Backing up the data from our phones, tablets, and computers is an essential task for any of us that want to ensure our precious data doesn’t get lost in the blink of an eye. Even if you do your best to keep your hardware out of harm’s way, a mechanical failure, an accidental splash of water, or an unseen power surge may be all it takes to turn your electronics into a paperweight and take your files down with it. Using cloud backups for your important files can help you avoid that scenario.The best move for security would be to keep the original copy of your data on the original device, create a local backup on an external hard drive or network-attached storage, and keep a remote backup saved in the cloud. That way, in an accident, you have a local backup handy for easy access and restoration, and in a disaster, your vital data is still safe in the cloud. Some free services like Google Drive or Dropbox provide a small amount of storage you can easily backup documents with, but if you’re backing up huge amounts of data, media, and projects, you may want to look for something more robust.We’ve tested our share of cloud backup services that’ll help you keep your data safe, whether it’s a few gigabytes or several terabytes. These are the ones we’ve deemed to be the best options.
TL;DR These are the Best Cloud Storage:
1. Backblaze
Best Cloud Storage
For just about any individual cloud storage needs, Backblaze (read our review) has you covered at one of the most affordable rates in terms of price-per-gigabyte. The premise is simple: Once you’ve installed Backblaze and subscribed for $6/month or $60/year, you’ll get your whole computer backed up. There’s not a whole lot of fuss for you. You won’t have to decide on backing up some files here and not backing up other files there. It’ll just do the whole computer with unlimited storage.Backblaze starts backing up your local files as soon as it starts, and it’ll get all the files on all your local drives, including external USB drives. Just note that it’s not going to back up your system files or programs. So, if the worst should happen to your computer, you’ll be on your own for re-downloading programs and setting your system back up how you like it. But, when it comes to your important files, you’ll be able to get those right back from Backblaze.
2. IDrive
Best Value Cloud Storage
I wouldnt call IDrive (read our review) a budget option when compared with Backblaze, though depending on your needs, it may be cheaper. Its storage is limited, but the number of computers you can back up is unlimited, as long as you dont go over your quota. Depending on the number of computers you have, it could work out to less money.More importantly, though, IDrive offers a plethora of features for that money, and if youre the kind of user who knows exactly what they want from a backup plan, it can provide that too. You can back up to an external drive, network drive, or IDrives cloud service, and even create local disk image backups in case of ransomware or drive failures. This service gives you complete control, letting you choose which files you want to back up, how often you want them backed up, and you can secure your data with a private encryption key too.
It has its quirks, like some confusingly-worded options and one feature that doesnt quite work properly, but if youre on a budget, you trade a little polish for the price. While a standard 2TB subscription is $52 for the first year (and $69.50 every year thereafter), you can get 50% off as a student, grab 80% off from this special offer, or 90% off if you switch from a competing backup provider.
3. Acronis True Image 2021
Best Cloud Storage For Local and Cloud Backup
Acronis True Image (read our review) has been around for a while, making a name for itself in the local backup and disk imaging game. It still excels at that, but now it can also back up your files (and images) to the cloud too, and its also the most polished and professional backup program I’ve tested.Acronis strikes an amazing balance between its number of features and ease of use: the desktop program is intuitive and friendly, and offers just about everything you could want in a backup program. It lets you backup files and folders, make full disk images, share files from a backup, copy all your social media files, and it does end-to-end encryption properly.
Acronis is, however, a bit more expensive, coming in at $50 per year just for local and network backups without any cloud storage. If you want to get your files and system image backed up to the cloud, you’ll be looking at $90 a year for 500GB. To get into terabytes of storage, which is relatively affordable with IDrive and Backblaze, youll be paying at least $125 for 1TB and another $40 for each additional terabyte in the Premium annual subscription, and thats only for one machine. Thats not cheap, but it may be worth it to you if you want a service that’s polished, easy-to-use, and feature-rich.
4. SpiderOak One Backup
Best Secure Cloud Storage
While all of the above services allow you to encrypt your backups with a private key, IDrive and Backblaze of them require you to give your key to the service when you want to restore your files. They both erase your key as soon as the process is done, and its better than no encryption at all, but some people want their data 100% secure at all times. If youre one of these people and want a truly “no-knowledge” service that can never see your files, SpiderOak One (read our review) was made for you.The program itself is well-designed and easy to use, but security is the banner feature here: everything you back up is encrypted end-to-end, so your files are completely private, even if the government forces SpiderOak to hand over your data. Acronis has similar security, but SpiderOak is the only service that puts it front and center as its banner feature.
That peace of mind comes at a cost, however $149 per year for 2TB, not to mention some slower speeds compared to the competition but if you care about your privacy and security above all else, its worth a look.
5. SOS Online Backup
Best Cloud Storage for Unlimited Versioning
SOS Online Backup (read our review) is a decent program, but it has very few advantages over the competition save for one very unique feature. Unlike other backup services, SOS never purges old and deleted files. That means if you accidentally delete a file and discover you need it a year later, itll still be there. If you need the original version of a file youve since updated several times, itll still be there.Most services have some sort of limitation here some may only store deleted files for 30 days, while others may store files indefinitely but only keep the last 10 to 20 versions of it. Thats why SOS stands out.
There is a downside, however: SOS is extremely expensive, costing $40 per month for 1TB of space (thats $480 per year almost five times as much as Acronis and SpiderOak, the next most expensive options). The rest of the program is nothing to write home about either, so most people would be better served elsewhere. But if you absolutely need unlimited versioning, SOS Online Backup has you covered.
Whitson Gordon is a writer, gamer, and tech nerd who has been building PCs for 10 years. He eats potato chips with chopsticks so he doesn’t get grease on his mechanical keyboard.
Home>>Politic>>You’ve been thinking about using a cloud backup service, but don’t want to hassle with the research. Good news; we’ve done it for you, and here’s our picks for the very best.
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