You send contracts and client files that nobody else should read, or you are tired of a storage bill that comes back every year. If you are comparing these two, you are probably a freelancer, a couple or a family that cares about privacy and about the total cost. Proton sells encrypted storage as a subscription. pCloud sells large storage you pay for once.
Both tools are affiliate partners of ours: we may earn a commission if you sign up through a button on this page, at no extra cost to you. That is why we also say when to pick neither.
| Proton Drive | pCloud | |
|---|---|---|
| Price we read | Free (5GB); Drive Plus $3.99/mo for 200GB (20% off $4.99), billed $47.88 a year (read 16 Oct 2026) | Free 2 GB (up to 10 GB); Lifetime: Premium 500 GB €219, Premium Plus 2 TB €499, Ultra 10 TB €1,499 once; Family 2 TB €749; Business €9.99 per user/mo (3+ users); Encryption €150 once (read 26 Oct 2026) |
| Entry price | Drive Plus $3.99/mo for 200 GB, billed $47.88 a year (read 16 Oct 2026) | Lifetime Premium 500 GB €219 once (read 26 Oct 2026) |
| How you pay | Subscription; monthly billing costs about 25% to 33% more than yearly | Lifetime plans paid once; Business €9.99 per user/mo, 3 users minimum |
| Free plan or trial | Free 5 GB; 30-day money-back on every plan | Free 2 GB, up to 10 GB; 14-day money-back with a discount clause |
| Best for | Privacy-minded people and teams who want end-to-end encryption by default | Individuals and families who want big storage for years, paid once |
| Main catch | No server-side search inside files; lose your login without recovery set up and the data is gone | Device-side encryption is €150 extra on personal plans; refunds can be refused on discounts |
Your work depends on deep integrations, shared-drive collaboration and searching inside documents. Proton cannot search inside your files by design, and pCloud's shared folders only work between accounts in the same data region.
Our Proton dossier says mainstream cloud drives do integrations, collaboration and full-text search better.
2 TB with encryption on your device, in euros. pCloud: Premium Plus €499 + Encryption add-on €150 = €649 once (read 26 Oct 2026). Proton's only 2 TB plan is Duo at €179.88 a year (read 10 Sep 2026 from the Netherlands). Three years of Duo: 3 × €179.88 = €539.64. Four years: 4 × €179.88 = €719.52. So pCloud pulls ahead in the fourth year and stays ahead after that, if Proton's price stays the same, and Duo shares its 2 TB between up to two users. We did not compare pCloud's own monthly and yearly plans, because we did not record those prices.
Drive Plus: $3.99 a month for 200 GB, billed $47.88 a year (read 16 Oct 2026). Couples should start on Duo: $14.99 a month for 2 TB, billed $179.88 a year.
Start with Proton Drive →Lifetime Premium Plus: 2 TB for €499 once (read 26 Oct 2026). Add Encryption for €150 once if privacy is part of the reason you buy.
Start with pCloud →Only with the pCloud Encryption add-on, which is €150 once on personal plans (read 26 Oct 2026). Business plans include it. Proton encrypts end to end on every plan, the free one included.
Proton says 5 GB. Our new account on 9 Oct 2026 started at 2 GB and reached 5 GB through a 3 GB welcome bonus. pCloud starts at 2 GB. In our 2 Nov 2026 test the first upload added 1 GB, and pCloud says you can raise the free account to 10 GB.
Proton gives 30 days' money back on every plan. pCloud gives 14 days from payment, but its terms let it refuse refunds on promotional or discounted purchases, and the lifetime prices are shown as discounts.
pCloud's terms define it as the account owner's lifetime or 99 years, whichever is shorter. You also cannot downgrade a one-time purchase, so buy the size you will need later.
Proton: proton.me/drive/pricing, read in USD on 16 Oct 2026 and in euros on 10 Sep 2026, plus our own test of the free plan on 9 Oct 2026. pCloud: its pricing, family, business and encryption pages and its terms, read 16 and 26 Oct 2026, plus our own test of the free plan on 2 Nov 2026. Prices change: each one carries the date we read it, and our reviews are re-checked against the vendor pages. How we review.
Built for a specific kind of business? Software for freelancers and solo businesses