ColdStorage and instant-access storage
Cloud storage comes in tiers. iCloud+, Google One and Dropbox keep every file live, openable the second you want it. ColdStorage keeps files resting instead, and brings them back when you ask. Same category, different tier — and for 2 TB, about a third of the price. Here's the whole comparison, including the parts where they win.
What keeping files live buys you
When a file is live, it sits on hardware running around the clock so it's there the instant you tap it. That's genuinely worth having. If you're opening documents on your phone, sharing folders with people, or working out of the same folder every day, that's the tool for the job.
The thing to know is that you pay that rate for every file on the plan — the ones you open daily and the ones you haven't touched since 2019, at exactly the same price.
What ColdStorage does instead
ColdStorage is built for the second pile. Files rest on low-power storage that isn't kept spinning and waiting, which costs far less to run, and that's where the lower price comes from. Ask for something back and it's brought up and made ready, usually in about two days.
Everything is encrypted on your Mac before it leaves your computer, and the key stays on your device — what we're holding is a pile of files we can't open. Browsing what you've stored is instant either way; only getting files back involves the wait.
| 2 TB, a year | Per year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| ColdStorage | $36.99 | $3.08 |
| Google One (AI Plus) | about $100 | about $8.32 |
| Dropbox Plus | about $111 | about $9.26 |
| iCloud+ | $119.88 | $9.99 |
| What's being compared | ColdStorage | Instant-access storage |
|---|---|---|
| Opening a file | Ready in about 48 hours | Instantly |
| Seeing what's stored | Instant | Instant |
| Who holds the key | You. Encrypted on your Mac; we can't open your files | Depends on the provider and your settings |
| Pulling a lot back out | Billed at what it costs us, quoted first. 1 GB a month free | Included |
| Free to start | 25 GB, no card | 5–15 GB |
Prices checked 2026-07-20. iCloud+ is Apple's own US figure. Google One and Dropbox are converted from their Canadian prices at 0.713, so treat those two as close rather than exact — check their sites for the price where you are. Everything here is 2 TB billed yearly, in US dollars, which is what our own plans are priced in.
Which one you actually want
If you open these files regularly, or you need them on your phone at a moment's notice, an instant-access plan is the right tool and we'd rather you kept it. Paying for live access to files you genuinely use live is not overpaying — it's buying the thing you need.
ColdStorage is for the other pile: the photos you'd hate to lose, the folders you've carried between four laptops, the things you want kept but won't open this year. Plenty of people end up with both — the live drive for what's in flight, ColdStorage for what's finished.