Google Drive alternative for business: 7 tools compared (2026)
Seven tools for sending and collecting client files, with dated plan facts and when Drive still fits.
Looking for a Google Drive alternative for business usually means one thing: you want clients to receive and send files without sign-in prompts, permission mix-ups or a page that carries someone else's name. This list covers seven tools that do that job, and it says plainly when Drive is still the better answer.
Best for sending files to clients on your own domain, with a client portal and approvals: Tarkle. Best for staying inside an office suite: Microsoft OneDrive. Best for file requests and review on a well-known tool: Dropbox. Best for large, structured teams: Box. Best for branded links on cloud storage: pCloud. Best for creative delivery with big files: Hightail. Best for a creative asset library: Air.
We make Tarkle, so read this as one vendor's view, and check the sources linked next to each claim.
Last checked: November 2026.
What Google Drive does well
Drive is where many teams already keep their work. Google's pricing page lists Business Starter, Standard and Plus plans, all billed monthly. Pooled storage is 30 GB per user on Starter, 2 TB on Standard and 5 TB on Plus.
Sharing with people outside Google works too. Google's sharing help page says that a file shared as "Anyone with the link" can be opened by anyone on the internet without signing in to a Google Account. For documents your team edits together, Drive is hard to beat.
Where Drive gets awkward for client files
The friction shows up when the other side is a client, not a colleague. Here is what Google's own pages say:
If your company uses a Google Workspace account, your administrator may restrict external link sharing, so a link that works for one client may not work for another.
Drive's Editor role lets people open, edit, delete or move any files within a folder. Editors can also change permissions and share items with others by default.
None of this makes Drive a bad choice. It means Drive is built for working inside a team, and sending files to clients is a different job. For the safety side, see Is Google Drive safe for client files?. For the practical side, see how to share files with clients without Google Drive.
Before you switch anything, write down the one job that annoys you most: sending final files, collecting source files, or getting a yes on a design. Pick the tool for that job, not the longest feature list.
Google Drive alternative for business: seven tools compared
Tool | Suits | Published entry price |
|---|---|---|
Tarkle | Sending and collecting client files under your own name | Free, then Pro from $19 per month billed yearly |
Dropbox | Teams that want transfer controls on a familiar tool | Standard $15 per user per month |
Microsoft OneDrive | Teams already on Microsoft 365 | Business Basic $7.00 per user per month, paid yearly |
Box | Larger teams that need admin controls | See Box's pricing page |
pCloud | Small teams that want cloud storage with file requests | $287.64 per year for 3 users and 3 TB, after its free trial |
Hightail | Creative studios sending big files | Pro, billed annually (see the pricing page) |
Air | Creative teams managing an asset library | See Air's pricing page |
Prices are as published by each vendor in November 2026 and may change. Always confirm on the vendor's page.
Tarkle
Tarkle is for the job Drive was not built for: sending files to clients and collecting theirs under your own name. With share files by link you pick files or folders and get one link to send anywhere. Public links need no account to download.
To collect files, file requests give you one link that sends files into a folder in your workspace. Public file requests accept uploads with no sign-in. Client feedback turns images and PDFs into a review board that clients comment on and approve with one link, no account. The client portal is a branded place to receive and manage the files you share with them, and it is included on Pro and Agency.
Free includes custom branding and a custom domain, and custom domains are available on every plan. A custom favicon is a Pro feature. On Free you can also import a file from Dropbox or Google Drive.
Here is what Free covers and where it stops. Free is for one person, with 5 GB of storage and a 1 GB upload limit. It includes file sharing, file requests and client feedback and approval. On Free, pages keep the Powered by Tarkle line. Agency replaces it with your agency name once White label is switched on in its settings, while the Agency plan is in force.
Keep Drive for internal documents and use a sharing tool only for what leaves the building. Import the final files once, share one link and your team's Drive stays tidy.
Dropbox
Dropbox is the closest match to Drive in how it feels, with more for sending. Its plans page lists Standard at $15 per user per month, with storage starting at 3,000 GB for the team, as published in November 2026. The plans table lists branded transfers on Standard and Advanced.
The limit: branded transfers are listed on Standard and Advanced in that table, so compare those tiers if clients receive files from your team. See also our Dropbox comparison.
Microsoft OneDrive
If your company already runs on Microsoft 365, OneDrive is the natural choice. Microsoft's page lists Microsoft 365 Business Basic at $7.00 per user per month, paid yearly, and includes OneDrive among its apps: "Save, access, edit, and share files and photos wherever you are."
The limit: on the Business Basic list, Word is listed as web and mobile only, so check which desktop apps your team needs. See Tarkle vs OneDrive.
Box
Box suits larger teams with admin needs. Box's File Request guide says you must have a Box Business plan or higher to build a File Request form, and that no one needs a Box account to access the finished form and upload content. People can upload up to 500 files at a time.
The limit: the size limit on file uploads depends on the limit of your organization's enterprise tier, and the guide says to contact your Box admin to confirm the maximum file size you can upload. See Tarkle vs Box.
pCloud
pCloud is cloud storage with sharing built in. Its Business page shows 3 users and 3 TB, at 287.64 USD per year after its free trial expires. pCloud's help centre says anyone can upload files through a file request link, with no pCloud account needed.
The limit: the same help page says that if you receive a shared link with the option to upload, you will need a pCloud account to upload. File requests are the option for people without one.
Hightail
Hightail is built for sending creative files to clients. Its pricing page lists Pro with uploads up to 25GB and Teams with uploads up to 50GB, both billed annually.
The limit: on the free Lite plan, files are up to 100MB, sends expire automatically after 7 days and all assets are branded as OpenText Hightail. See Tarkle vs Hightail.
Air
Air is a library for creative teams, closer to asset management than to sending a link. Its pricing page lists Free with 10 GB and up to 3 users, Starter with 200 GB and up to 5 users, and Business with 2 TB and unlimited users, as published in November 2026. Share links can have name and email gating, and the page lists timestamp comments on video.
The limit: Air's plans include monthly AI credits, and extra storage on Business is $50 per month per 1 TB. If you only need to send finished files to clients, that library and credit system is more than the job needs. See Tarkle vs Air.
Pricing
Tarkle's pricing page lists Free at $0 forever, no credit card required, with 5 GB of storage and a 1 GB upload limit. Pro is $29 per month, or $19 per month billed yearly, with 3 TB and a 200 GB upload limit. Agency is $59 per month, or $49 per month billed yearly, with 6 TB, 20 workspaces for your clients and a 100% white-label platform. For every other tool, the prices above come from the vendor pages linked in each section, dated November 2026.
Which tool fits which job
Choose Tarkle if the main complaint is how clients see your work: your name on the page, your domain in the link, a portal and a simple yes or no on a design. You can start for free and send one real delivery before you decide anything.
Stay on Google Drive if your clients already use Google accounts and you mostly work on shared documents. Pick OneDrive if your company runs on Microsoft 365. Pick Dropbox or Box if you want file requests on a tool your clients may already know. Pick Hightail for big creative files and Air for a searchable creative library.
What to remember about Tarkle
Tarkle is for sending files to clients and collecting theirs under your own name. Free is for one person and includes file sharing, file requests, client feedback and approval, custom branding and a custom domain, with 5 GB of storage and a 1 GB upload limit. Pro adds the client portal and uploads up to 200 GB, and Agency adds 20 workspaces for your clients and a 100% white-label platform. Start for free, or compare the plans on the pricing page.