01. iDrive
02. Adobe Creative Cloud
03. pCloud
04. BigMIND by Zoolz
05. Degoo Cloud
If you’re a photography professional or someone who works with large creative files then you’ll no doubt need the best cloud storage for photos and videos. An invaluable service, it’s perfect for balancing work between office and home, and ideal if you want to manage files on the go. In short: if you need to synchronise and access your files from anywhere and from any device, cloud storage is essential.
Cloud storage for photos and video services offer more advantages, too. They are an ideal backup option, which is vital if this kind of content is your livelihood. And many services also serve up great security options, innovative photo management features and extensive sharing and collaboration tools. It’s also possible to find products that offer RAW file previews, photo-editing tools, lossless compression and AI-powered photo-organisation.
There are dozens of cloud storage for photos and video services out there, though, so it can be tricky to figure out which one is best for you (see our guide to the best cloud storage for a more general list, and also make sure you see our guide to the best external hard drives and SSDs). Here we've delved into seven of the best services to find out which ones offer the best range of features. We’ve examined their pricing levels, how much space you get and if there are free options available, too.
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The popular iDrive package offers a superb range of features that cover backup and file-syncing. You can backup files to an unlimited number of devices, sync in real-time, and photographers and creatives can enjoy fast, automatic uploads with no compression – perfect for preserving image quality. The service has facial recognition for easier photo sorting and management, and photos and videos can be uploaded automatically. The only downside is a 2GB file size upload limit.
iDrive retains files for thirty days after deletion, and file versioning is supported – so you can reclaim older versions of your photos and videos, even if you think they’re lost forever. You can back up and restore entire hard drives and SSDs, and you can even send physical media to iDrive and have it backed up on-site, which adds another layer of security.
Indeed, iDrive offers comprehensive security, with two-factor authentication and end-to-end encryption – ideal for securing sensitive photos, videos or business documents.
iDrive’s free service offers a middling 5GB of space, and its 5TB, 10TB and 12.5TB upgrade options stretch across personal and business accounts and can be bought annually. This service offers fast uploads, a straightforward desktop interface and intuitive mobile apps, and it offers both a broad set of features and strong security. It’s great if you need a versatile, safe service.
Adobe Creative Cloud isn't just an suite of creative apps, it also comes complete with its very own cloud storage. How much you get depends on the plan you are signed up to, but it's worth investigating if you're already a CC member. If you're not signed up to Adobe CC and have been thinking about it, this is an added extra included in the subscription price so you won't have to pay for cloud storage on top.
Adobe CC offers a number of cloud storage for photos solutions, all of which are designed specifically with photographers and creatives in mind. There's integration with Gmail, Lightroom and Photoshop Elements, plus support for RAW file formats. It's certainly not the cheapest cloud storage available, but if Adobe CC is something you're already paying for (or want to), this cloud storage feature is well worth knowing about.
The pCloud service has one of the cloud storage market’s more unique payment plans – you can buy a lifetime subscription to the app if you don’t want to pay annually. There are 500GB and 2TB options available, and the 10GB of free storage is generous.
When it comes to core functionality, pCloud offers realtime syncing, uploading and management across all devices, support for unlimited file sizes and backups, and deleted and altered files are kept for up to thirty days for easier media restoration. Photos can be backed-up automatically, and there’s automatic backups from Facebook, Instagram, Dropbox, OneDrive and Google Drive.
Security is handled by 256-bit encryption and two-factor authentication, and pCloud goes further – the Switzerland-based service stores data in three different physical locations for added security.
pCloud has clients for Windows, macOS and Linux and apps on Android and iOS, and there are features here that photographers and video professionals will appreciate – you get thumbnails and previews of RAW files, direct video streaming, photo-resizing and a browser extension that can save videos and images directly to your pCloud. Customizable download links add a professional sheen to your workflow, too.
This service has a 2TB maximum capacity, which isn’t as generous as some other products, and it doesn’t have features like facial recognition.
Zoolz doesn’t have a free service, but its payment plans are affordable, and it provides a capacious 10TB of maximum space. In addition, Zoolz provides unlimited ‘cold storage’ – an extra service that stores files for archival. It’s useful if you want to back up photos and videos for the long-term rather than having the files ready to access frequently.
Elsewhere, Zoolz has good core features – automatic backups, uploads and syncing across all devices, 256-bit encryption and multi-factor authentication.
There are some welcome additions for creatives, too. You get RAW file previews, file versioning and preservation for thirty days, you can backup entire internal and external hard drives – with the latter handy if you work in the field and use lots of external storage. There’s a unique feature thanks to BigMIND AI – this tool analyses colours, faces and features, collates camera, resolution, location and date details, and then organises your photos. You can use filters and searches to find files with more efficiency than in other cloud storage apps, and your own tags and filters can be added for extra customisation.
Zoolz does not have the backup speed of some rivals – its backup servers run on schedules, so they’re not instant. But if you need long-term storage and space rather than speed, it’s one of the best cloud storage for photos options around.
Many cloud storage providers offer features that appeal to creatives, but Degoo is one of the only services that is actively designed for photographers and video professionals.
It’s got automatic uploading, slick mobile apps, basic photo-editing tools in its web interface and smart filtering that improves organisation and picks out highlights. It even has a photo-storage maximiser that automatically reduces file sizes on devices without much space while keeping your full-size files in the cloud.
Google provides the two-factor authentication here, and there’s zero-knowledge encryption – a service that ensures that your files can’t be accessed by any of Degoo’s employees. Underneath it all, Degoo provides support for all devices, real-time syncing and affordable options that peak at 10TB.
Degoo has no desktop client, but its web app is simple to use and its mobile apps are slick. Also bear in mind that its free service provides a generous 100GB of space, but the free option is ad-supported and doesn’t include zero-knowledge encryption or the photo-storage maximiser service.
This is a polished, easy to use service that provides a slick photo-management experience alongside good prices and some neat features. It should be near the top of the list for creatives.
Livedrive is a straightforward option that’s easy to use for those who may not be as computer savvy as other users.
It’s got loads of features, too: support for all of your desktop and mobile devices, automatic backups, thirty days of previous version storage, 256-bit encryption and two-factor authentication. Livedrive’s services are divided into Briefcase and Backup portions: the former is conventional cloud storage that can be synced and used across multiple devices, while the latter is a mirror of your PC’s files that can be restored if you encounter issues. If you keep your vital photos and videos on a centralized system, that could be a business-saving feature.
Unlike most cloud storage for photos services, Livedrive places a bigger emphasis on business and collaboration features – depending on your payment tier you can have on-the-go editing, team folders and better file-sharing options. If you work in a larger creative organisation those features could be invaluable. Certain business accounts also offer more powerful encryption.
You can pay for either the Briefcase or Backup service, or you can opt for both by paying a little more – and free trials of them all are available. Livedrive may not have many specific photo-management features, but it’s easy to use, versatile, and great in larger organisations.
Nordlocker places a huge focus on security, and it has more features here than most other cloud storage providers. All of your files are encrypted with more advanced algorithms than rivals offer, and they use a zero-knowledge design that means staff can’t see your data, photos and videos.
Photos and videos are encrypted before upload to further improve security, and you can use this service to send files confidentially. This app doesn’t support two-factor authentication, but Nordlocker argues that most people don’t use it anyway – instead, the firm says that its more robust security options elsewhere fill in the gaps, and it supports master passwords and recovery codes for extra layers of protection.
Elsewhere, Nordlocker has simple, drag-and-drop file management, live syncing, support for files of all types and sizes and a free service that provides 3GB of space. The conventional accounts peak at a relatively modest 500GB, but business accounts can be arranged by talking to Nordlocker directly. Also bear in mind that Nordlocker doesn’t have dedicated smartphone apps, and it relies on a desktop client rather than your web browser.
It doesn’t have any specific photo editing or management features, either, but Nordlocker’s strengths lie in its robust, extensive security. If you’re a creative who works with sensitive files, this could be the top choice.
There aren’t many easier services to use than Microsoft OneDrive. It’s built right into the OS if you use Windows 10, and it includes 5GB of free space – a reasonable amount. You can ramp that up to 1TB if you purchase an Office 365 subscription, which may be a useful investment if you need Word, Excel or PowerPoint alongside conventional photography and video apps. It’s also possible to add more storage by paying extra.
OneDrive serves up automatic uploading, it works with basically any device and external hard drives, and it doesn’t compress photos or videos – so you can maintain quality levels. There are also some basic photo-editing options here. Bear in mind that the maximum file size is 100GB, though, and that it can’t upload images that have been optimized for Apple’s iCloud service.
The service offers slick integration with Microsoft’s office tools, automatic image tagging, real-time syncing, thirty days of file restoration, ransomware detection and a personal vault for protecting sensitive files.
Bear in mind that other services do offer more robust security, and some other products also do offer better photography features. It’s also pretty expensive, and you’ll only really get maximum value out of OneDrive if you need to rely on its impressive Microsoft integration.
