If you open a new account with pCloud, you get 3 GB of storage for free. You can increase this number up to 10 GB by performing the following tasks:
- 1 GB extra when you verify your email address
- 1 GB extra if you install pCloud Drive
- 1 GB extra if you download the mobile application
- 1 GB extra if you activate the automatic photo upload option
- 3GB extra for inviting friends (you both get an extra 1GB when they sign up)
And while 10GB might be a decent amount if you don’t have a lot of files to store, we recommend checking out the prices of their premium plans as they might interest you.
Currently, you can choose the 500GB option for $4.99 per month or $49.88 if you pay for a full year; or, the 2TB option which will cost you $9.99 per month or $95.88 if you pay for the whole year at the same time.
It’s worth mentioning that pCloud also offers “lifetime” plans. In other words, you will pay only once to obtain the service. Although the figure can be expensive at first, it can also be a good long-term investment that will save you money.
The pCloud lifetime plans also come with 500GB ($175) or 2TB ($350) options. To these two “lifetime” options is added the Family Plan, which will cost you $500, but which allows you to share the account with five different users.
There are apps available for Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS, iPadOS, and Android, and you can also access your account through its website, if you prefer.
The apps for iOS and Android have a feature called “Auto-upload photos” which allows you to enable the option that the photos and videos you take with your smartphone are automatically uploaded to the cloud.
pCloud does not impose any file size restrictions, so you can upload any file your storage space allows.
Thanks to its servers in the European Union, the files are downloaded at high speed, moreover the synchronization is also fast and very efficient. In addition, all data transfers between pCloud servers and your device are TLS/SSL encrypted, which promotes the security of your files.
pCloud offers ways toand import which allow you to automatically transfer files from other cloud services, including Dropbox and Google Drive, which is handy if you’re in the process of switching between them, or just want a additional backup of important files.
As with almost all cloud storage services, you can share your content with friends or associates by sending links that allow access to folders and documents.
A good way to share files is ‘Load link’. This is a unique link that you can send to someone you want to share a file with.
Using the link will make your friend’s file part of your pCloud. This way, you will save yourself from having to search in emails old or in your ‘Downloads’ folder.
Customers with free access can access any previous version of a document for 15 days, while customers premium they can access previous versions of documents for up to 30 days.
A DpCloud’s most useful tool is its Crypto folder, where you can store files that you want to keep away from “prying eyes”, be it hackers or certain government agencies.
The contents of this folder are encrypted locally on your device. Even pCloud employees cannot read it without your password. pCloud uses 256-bit AES encryption for files and folders, while the encryption key uses 4096-bit RSA (both ciphers are very strong).
Files and folders are not automatically encrypted, but you must drag the ones you want to encrypt into the Crypto folder. This means you can have both encrypted and unencrypted files at the same time.
This possibility is very useful for sharing non-confidential documents with friends and at the same time being able to have an additional level of security for the files you want.
Verdict
pCloud is a great service, it’s easy to use and offers a good amount of storage for free. Moreover, its paid version can be purchased at quite a reasonable price.
The Crypto folders option is also a very nice feature, especially since it lets you choose which files you want to encrypt and which you don’t.
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