could be an error.
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, and Vista, Mac OS X 10.9 and later (Desktop); iOS, Android, Windows Phone (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $1.99 per month for 50 GB storage.
6. Amazon Cloud Drive
What makes Amazon Cloud Drive different from the rest of the entries on this list is that it doesn’t have a free tier. It’s primarily intended to be used for storing (unlimited) digital photos, but also provides you 5 GB of space for storing other files (at the starting paid plan). The maximum file size that can be uploaded is restricted to 2 GB, which isn’t too much to be honest. All said, Amazon Cloud Drive may not be the most exciting cloud storage service out there, but it is worth checking out if your primary usage involves uploading photos, and of course, if you don’t shelling out a few bucks as well.
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP, Mac OS X 10.6 and later (Desktop); iOS, Android, Kindle (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $11.99 per year for unlimited photos, and 5 GB for other documents.
7. Yandex Disk
Coming from the house of the Russian Internet giant, Yandex Disk offers a well rounded set of features. A free account nets you 10 GB of storage, and you can increase that to 20 GB via referrals. You can upload just about any kind of file(s) you want, and there’s preview support for numerous file types (e.g. Images, MP3s), just like Copy. File sharing is simple (via unique URLs). To cap things off, Yandex Disk has native sync clients across almost all platforms, including Linux. There’s even a Chrome extension that lets you directly save/share images and files to your Yandex Disk
Platform Availability: Windows 10, 8, 7, Vista and XP, Mac OS X 10.6 and later, Linux (Desktop); iOS, Android, Windows Phone (Mobile)
Pricing: Paid plans start from $1 per month for 10 GB storage.
SEE ALSO: 10 Best Backup Software for PC
Comparison Table
| Dropbox | Google Drive | Hubic | pCloud | OneDrive | Amazon Cloud Drive | Yandex Disk | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Free storage | 2 GB | 15 GB | 25 GB | 10 GB | 5 GB | None | 10 GB |
| Pricing | $9.99/mo - 1 TB | $1.99/mo - 100 GB | €1/mo - 100 GB | $3.99/mo - 500 GB | $1.99/mo - 50 GB | $11.99/Y - unlimited photos and 5 GB documents | $1/mo - 10 GB |
| Max. File Size Upload Limit | None / 300 MB for uploads via website | 5 TB | None / 1 GB for uploads via website | None | 10 GB | 2 GB | 10 GB |
| Total Storage Attainable via Referrals | 16 GB | N.A. | 50 GB | 20 GB | 10 GB | N.A. | 20 GB |
Get your Copy.com hosted files moving
The cloud storage services discussed above are all extremely worthy alternatives (or replacements, if you want to put it that way) for Copy.com, thanks to the balanced feature set that each of them wields. Consequently, it’s hard for us to pick one or two favorites. But what about you? Try them all out, and let us know the one(s) you find the best in the comments.
