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Best open-source alternatives to Dropbox

A cloud file sync and sharing service.

Dropbox pioneered consumer file sync and remains widely used for cross-device file access, link sharing, and collaboration on shared folders. Its native clients across desktop and mobile drove broad adoption. Storage costs at scale, data sovereignty requirements, and discomfort with files living on third-party servers motivate the move to self-hosted file sync platforms.

3 alternatives listed
  1. 1Immich logo
    103.1k
    GNU Affero General Public License v3.0Open Source — No Paywall

    Immich is a self-hosted photo and video management platform designed for people who want to control their media library without relying on a third-party cloud service. It provides a web interface and mobile apps for organizing, browsing, backing up, and sharing personal photo collections, with support for advanced features such as metadata search, facial recognition, albums, and public sharing. The project appears aimed at users who want a modern alternative to commercial photo storage services while keeping their data on infrastructure they manage. The README highlights mobile and web functionality, automatic backup behavior, offline support, and administrative user management, making it suitable for households, small groups, or anyone running a private media server.

    Offline CapableMulti-UserDockerDocker Compose

    Features:

    • Upload and view photos and videos
    • Auto backup
    • Duplicate prevention
    • Selective album backup
    • Local device download

    +5 more

    Auth:oauthlocal
  2. 2Syncthing logo
    85.2k
    Mozilla Public License 2.0Open Source — No Paywall

    Syncthing is a peer-to-peer file synchronization tool designed to keep files consistent across multiple computers without relying on a central cloud service. The README emphasizes safety, security, ease of use, and automatic operation, positioning the project for individual users who want reliable syncing with minimal manual intervention. The project provides guidance for getting started, building from source, and running in Docker, and it references GUI wrappers for Windows, macOS, and Linux. It also points users to a dedicated documentation site, a forum, and a GitHub issue tracker for support and bug reports. The software is released under the MPLv2 license and includes signed release binaries, with an automatic upgrade mechanism mentioned in the README.

    Offline CapableDockerSource

    Features:

    • continuous file synchronization
    • sync between two or more computers
    • data-loss protection
    • encrypted transfer
    • automatic upgrades

    +4 more

  3. 3app logo
    13
    GNU Affero General Public License v3.0Open Core — Some Features Paid

    TinyCld is a self-hosted workspace platform organized as an app shell plus separately installable feature packages. It is designed for users who want a modular alternative to a hosted productivity suite, with core capabilities such as mail, calendar, contacts, drive, text, calc, and import tooling assembled from sibling packages in a pnpm workspace. The project combines an Expo front end, PocketBase back end, and Go server wiring, with a generator that connects the installed packages into routes, seeds, migrations, and runtime configuration. It is aimed at developers or operators who want to assemble and run a customizable workspace locally or in a self-hosted deployment, with Docker-based delivery and a documented bootstrap flow for building a working workspace root.

    DockerDocker ComposeBinarySource

    Features:

    • plugin-based feature packages
    • mail
    • calendar
    • contacts
    • drive

    +5 more

What to look for in a Dropbox alternative

Sync engine quality is the core differentiator — evaluate handling of large files, partial sync, conflict resolution, and selective sync on space-constrained devices. End-to-end encryption and granular sharing permissions (password-protected links, expiring shares) matter for regulated industries. Mobile app polish and reliable background sync are often the gap between a usable Dropbox replacement and a frustrating one.