Updated 6 November 2026. Among plans up to 10 TB, the lowest monthly price per TB is IDrive Personal at $1.80 per TB ($17.99 a month), with Hippius Drive, our own service, next at $2.20 ($22). IDrive's larger plans fall to $1.20 per TB at 50 TB. At about 2 TB the cheapest plan is Hippius Drive Plus at $7 a month, against $9.99 for Google, iCloud+ and pCloud. Over several years, lifetime plans from pCloud can cost less if you keep them five years or more, and MEGA has the largest free tier at 20 GB. Hippius Drive has no iPhone app yet, so iPhone users should weigh that against the price.
This post covers storage for your own files, photos and backups, priced as monthly plans. Developers storing data for apps pay a different way, per GB stored and per GB downloaded, and that is covered in our comparison of S3 alternatives.
| Service | Best-value plan | Storage | Per month | Per TB | Annual or renewal | Free tier | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IDrive | Personal 10 TB | 10 TB | $17.99 | $1.80 | $14.99/mo yearly; $10.49/mo in year one | 10 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
| Hippius Drive | Max | 10 TB | $22 | $2.20 | Monthly only | 10 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
| MEGA | Pro II | 10 TB | €19.99 | €2.00 | €16.67/mo yearly | 20 GB | 3 Nov 2026 |
| pCloud | Ultra | 10 TB | $29.99 | $3.00 | $299.99/yr; $1,499 lifetime | Up to 10 GB | 3 Nov 2026 |
| Google One | Google AI Pro | 5 TB | $19.99 | $4.00 | $199.99/yr | 15 GB | 6 Nov 2026 |
| Filen | Pro X | 10 TiB | €39.99 | €4.00 per TiB | Annual price not listed¹ | 10 GiB | 6 Nov 2026 |
| iCloud+ | 6 TB | 6 TB | $29.99 | $5.00 | Monthly only | 5 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
| Dropbox | Plus | 2 TB | $11.99 | $6.00 | $9.99/mo yearly | 2 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
| Sync.com | Solo 5TB | 5 TB | $32 | $6.40 | $28/mo yearly; 25% off in year one² | 5 GB | 6 Nov 2026 |
| Microsoft 365 | Family | 2 TB, shared by up to 6 | $12.99 | $6.50 | $129.99/yr | 5 GB | 6 Nov 2026 |
| Internxt | Ultimate | 5 TB | €29.99 | €6.00 | 12-month plan billed monthly³ | 1 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
| Proton | Visionary | 6 TB, up to 6 users | €39.99 | €6.67 | €29.99/mo yearly | 5 GB | 5 Nov 2026 |
Each service's lowest monthly price per TB among personal plans up to about 10 TB, at regular list price on monthly billing, before tax. Euro prices are shown as charged and ordered at about $1.14 to the euro, the rate on 6 November 2026. Notes on each service's figures are at the end of this post.
Table of Contents
- What does cloud storage cost in 2026?
- How much does 1 TB of cloud storage cost?
- How much does 2 TB of cloud storage cost?
- What is the cheapest cloud storage for 5 TB or more?
- Cloud storage providers compared on price
- What storing 5 TB costs over three years
- What raises the price
- Is there free cloud storage?
- Which plan fits you?
- Common questions about cloud storage pricing
- TL;DR
- About Hippius
What does cloud storage cost in 2026?
Personal cloud storage costs between about $1.80 and $16 per TB a month on plans up to 10 TB in November 2026, depending on the service and the plan size. Bigger plans cost less per TB: a 2 TB plan runs about $3.50 to $11 per TB, while 10 TB plans drop to $1.80 to about $4. The price you see in the first year is often lower than the one you pay after, so check what a plan renews at before you compare.
How much does 1 TB of cloud storage cost?
Three services sell a plan of exactly 1 TB, and on monthly billing it costs $9.99 to $16 a month as of 5 November 2026.
| Service | Plan | Per month | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microsoft 365 | Personal, 1 TB | $9.99 | $99.99 a year; includes the Office apps |
| Internxt | Essential, 1 TB | €9.99 | 12-month plan billed monthly |
| Sync.com | Personal 1TB | $16 | $12 a month in the first year |
Most services skip 1 TB and go straight to 2 TB, and some of those cost less than a 1 TB plan. Hippius Drive Plus gives 2 TB for $7 a month, and Google, iCloud+ and pCloud each sell 2 TB for $9.99. If you need about 1 TB, a 2 TB plan is often the cheaper way to get it.
How much does 2 TB of cloud storage cost?
2 TB of cloud storage costs $7 to about $23 a month on monthly billing as of 5 November 2026, with Hippius Drive Plus the cheapest at $7.
| Service | Plan | Per month | Per TB |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hippius Drive | Plus, 2 TB | $7 | $3.50 |
| Google One | Google AI Plus, 2 TB | $9.99 | $5.00 |
| iCloud+ | 2 TB | $9.99 | $5.00 |
| pCloud | Premium Plus, 2 TB | $9.99 | $5.00 |
| Filen | Pro III, 2 TiB | €8.99 | €4.50 per TiB |
| Dropbox | Plus, 2 TB | $11.99 | $6.00 |
| Microsoft 365 | Family, 2 TB shared | $12.99 | $6.50 |
| Proton | Duo, 2 TB for 2 users | $19.99 | $10.00 |
| Internxt | Premium, 2 TB | €19.99 | €10.00 |
Filen's 2 TiB is about 2.2 TB, so its price per TB is lower than the headline suggests. Google's only 2 TB plan now comes bundled with its Gemini AI features, and Microsoft's 2 TB is shared across the whole family plan.
What is the cheapest cloud storage for 5 TB or more?
For 5 TB or more on monthly billing, IDrive Personal is the cheapest at $11.99 a month for 5 TB as of 5 November 2026, and its larger plans fall to $1.20 per TB at 50 TB.
| Service | Plan | Per month | Per TB |
|---|---|---|---|
| IDrive | Personal 5 TB | $11.99 | $2.40 |
| IDrive | Personal 10 TB | $17.99 | $1.80 |
| Google One | Google AI Pro, 5 TB | $19.99 | $4.00 |
| Hippius Drive | Max, 10 TB | $22 | $2.20 |
| MEGA | Pro II, 10 TB | €19.99 | €2.00 |
| iCloud+ | 6 TB | $29.99 | $5.00 |
| pCloud | Ultra, 10 TB | $29.99 | $3.00 |
| Sync.com | Solo 5TB | $32 | $6.40 |
| Internxt | Ultimate, 5 TB | €29.99 | €6.00 |
| Filen | Pro X, 10 TiB | €39.99 | €4.00 per TiB |
| Proton | Visionary, 6 TB | €39.99 | €6.67 |
| Hippius Drive | Scale, 25 TB | $50 | $2.00 |
Hippius Drive has no 5 TB plan, so at 5 TB you would pay for 10 TB. If you need 25 TB, Hippius Drive Scale costs $50 a month, against $59.99 for IDrive's next plan up, 50 TB. IDrive's 20 TB plan costs $29.99 if 20 TB is enough.
Cloud storage providers compared on price
IDrive
IDrive Personal starts at 5 TB for $11.99 a month and goes up to 100 TB, with 10 TB at $17.99, 20 TB at $29.99 and 50 TB at $59.99. Yearly billing lowers 5 TB to $9.99 a month, and the first year is 30% cheaper again, at $6.99 a month, before standard pricing applies from the second year. There is no 1 TB or 2 TB personal plan. Storage over your plan costs $0.25 per GB a month. IDrive is built mainly around backing up computers and phones, and it suits people with a lot of data who want the lowest price per TB.
Hippius Drive
Hippius Drive is our own cloud storage service. Hippius Drive pricing is monthly with no download or bandwidth fees: Free 10 GB, Starter $4 for 500 GB, Plus $7 for 2 TB, Max $22 for 10 TB and Scale $50 for 25 TB. Every plan includes the web, desktop and Android apps, and Plus and above add shared team drives. Files are encrypted on your device before upload; our guide to secure cloud storage explains how that compares. There is no annual discount and no first-year deal, so the price you start on is the price you keep. The desktop app runs on Windows, Mac and Linux. There is no iPhone app yet; it is listed as coming soon. Hippius Drive suits people who want 2 TB for the lowest monthly price, or 10 TB without committing to a year. The Hippius Drive launch post covers the product in more detail.
MEGA
MEGA's Pro II plan gives 10 TB for €19.99 a month, or €16.67 a month on yearly billing, Pro I gives 3 TB for €9.99 a month, and Pro III gives 20 TB for €29.99 a month, all charged in euros. Paid plans come with a transfer quota, so heavy downloading can hit a limit. The free plan is 20 GB, the largest here. MEGA suits people who want a lot of storage cheaply and are happy paying in euros.
pCloud
pCloud's Premium Plus gives 2 TB for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year, and Ultra gives 10 TB for $29.99 a month or $299.99 a year. It also sells lifetime plans: 2 TB for $499 and 10 TB for $1,499, paid once. Encryption of a private folder is a separate add-on at $4.99 a month or $150 for life, and lifetime plans don't include it. Shared-link downloads are capped at twice your storage each month. pCloud suits people who would rather pay once.
Google One
Google One's free 15 GB is shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos. The 2 TB plan is now Google AI Plus at $9.99 a month, bundled with Gemini features, and Google AI Pro gives 5 TB for $19.99 a month or $199.99 a year. Larger plans of 20 TB and 30 TB come with Google AI Ultra at $99.99 and $199.99 a month, billed monthly only. Plans can be shared with up to five other people. Google One suits families already using Gmail and Android who also want Google's AI tools.
Filen
Filen sells 2 TiB for €8.99 a month and 10 TiB for €39.99 a month, priced in tebibytes, so its plans hold about 10% more than the same number in terabytes. Plans can be stacked on one account. Its lifetime plans were retired after Black Friday 2025. The free plan is 10 GiB, and free accounts must sign in at least every three months. Filen suits people who want the most storage per euro at 2 TB.
iCloud+
iCloud+ costs $9.99 a month for 2 TB, $29.99 for 6 TB and $59.99 for 12 TB, all billed monthly with no annual option. Every tier can be shared with up to five family members at no extra cost, and it includes Hide My Email and Private Relay. The free tier is 5 GB. For people on iPhone, iPad and Mac, iCloud+ is the simplest choice, and its price per TB stays at $5 from 2 TB to 12 TB.
Dropbox
Dropbox Plus gives 2 TB to one person for $11.99 a month, or $9.99 a month billed yearly. More than 2 TB means a team plan: Standard starts at 3 TB for $18 per user a month, and Advanced starts at 15 TB for three or more people at $30 per user a month. The free Basic plan is 2 GB. Dropbox suits people who want the most widely supported sync app and use it for work.
Sync.com
Sync.com sells Personal 1TB for $16 a month and Solo 5TB for $32 a month at regular prices, with 25% off in the first year. Yearly billing brings Solo 5TB to $28 a month after the first year. There is no 2 TB plan. The free plan is 5 GB. Sync.com suits people who need a 5 TB plan from a single provider and can commit to a year.
Microsoft 365
Microsoft 365 Personal gives 1 TB and the Office apps for $9.99 a month or $99.99 a year. Family gives 2 TB shared by up to six people for $12.99 a month or $129.99 a year, and Premium gives up to 6 TB, 1 TB per person, for $19.99 a month. The free tier is 5 GB. Microsoft 365 suits people who would pay for Word and Excel anyway, since the storage comes with them.
Internxt
Internxt prices in euros on 12-month plans billed monthly: Essential 1 TB at €9.99, Premium 2 TB at €19.99 and Ultimate 5 TB at €29.99 a month, after a discounted first month. Lifetime plans are also sold and can be stacked up to 100 TB. The free plan is 1 GB. Internxt suits people in Europe who want a lifetime plan.
Proton
Proton's storage is shared with Proton Mail and comes in bundles: Duo gives 2 TB for two people at $19.99 a month, Family gives 3 TB for up to six people at $29.99, and Visionary gives 6 TB for up to six people at €39.99 a month or €29.99 a month yearly. The free tier is 5 GB, starting at 2 GB until you complete the setup steps. Proton suits people who want storage, mail and VPN from one provider.
What storing 5 TB costs over three years
Here is 5 TB of storage for 36 months at list prices on 5 November 2026, using the smallest plan on each service that holds 5 TB:
| Service | Plan | Monthly billing | Yearly billing | Lifetime |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IDrive | Personal 5 TB | $431.64 | $323.64 | Not sold |
| Google One | Google AI Pro, 5 TB | $719.64 | $599.97 | Not sold |
| Hippius Drive | Max, 10 TB | $792 | Monthly only | Not sold |
| MEGA | Pro II, 10 TB | €719.64 | About €600 | Not sold |
| Sync.com | Solo 5TB | $1,056 | $924 | Not sold |
| iCloud+ | 6 TB | $1,079.64 | Monthly only | Not sold |
| pCloud | Ultra, 10 TB | $1,079.64 | $899.97 | $1,499 |
| Internxt | Ultimate, 5 TB | 12-month plans only | €1,079.64 | Sold, price varies |
| Filen | Pro X, 10 TiB | €1,439.64 | Not listed | No longer sold |
| Proton | Visionary, 6 TB | €1,439.64 | €1,079.64 | Not sold |
IDrive's yearly total includes its first-year discount ($83.88, then $119.88 a year). Sync.com's totals include its 25% first-year discount. Internxt's total is before its first-month discount. Rows are ordered by the monthly-billing total, with euro rows at about $1.14 to the euro.
A lifetime plan breaks even after about five years. pCloud's 10 TB lifetime plan at $1,499 equals five years of its yearly plan at $299.99, and about 5.7 years of Hippius Drive Max at $22 a month. Its 2 TB lifetime plan at $499 equals about six years of Hippius Drive Plus at $7 a month. A lifetime plan is worth it if you will use the same amount of storage with the same company for more than five years; the risk is that you pay the full cost upfront, and you lose the value if the service changes or closes.
What raises the price
- First-year deals. IDrive takes 30% off the first year on yearly billing, Sync.com takes 25% off, and Internxt discounts the first month, so all three cost more from the next renewal.
- Commitment. Internxt's plans are 12-month commitments billed monthly, and MEGA's two smallest plans are listed with yearly prices only.
- Bundles. Google's 2 TB plan comes with Gemini AI features, Microsoft's comes with Office, and Proton's comes with mail and VPN, whether you need them or not.
- Per-user pricing. Dropbox plans above 2 TB are team plans priced per user, and Advanced needs at least three people, from $90 a month.
- Transfer quotas. MEGA limits how much you can download each month, and pCloud caps shared-link downloads at twice your storage.
- Paid add-ons. pCloud's folder encryption costs an extra $4.99 a month.
- Currency and tax. MEGA, Filen, Internxt and some Proton plans charge in euros, and every price here is before tax.
Is there free cloud storage?
Yes. Every service in this comparison has a free tier, and MEGA gives the most at 20 GB as of 5 November 2026.
| Service | Free storage | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| MEGA | 20 GB | More through its achievements programme |
| Google One | 15 GB | Shared with Gmail and Photos |
| Hippius Drive | 10 GB | Sign in with Google, GitHub or Apple |
| IDrive | 10 GB | No card needed |
| Filen | 10 GiB | Sign in at least every three months |
| pCloud | Up to 10 GB | Starts at 2 GB |
| Proton | 5 GB | Starts at 2 GB until setup is complete |
| Sync.com | 5 GB | More by referring friends |
| iCloud+ | 5 GB | |
| Microsoft 365 | 5 GB | |
| Dropbox | 2 GB | |
| Internxt | 1 GB |
Which plan fits you?
- Cheapest at 1 TB: Hippius Drive Plus, which gives 2 TB for $7 a month, below every 1 TB plan.
- Cheapest at 2 TB: Hippius Drive Plus at $7 a month.
- Cheapest at 5 TB or more: IDrive Personal, from $11.99 a month for 5 TB.
- Family sharing: iCloud+ or Google One, both shared with up to five others at no extra cost.
- Teams: Dropbox Standard or Hippius Drive Plus and above, which include shared team drives.
- iPhone users: iCloud+, since Hippius Drive has no iPhone app yet.
- Paying once: pCloud's lifetime plans, from $499 for 2 TB.
Common questions about cloud storage pricing
What is the cheapest cloud storage?
Among plans up to 10 TB, the cheapest cloud storage per TB on monthly billing is IDrive Personal at $1.80 per TB ($17.99 a month), as of 5 November 2026. IDrive's larger plans fall to $1.20 per TB at 50 TB. At 2 TB, the cheapest is Hippius Drive Plus at $7 a month.
How much does 1 TB of cloud storage cost?
A 1 TB plan costs $9.99 a month on Microsoft 365 Personal, €9.99 on Internxt and $16 on Sync.com as of 5 November 2026. Hippius Drive Plus costs less at $7 a month and gives 2 TB.
How much does 2 TB of cloud storage cost?
2 TB costs $7 a month on Hippius Drive, $9.99 on Google One, iCloud+ and pCloud, and $11.99 on Dropbox, as of 5 November 2026.
Is Google Drive cheaper than Dropbox?
Yes. Google's 2 TB plan costs $9.99 a month and Dropbox Plus costs $11.99 a month on monthly billing, as of 5 November 2026. On yearly billing, Dropbox Plus drops to $9.99 a month.
Is iCloud cheaper than Google Drive?
At 2 TB they cost the same, $9.99 a month, as of 5 November 2026. Google is cheaper at larger sizes, with 5 TB for $19.99 a month, while iCloud+ charges $29.99 for 6 TB.
Are lifetime plans worth it?
A lifetime plan pays off after about five years of use. pCloud's 2 TB lifetime plan costs $499, the same as five years of its yearly plan, as of 3 November 2026. The trade-off is paying the full cost upfront.
Is there unlimited cloud storage?
Sync.com sells Personal Unlimited at $54 a month, or $40.50 in the first year, though upload speed may be managed beyond 10 TB. Most other services cap plans at a set size.
Why is object storage priced differently?
Object storage is built for apps and developers, so it is priced per GB stored and often per GB downloaded, rather than as monthly plans. Our comparison of S3 alternatives covers those prices.
Notes on the figures. Prices are published list prices on monthly billing, checked on 5 November 2026 unless shown otherwise, before tax. Hippius Drive: pricing, and Drive for no bandwidth or retrieval fees. IDrive: pricing, Personal plans; IDrive Mini is not included. MEGA: pricing, checked 3 November 2026, charged in euros. pCloud: pricing, checked 3 November 2026. Google One: US plans, checked 6 November 2026, and the plans help article. ¹Filen: pricing, checked 6 November 2026, monthly prices only; storage in GiB and TiB. iCloud+: Apple support. Dropbox: plans. ²Sync.com: individual pricing, regular prices shown, and free plan, checked 6 November 2026; the page shows prices in $ without a currency code. Microsoft 365: compare plans, checked 6 November 2026. ³Internxt: its pricing page did not display prices on the day, so figures come from its help centre, in euros. Proton: Drive pricing for US dollar prices and plans for euro prices.
TL;DR
Cloud storage gets cheaper per TB as plans get bigger, and first-year deals make many services look cheaper than they are. On regular monthly prices, IDrive is cheapest at 5 TB and above, and Hippius Drive is cheapest at 2 TB at $7 a month. If you will keep the same storage for more than five years, a pCloud lifetime plan can cost less. Try Hippius Drive free with 10 GB of cloud storage and no payment details.
About Hippius
Hippius is a distributed cloud platform built to give users a verifiable alternative to providers like AWS and Google Cloud. Files are encrypted and distributed across an independent network rather than held in a single provider's data center. Every storage claim, payment, and miner action is recorded on Hippius's own blockchain, so instead of asking users to trust the platform, Hippius lets them check it for themselves. On top of that foundation sits a full product suite: personal cloud storage, S3-compatible object storage with no egress fees, a CDN that serves stored files from the edge, confidential computing on secure hardware, and a container and model registry for AI.
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