Dropbox vs Mega in 2026: Privacy, Pricing, and the Honest Verdict

If you’re looking for free, enterprise, or zero-knowledge cloud storage, two options that may have made your list are Dropbox and MEGA.

Both have been in the cloud storage industry for a long time, and serve different pricing plans and features depending on your storage, privacy, or business cloud storage needs.

For this reason, we will cover Dropbox vs MEGA in detail and discover more about what each service offers in terms of:

• Security and encryption
• Compliance
• Dropbox vs MEGA free plans
• Dropbox pricing & features
• MEGA pricing and features
• Are MEGA and Dropbox safe?
• Alternative to both services

So by the end of this article, you will know more about what each cloud service has to offer, and whether a more privacy-focused cloud storage solution, like Internxt, would be the better choice for the security of your files.

Table of contents

• Dropbox vs MEGA overview
• Dropbox vs MEGA free plans
• Dropbox vs MEGA paid plans and features
• Are Dropbox and MEGA safe?
• Alternatives to MEGA and Dropbox
• Related products
• Frequently asked questions

Dropbox vs MEGA overview

To get started, below is a general overview of the storage, privacy, encryption, and features offered by Dropbox and MEGA.

Security

Dropbox provides strong enterprise-grade account security controls, including:

• Two-factor authentication
• Support for hardware security keys via WebAuthn,
• Single sign-on integration for enterprise customers
• Login activity monitoring
• View and revoke connected devices
• Remote wipe for linked devices
• Granular session controls

MEGA also provides account security controls, such as:

• Two-factor authentication
• Authenticator apps
• Biew and terminate active sessions
• Basic device tracking for logged-in devices
• Password recovery via a backup key due to its privacy-oriented design

Who wins?

Dropbox offers more advanced and centralized account security controls, especially for organizations, with stronger administrative and device management capabilities.

MEGA provides solid basic account security for individual users, but it is less feature-rich in enterprise identity and access management.

Dropbox vs MEGA encryption

Dropbox encryption

• In transit: TLS (HTTPS)
• At rest: AES-256
• Model: Server-side encryption (Dropbox holds the keys)
• Not end-to-end encrypted by default

MEGA encryption

• In transit: TLS (HTTPS)
• At rest: AES-128 / AES-256 (implementation-dependent)
• Model: End-to-end encryption (zero-knowledge, user holds the keys)
• Encrypted before upload on the user’s device

While MEGA uses end-to-end encryption, which is an advantage over Dropbox, it has had security vulnerabilities with its encryption, as found by security professionals, which we will cover later in this article.

Who wins?

MEGA encryption is better for privacy, as Dropbox could technically access your files.

Neither option, however, offers post-quantum encryption. Internxt is the first cloud storage to combine zero-knowledge AES-526 and Kyber 512 encryption for all plans, which will soon be the industry standard to protect data in the cloud.

So, for the most private and best encrypted cloud storage, Internxt wins for privacy and security with Internxt Drive.

Compliance

As Dropbox offers cloud storage for enterprises and has many enterprise security controls implemented in its cloud service, it also offers the following compliance options for businesses:

Dropbox offers the following three ISO compliance options:

• ISO 27001: International standard for information security management systems (ISMS).
• ISO 27018: Focuses on protecting personally identifiable information (PII) in public cloud environments.
• ISO 27701: Helps organizations manage personal data in compliance with privacy regulations.

For SOC compliance, Dropbox offers:

• SOC 1 Type II: Assesses controls relevant to customers' financial reporting.
• SOC 2 Type II: Evaluates controls related to security, availability, confidentiality, processing integrity, and privacy.
• SOC 3: A public summary of the SOC 2 assessment that provides general assurance about Dropbox's security controls.

Depending on your location, different compliance laws apply, so Dropbox complies with:

• GDPR: Supports compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation for organizations processing personal data of individuals in the European Economic Area.
• CCPA and CPRA: Supports compliance with the California Consumer Privacy Act and the California Privacy Rights Act for organizations handling California residents' personal information.

Finally, Dropbox offers compliance for the healthcare industry, the most targeted sector for data breaches, phishing, and other cyberattacks.

• HIPAA: Offers support for organizations handling protected health information (PHI) in the United States through Business Associate Agreements (BAAs) on eligible plans.

MEGA offers fewer compliance options, complying with:

• SOC 2 type II
• ISO 27001
• GDPR
• New Zealand Privacy Act

Who wins?

Dropbox is stronger for regulatory compliance and enterprise readiness, while MEGA is more focused on encryption-based privacy for individual users rather than formal compliance frameworks required by regulated industries.

Dropbox vs MEGA free plans

If you’re just considering a free cloud storage plan with Dropbox or MEGA, then choosing which is better will depend on your storage needs.

Dropbox offers a 2GB free cloud storage plan, but MEGA offers more free storage at 20GB with limited transfer.

If you need free cloud storage for large videos, MEGA is the best option; if you need cloud storage for photos, Dropbox’s 2GB plan may be enough.

Dropbox vs MEGA paid plans and features

One of the highest priorities on your list when comparing Dropbox vs MEGA is pricing. Both offer monthly and annual plans, with business plans available for both.

MEGA also offers separate plans for VPN and MEGA’s password manager, which are offered via a separate subscription or combined with your cloud storage plan, which you can check on its website.

For now, we will cover Dropbox vs MEGA for its cloud storage plans, starting with Dropbox.

Dropbox pricing

Dropbox Plus 2TB €11.99/month (Personal use)

• For 1 user
• 30 days to restore deleted files
• Transfer files of up to 50GB
• Edit PDFs and get signatures

Dropbox Standard 3TB €14.50/user/month (Teams and Professionals)

• For 1 person or more
• 180 days to restore deleted files
• Transfer files of up to 100GB
• File branding for shared files
• Password-protect files
• Manage team sharing
• Admin controls

Dropbox Advanced 15TB €21.50/user/month (For companies)

• For 3 people or more
• 1 year to restore deleted files
• Transfer files of up to 100TB
• File branding for shared files
• Password-protect files
• Manage team sharing
• Admin controls
• Tiered admin management
• Advanced key management
• Compliance tracking

MEGA pricing

MEGA Pro I

• 3TB cloud storage
• 3TB uploads & downloads
• €9.99/month
• File versions up to 30 days
• 1-hour video calls
• Basic support

MEGA Pro II

• 10TB cloud storage
• 10TB uploads & downloads
• €19.99/month
• File versions up to 60 days (100 versions)
• Password-protected links
• Link expiration
• Unlimited video calls
• Priority support

MEGA Pro III

• 20TB cloud storage
• 20TB Uploads & downloads
• 29.99/month
• File versions up to 60 days (100 versions)
• Password-protected links
• Link expiration
• Unlimited video calls
• Priority support

If you need more storage, MEGA offers a Pro Flexi plan that is charged monthly, where you can add the storage and transfers you need for up to 10 petabytes of data.

It starts at €15.00 per month, and additional storage and transfer are charged at €3.03 per TB.

Dropbox or MEGA? Which plan is more affordable?

Cheaper overall: MEGA (Pro I is the lowest entry price, and even higher tiers stay generally cheaper than Dropbox per TB for most plans)

Best price per GB (cheapest): MEGA (especially Pro I and Pro II tiers)

Mega is around ~17%–35% cheaper than Dropbox overall, depending on the plan comparison level (bigger savings at higher storage tiers).

If you want to avoid subscription plans entirely and opt for lifetime cloud storage plans, neither Dropbox nor MEGA offers these.

Internxt offers lifetime plans from 1 to 5TB, with the option to stack plans to get up to 100TB of storage. Monthly plans are also available, starting at €1.99 for 1TB of post-quantum encrypted cloud storage.

Choose the perfect plan for your online privacy for 85% off via our website.

Are Dropbox and MEGA safe?

However, neither service is perfect for maximum privacy. Dropbox is not end-to-end encrypted, meaning the provider technically has access to encryption keys, which can allow data access under certain conditions, like legal requests or internal processes.

If this puts you off, check out our article for a list of Dropbox alternatives below.

MEGA, while zero-knowledge for file content, is not fully open source and has less enterprise compliance certification compared to Dropbox and Internxt, which can be a concern for regulated industries or strict audit requirements.

So while both are safe for everyday use with strong security features, users seeking the highest level of privacy control or full transparency may prefer Internxt’s fully zero-knowledge, open source, and independently audited privacy suite.

Dropbox safety concerns

While Dropbox offers multiple compliance and industry-standard encryption, the main concern when asking is Dropbox safe is its lack of zero-knowledge encryption.

Aside from this, Dropbox has had a past of security breaches, including 68 million passwords being leaked online and sharing data with third parties without user consent.

For more information about these past security breaches, and for a secure, private alternative to Dropbox with full zero-knowledge encryption, switch to Internxt and get 85% off with the link below.

MEGA safety concerns

While MEGA doesn’t have public security breaches to the extent of Dropbox, it does have a past of security vulnerabilities due to the encryption it used. Security researchers found the following vulnerabilities with MEGA’s data encryption:

• RSA Key Recovery Attack: MEGA can recover a user’s RSA private key in only 512 login attempts.
• Plaintext Recovery: MEGA can decrypt other vital materials, like node keys and use them to decrypt users' files and communication.
• Framing Attack: MEGA can insert dummy files into the user's storage.
• Integrity Attack: MEGA can accomplish the same result as q framing attack but an integrity attack is much less stealthy.
• GaP-Bleichenbacher Attack: MEGA can decrypt RSA ciphertexts, which are used for encryption, making them ineffective.

The full report can be read below.

Vulnerability Analysis of MEGA Encryption Mechanism

While MEGA now uses end-to-end encryption, it is not open-source, so these claims can’t be verified. MEGA also hasn’t been independently audited, so you would have to trust MEGA’s claims that it offers zero-knowledge encryption.

The previous co-founder of MEGA, Kim Dotcom, also has this to say about why he is no longer involved with MEGA:

“I’m not involved in Mega anymore. Neither in a managing nor in a shareholder capacity. The company has suffered from a hostile takeover by a Chinese investor who is wanted in China for fraud [...] As a result of this and a number of other confidential issues, I don’t trust Mega anymore. I don’t think your data is safe on Mega anymore.” - Kim Dotcom

Whether you trust Kim Dotcom or not, when a founder publicly says they are no longer involved and no longer trust the company, it raises concerns about changes in ownership, governance, and long-term direction.

This, combined with past encryption concerns, may be enough for you to consider an open-source and audited MEGA alternative or for you to check a list of other MEGA alternatives for full peace of mind that your files are encrypted, secure, and there are no backdoors to your data.

Alternatives to MEGA and Dropbox

Internxt Drive

Internxt Drive offers post-quantum encryption combined with zero-knowledge policies, making its cloud storage a much safer, secure, and private cloud solution to Dropbox and MEGA, as neither option offers the same encryption as Internxt.

For security and privacy, it offers:

• Two-factor authentication
• Password recovery via a backup key due to ZKE
• Access controls for file sharing
• Password-protected file sharing
• Encrypted backups
• AES-256 and Kyber-512 encryption
• GDPR, ISO, HIPAA, and SOC compliance
• Open source and independently audited

For advanced cloud management, such as hybrid cloud setups combined with your local storage, Internxt offers NAS support for QNAP and Synology devices, or WebDAV and Rclone support.

While Dropbox focuses on cloud storage, and MEGA offers additional privacy tools, Internxt offers a full privacy product suite, including Antivirus, Meet, Mail, Cleaner, and much more.

So if you need an alternative to MEGA, Dropbox, or any other big tech companies that could access your private files, like Google Drive, Internxt is the best, most private solution.

Internxt vs MEGA vs Dropbox overview

Internxt, Dropbox or MEGA?

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Frequently asked questions

Is MEGA safer than Dropbox?

MEGA is generally safe because it uses end-to-end encryption, meaning only you can access your files. Dropbox is generally safer for enterprise security, but it does not use end-to-end encryption for stored files.

However, as neither is open source, it’s hard to verify the security and safety of these platforms.

For a safe, secure, and private alternative to both, Internxt Drive is your best option thanks to its zero-knowledge and post-quantum encryption.

Is MEGA cheaper than Dropbox?

Yes, MEGA is cheaper than Dropbox, and the more storage you buy, the cheaper it works out. MEGA costs €1.35/TB/month, and Dropbox costs €5.53/TB/month.

Internxt's monthly plans, which include post-quantum and zero-knowledge encrypted cloud storage, plus VPN, Antivirus, and password-protected file sharing, start at €1.99/month for 1TB, or avoid subscriptions with its lifetime plans.

Does Dropbox have end-to-end encryption?

No, Dropbox does not offer true end-to-end encryption. Your files are encrypted in transit and at rest, but Dropbox controls the encryption keys, meaning they can technically access your data.

MEGA vs Dropbox: which is better for sensitive files?

MEGA is better because it uses end-to-end encryption, but it has had security vulnerabilities found in its encryption protocols in the past.

For guaranteed privacy of your files, zero-knowledge encrypted cloud storage, like Internxt Drive, is the best option to store sensitive files in total privacy.