No affiliate links or sponsorship. This review is based on Dropbox’s official plan pages and Help Center, checked October 26, 2026. We didn’t run hands-on tests or speed tests, and there are no screenshots; the score reflects what Dropbox documents and charges, not our own measurements.
Quick answer
Dropbox is still worth paying for if you want reliable file sync with strong sharing and recovery features, but it costs more per terabyte than Google or Microsoft bundles. Plus is $11.99 a month (or $9.99 a month billed yearly) for 2 TB and one person, and the free Basic plan gives only 2 GB on up to 3 devices. Our editorial score: 7.0/10 (Dropbox pricing and Help Center, October 26, 2026).
Our verdict
Editorial score: 7.0/10
Verdict: Dropbox is a focused, well-documented sync and sharing service. Its paid plans include unlimited devices, Dropbox Backup, version history that doesn’t use your storage, and a 2 TB single-file limit. The weak spots are price and the free tier: 2 GB is the smallest free allowance among the big names, and password-protected or expiring links need a team plan. Pick Dropbox if file sync and sharing are your main job; pick a Google One or Microsoft 365 plan if you mostly want cheap space alongside email and office apps.
Key takeaways
- Free: Basic gives 2 GB, 1 person, up to 3 devices, and 30-day file recovery.
- Plus: 2 TB for one person, $11.99/month or $9.99/month billed yearly, unlimited devices, 30-day restore.
- Teams: Standard ($18/user/month, or $15 billed yearly) starts at 3 TB for the team; Advanced ($30, or $24 billed yearly) starts at 15 TB and needs 3+ people.
- Security: 256-bit AES at rest and SSL/TLS in transit on all plans; end-to-end encryption only on Advanced.
- Changes to know: Dropbox Passwords was discontinued on October 28, 2025.
Dropbox plans and prices
Dropbox’s personal plan is Plus; teams choose Standard or Advanced. Prices below are US prices from Dropbox’s plans page with both billing options shown. For the bigger picture on cloud services, see our cloud storage guide.
| Plan | Billed monthly | Billed yearly | Users | Storage | Restore and version history |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | Free | Free | 1 | 2 GB | 30 days |
| Plus | $11.99/month | $9.99/month | 1 person | 2 TB | 30 days |
| Standard | $18/user/month | $15/user/month | 1 person or more | Starts at 3 TB for the team | 180 days |
| Advanced | $30/user/month | $24/user/month | 3 people or more | Starts at 15 TB for the team | 1 year |
| Enterprise | Contact sales | Contact sales | Teams | Custom | See Dropbox |
File transfers (Dropbox Transfer) go up to 50 GB on Plus and 100 GB on Standard and Advanced. All three paid plans include 3 signature requests a month (Dropbox plans).
Is Dropbox Basic (free) enough?
Only for light use. Basic gives one person 2 GB, connects up to 3 devices, keeps 30 days of file recovery and version history, previews more than 175 file types, and includes the desktop app for Windows, Mac, and Linux (Dropbox Basic). That’s enough to try Dropbox or sync a handful of documents, but a phone’s photo library will fill it quickly. Compare free tiers across services in our cloud storage pricing tracker.
What you get: sync, sharing, backup, and recovery
- Unlimited devices on Plus, Standard, and Advanced (Dropbox plans).
- Big files: the maximum upload is 2 TB per file. Dropbox says uploads over 375 GB in a web browser may time out, so use the desktop app for very large files (Dropbox Help).
- Online-only files: keep files in the cloud so they don’t use space on your computer, and download them when you open them (Dropbox Help).
- Version history and recovery: 30 days on Basic and Plus, 180 days on Standard, and 1 year on Advanced. Version history doesn’t count against your storage (Dropbox Help, recover deleted files).
- Dropbox Backup is included in all Dropbox plans, for backing up your computer and external drives to the cloud (Dropbox Backup).
- Sharing controls: password-protected links, disabled downloads, and custom link expiration dates are on Standard and Advanced, not on Plus (Dropbox plans).
- Apps: the desktop app needs Windows 10 or 11 (not S mode) or macOS 11 Big Sur or later for the full app; Linux, Android, iPhone, iPad, and web browsers are supported too (Dropbox Help).
Discontinued
Dropbox Passwords, the password manager that used to come with some plans, was discontinued on October 28, 2025 (Dropbox Help). If you relied on it, see our password managers for small teams guide.
Security and privacy
Dropbox encrypts files at rest with 256-bit AES and in transit with SSL/TLS on every plan, and offers end-to-end encryption on Advanced. Multi-factor authentication and remote device wipe are on all paid plans; ransomware detection and recovery, suspicious activity alerts, and Advanced Key Management are Advanced-only (Dropbox plans, Dropbox security).
Dropbox’s Help Center says plainly that it doesn’t offer client-side encryption and doesn’t support creating your own private keys, though users can add third-party encryption apps (Dropbox Help). If zero-knowledge encryption on a personal plan matters most to you, look at services built around it; our pCloud review covers one option.
Pros and cons
Pros
Unlimited devices on paid plans
2 TB single-file upload limit
Version history doesn’t use your storage
Dropbox Backup included in all plans
Desktop app on Windows, Mac, and Linux
Cons
Free tier is only 2 GB on 3 devices
Plus costs more than Google’s 2 TB option
Password-protected and expiring links need a team plan
No client-side encryption except E2EE on Advanced
Dropbox Passwords discontinued
Dropbox vs Google One and Microsoft 365 on price
For pure storage, Dropbox Plus is the pricier way to get 2 TB. Google’s AI Plus plan lists 400 GB or 2 TB for $4.99 a month in the US, and Google Basic is 100 GB for $1.99 (Google One). Dropbox Plus is $11.99 a month, or $9.99 billed yearly, for 2 TB. What you pay extra for is Dropbox’s sync, sharing, transfer, and backup features rather than an email or office suite. Our Dropbox vs Google Drive comparison goes deeper, and small teams should also read best cloud storage for small teams.
Who should pay for Dropbox?
- Good fit: freelancers and small teams who live in shared folders, send large files, work on Windows, Mac, and Linux side by side, or want longer version history on Standard or Advanced.
- Good fit: anyone who wants cloud backup of a computer and external drives in the same subscription as their sync folder.
- Probably not: people who mainly need space for Gmail and phone photos (Google One is cheaper), or Microsoft 365 users who already get OneDrive storage with Office.
- Probably not: people who need zero-knowledge encryption on a single-user plan.
How we scored Dropbox
How we score
We scored Dropbox from its official documentation and US pricing only, checked October 26, 2026. No hands-on tests, speed tests, or trials. Each area is weighted equally and rounded to the nearest half point.
- Value for money (6/10): 2 TB for $9.99–$11.99 a month is more than Google’s 2 TB option.
- Free tier (5/10): 2 GB and a 3-device limit.
- Sync and file handling (9/10): unlimited devices, 2 TB file limit, online-only files, Windows, Mac, and Linux apps.
- Recovery and backup (8/10): 30 days to 1 year of version history that doesn’t use storage, plus Dropbox Backup in all plans.
- Security and privacy (7/10): AES-256 and TLS everywhere, MFA, but E2EE only on Advanced and no client-side encryption otherwise.
- Sharing controls (8/10): strong on team plans, thinner on Plus.
Average: 43 ÷ 6 = 7.17, rounded to the nearest half point: 7.0/10. We’ll re-score when Dropbox changes prices or plan features.
FAQ
Is Dropbox worth it in 2026?
It is if you want strong file sync, sharing, and recovery. If you just need cheap space, Google One and Microsoft 365 plans cost less per terabyte.
How much is Dropbox Plus?
In the US, $11.99 a month billed monthly, or $9.99 a month billed yearly, for 2 TB and one person (Dropbox plans page, checked October 26, 2026).
How much free storage does Dropbox give?
Dropbox Basic gives 2 GB for one person on up to 3 devices, with 30 days of file recovery and version history.
Is Dropbox end-to-end encrypted?
Not by default. Files are encrypted at rest (256-bit AES) and in transit (SSL/TLS). End-to-end encryption is available on the Advanced plan.
What is the largest file I can upload to Dropbox?
2 TB per file. Dropbox recommends the desktop app for files over 375 GB, since browser uploads that large may time out.
Does Dropbox still include a password manager?
No. Dropbox Passwords was discontinued on October 28, 2025.
Sources
Dropbox’s official plan pages and Help Center, plus Google One’s pricing page for the price comparison. All checked October 26, 2026 (PKT). No hands-on testing.
Show all 13 sources
- Dropbox: Find your Dropbox plan (pricing and plan comparison)
- Dropbox: Dropbox Basic (free account)
- Dropbox: Dropbox Plus
- Dropbox: Secure Dropbox storage for your files and data
- Dropbox Help: How Dropbox keeps your files secure
- Dropbox Help: Version history overview
- Dropbox Help: How to recover deleted files or folders
- Dropbox Help: What is the Dropbox file size limit?
- Dropbox Help: Free up space with online-only files
- Dropbox Help: What are the Dropbox system requirements?
- Dropbox: Dropbox Backup
- Dropbox Help: Dropbox Passwords discontinuation
- Google One: plans and pricing (US view)
Changelog
- October 26, 2026: First published. US prices (monthly and yearly billing), storage, version history, file size limit, security, Backup, and the Dropbox Passwords discontinuation checked against Dropbox’s official pages. Score based on documentation and pricing only.
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