What’s The Difference Between an Online Storage and an Online Backup?

You may have already come across instances where we and other websites talk about “online storage” and in other places about “online backups”, or perhaps even about both in the same context. An online storage service simply lets you store files and folders into an online storage space. An online backup service also lets you store data online, but it is powered by backup software that lets you upload large amounts of data in an automated and convenient way. An online storage space doesn’t feature a convenient way to perform backups of your data or a selection of your files and folders.

In other words, an online storage service is like a simple folder on your computer with the difference that it’s a folder located somewhere on a server. Online backup services work in the same way, but will automatically store any of the files and folders you want in this space following the schedule and settings you’ve submitted in the backup software powering the service.

Dropbox, Google Drive, Box and Microsoft’s OneDrive are four of the most popular online storage companies and are all fantastic services. They’re perfect for storing a few files or folders you want to have access to at all times from any of your devices, they make it easy to share files with friends and colleagues and they offer clever ways to collaborate on documents together through file syncing. These are all features that are also present in top-rated online backup services. The big advantage of an online backup solution lays of course in the fact that their software also includes data backup features, through an easy all-in-one solution.

There are ways through which you can also use pure online storage services such as Dropbox and Google Drive to automatically perform data backups. The companies that offer the software to do this will charge you a monthly fee for this, while you’ll also have to pay for additional space with the online storage service you’re using. Setting up such a system requires more technological knowledge and means that you’ll have to manage two different types of accounts. You may also end up paying more for these two stand-alone services than you would if you were relying on a complete online backup solution. For all of these reasons, we strongly recommend you to use a specialized all-in-one online backup service. Online storage services are great to have as well, but they just weren’t built for backing up data.

Best Online Backup Services of 2023

Rank	Provider	Info	Visit
1		Free plan Thorough backup tools Works locally Wide platform support Full review…	Visit GoodSync
2		Affordable cloud storage 10GB free version Multi-platform software User-friendly Full review…	Visit
3		Easy to reach support, also over phone Wide variety of plans to choose Easy sign up process Backup features extend across multiple platforms Full review…	Visit