Amazon Web Services vs. Dropbox

Overview
ProductRatingMost Used ByProduct SummaryStarting Price
Amazon Web Services
Score 8.6 out of 10
N/A
Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a subsidiary of Amazon that provides on-demand cloud computing services. With over 165 services offered, AWS services can provide users with a comprehensive suite of infrastructure and computing building blocks and tools.
$100
per month
Dropbox
Score 8.5 out of 10
N/A
Dropbox is a cloud storage solution, equipped with features that help users to save time, improve productivity, and collaborate with others. Users can edit PDFs, share videos, sign documents, and collaborate with stakeholders without leaving Dropbox.
$9.99
per month
Pricing
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Editions & Modules
Free Tier
$0
per month
Basic Environment
$100 - $200
per month
Intermediate Environment
$250 - $600
per month
Advanced Environment
$600-$2500
per month
Plus
$9.99
per month
Essentials
$18
per month
Business
$20
per month per user
Business Plus
$26
per month per user
Basic
Free
Offerings
Pricing Offerings
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Free Trial
YesNo
Free/Freemium Version
YesNo
Premium Consulting/Integration Services
NoNo
Entry-level Setup FeeNo setup feeNo setup fee
Additional DetailsAWS allows a “save when you commit” option that offers lower prices when you sign up for a 1- or 3- year term that includes an AWS service or category of services.
More Pricing Information
Community Pulse
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Considered Both Products
Amazon Web Services
Chose Amazon Web Services
Our tech team was comfortable with Amazon Web Services and that is why we started with Amazon Web Services. In the meantime, we searched for other services like Amazon Web Services but it seems that facilities like Elastic Bean and the first year free made us stick to Amazon …
Chose Amazon Web Services
AWS is usually the most affordable between GC, AWS, and Azure. If I was using a Windows machines only environment, I would go with Azure and for any other setup I would go with Amazon Web Services. For the record, AWS has been around longer than the others too.
Dropbox
Chose Dropbox
In my opinion, Google Drive is clunky to use and doesn't have all the necessary features and options that Dropbox does. I think OneDrive is not a good option for sharing files and folders across the company and externally. Amazon Web Services is not user-friendly like Dropbox …
Chose Dropbox
Dropbox is somewhat operating system agnostic. That, in and of itself, removes obstacles that potentially occur in corporate settings.

Additionally, the functionality meets the typical request from users all in one solution. Not having to move from one application to another is …
Features
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS)
Comparison of Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) features of Product A and Product B
Amazon Web Services
7.9
68 Ratings
4% below category average
Dropbox
-
Ratings
Service-level Agreement (SLA) uptime9.164 Ratings00 Ratings
Dynamic scaling8.865 Ratings00 Ratings
Elastic load balancing9.461 Ratings00 Ratings
Pre-configured templates6.957 Ratings00 Ratings
Monitoring tools7.265 Ratings00 Ratings
Pre-defined machine images5.758 Ratings00 Ratings
Operating system support7.263 Ratings00 Ratings
Security controls8.566 Ratings00 Ratings
Automation8.417 Ratings00 Ratings
File Sharing & Management
Comparison of File Sharing & Management features of Product A and Product B
Amazon Web Services
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.0
1169 Ratings
5% below category average
Versioning00 Ratings7.8958 Ratings
Video files00 Ratings8.2948 Ratings
Audio files00 Ratings8.5854 Ratings
Document collaboration00 Ratings7.61020 Ratings
Access control00 Ratings7.71083 Ratings
File search00 Ratings7.71119 Ratings
Device sync00 Ratings8.51079 Ratings
Cloud Storage Security & Administration
Comparison of Cloud Storage Security & Administration features of Product A and Product B
Amazon Web Services
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.3
1107 Ratings
4% below category average
User and role management00 Ratings8.3991 Ratings
File organization00 Ratings8.31092 Ratings
Device management00 Ratings8.2965 Ratings
Cloud Storage Platform
Comparison of Cloud Storage Platform features of Product A and Product B
Amazon Web Services
-
Ratings
Dropbox
8.3
1101 Ratings
3% below category average
Performance00 Ratings8.41092 Ratings
Reliability00 Ratings8.61098 Ratings
Storage Reports00 Ratings8.0831 Ratings
Best Alternatives
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Small Businesses
Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)
Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2)
Score 8.8 out of 10
SugarSync
SugarSync
Score 4.5 out of 10
Medium-sized Companies
SAP on IBM Cloud
SAP on IBM Cloud
Score 9.0 out of 10
Druva Security Cloud
Druva Security Cloud
Score 9.7 out of 10
Enterprises
SAP on IBM Cloud
SAP on IBM Cloud
Score 9.0 out of 10
Druva Security Cloud
Druva Security Cloud
Score 9.7 out of 10
All AlternativesView all alternativesView all alternatives
User Ratings
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Likelihood to Recommend
8.8
(80 ratings)
8.6
(1192 ratings)
Likelihood to Renew
9.4
(10 ratings)
7.2
(35 ratings)
Usability
8.0
(11 ratings)
8.6
(346 ratings)
Availability
9.0
(1 ratings)
7.4
(3 ratings)
Performance
-
(0 ratings)
6.2
(8 ratings)
Support Rating
7.2
(24 ratings)
6.4
(34 ratings)
Online Training
7.0
(1 ratings)
8.2
(2 ratings)
Implementation Rating
10.0
(3 ratings)
8.0
(4 ratings)
Configurability
-
(0 ratings)
6.4
(1 ratings)
Product Scalability
-
(0 ratings)
7.0
(4 ratings)
User Testimonials
Amazon Web ServicesDropbox
Likelihood to Recommend
Amazon AWS
One of the scenarios I can think of is to Deploy a web application that may experience fluctuating traffic. AWS EC2 and Elastic Beanstalk allow for quick deployment and easy scaling accommodating traffic spikes without downtime. Next thing is to analyze large datasets for business insights. AWS services like EMR (Elastic MapReduce) and Redshift enable efficient processing and analysis of big data with minimal setup. Now for one of the scenarios where is less appropriate is if we want to host a simple static website, for basic sites using a dedicated hosting service like GitHub Pages or Netlify may be simpler and most effective than AWS
Read full review
Dropbox
If I need a specific file or want to access certain movies or music tracks, I download and store it on one device (e.g., PC), where DB is integrated into the file system. I can then effortlessly access this file on any device, like a tablet, where DB is integrated into the file system.
Read full review
Pros
Amazon AWS
  • Starting an instance and accessing it for testing purpose, demo or production deployment its always easy.
  • All the things which are available over AWS are pretty well managed and easy to use.
  • You might find everything you required for an product and other development over AWS.
  • Its suitable for both either an enterprise or an startup
  • Various resources and documentation are available in case you struck somewhere.
Read full review
Dropbox
  • It is secure. I haven't had any breaches whilst using Dropbox.
  • Its search functions helps me find relevant files and images quickly.
  • It backups on a frequent basis that I can take it for granted that my files are being backed up.
Read full review
Cons
Amazon AWS
  • If there is one thing I think AWS needs improvement on, it is the administration dashboard. It can be a nightmare to use especially when trying to access billing. This could be made better, honestly, as there should be a simplified way to access simple admin features.
  • While AWS was fairly easy to integrate into our solutions, it is not as easy to use without some IT knowledge. The dashboards are complicated and designed for someone who is computer savvy. If you are just want to keep track of billing, for example, you may need to take a course or spend a few hours with someone being walked through the admin console.
  • AWS does tend to be slow at times. If you do not have a fast internet connection, it can take time to access services that are hosted on AWS. This is not always the case but we have had clients complain about this if they are trying to access a service from multiple points (IP addresses). The only real fix we found was to make our files cache to another server and only keep current data accessible to clients.
Read full review
Dropbox
  • I’d like to be able to hover over an image/document and have it expand/enlarge without actually opening it
  • I’d love to see a carousel that lets me thumb through more quickly
  • I’m almost always in thumbnail view. I’d like to see them re-organize automatically when something is moved or deleted instead of leaving an empty space.
  • AI options for photo editing.
  • Easier pdf markups
Read full review
Likelihood to Renew
Amazon AWS
We are almost entirely satisfied with the service. In order to move off it, we'd have to build for ourselves many of the services that AWS provides and the cost would be prohibitive. Although there are cost savings and security benefits to returning to the colo facility, we could never afford to do it, and we'd hate to give up the innovation and constant cycle of new features that AWS gives us.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox is a user-friendly, easy tool which requires little to no skill and they offer a free version with a good amount of storage available. There are other file sharing tools available however at a cost. Dropbox free version I have used for years and it serves every purpose I need.
Read full review
Usability
Amazon AWS
Amazon Web Services is a great tool when it comes to middle size organizations like us. It provides multiple tools and functionalities in low costs. The best feature we have to pay as we go. No financial burden on company for the unused instances. It also comes with greater level of security such as two level authorization such as multi factor authorization.
Read full review
Dropbox
Because the program is simpler, it does not use large resources to run, and there are no problems on older operating systems. It is easy to use for both private and business use. It's a bit annoying that the same texts have to be rewritten multiple times. Consider whether you want the truth or for users to actually answer quickly and easily.
Read full review
Reliability and Availability
Amazon AWS
Availability is very good, with the exception of occasional spectacular outages.
Read full review
Dropbox
No answers on this topic
Performance
Amazon AWS
AWS does not provide the raw performance that you can get by building your own custom infrastructure. However, it is often the case that the benefits of specialized, high-performance hardware do not necessarily outweigh the significant extra cost and risk. Performance as perceived by the user is very different from raw throughput.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox is really useful, you can access any file from anywhere and you can upload and even edit files online, but, sometimes it can be slow. Downloading, uploading, and syncing is a bit slow, it can take several minutes. Furthermore, the search engine for large amounts of data can be slow too and it is not powerful.
Read full review
Support Rating
Amazon AWS
The customer support of Amazon Web Services are quick in their responses. I appreciate its entire team, which works amazingly, and provides professional support. AWS is a great tool, indeed, to provide customers a suitable way to
immediately search for their compatible software's and also to guide them in a
good direction. Moreover, this product is a good suggestion for every type of
company because of its affordability and ease of use.
Read full review
Dropbox
They immediately responded like in an example that I gave where one of our staff members accidentally deleted the whole Special Hope Network Dropbox, we immediately contacted Dropbox they walked us through the steps of how to retrieve the information and luckily enough we were able to retrieve the entire Dropbox and we have had back and forth with Dropbox on what to do when an employee leaves how to remove them how to add another employee.
Read full review
Online Training
Amazon AWS
No answers on this topic
Dropbox
I did not personally take any training for Dropbox so I am self taught but I know when our Vice President selected Dropbox, he personally did do some training modules on it and I'm assuming it was very easy and simple to understand since he now acts like he is a pro at it!
Read full review
Implementation Rating
Amazon AWS
The API's were very well documented and was Janova's main point of entry into the services.
Read full review
Dropbox
I needed to stay current in improving my daily operations. Dropbox
was suggested to me by a former colleague two-years ago and I've been using it just fine ever since.
Read full review
Alternatives Considered
Amazon AWS
Amazon Web Services is well suited when we have a huge amount of data to store, process, manipulate and get meaningful information out of. It is also suitable when we need very fast data retrieval from the database. They provide a superior product at a fair price which allows us to further our goals and push the limits of what we are capable of as a team / company.
Read full review
Dropbox
Dropbox stands out for its simple interface, reliable file syncing, and strong version history compared to other storage platforms. While Google Drive is better for real-time collaboration and OneDrive integrates well with Microsoft Office, Dropbox offers faster file sharing, better organization, and smoother cross-platform access. We chose Dropbox because it’s easy to use, works across different devices, and keeps our files secure and accessible.
Read full review
Scalability
Amazon AWS
No answers on this topic
Dropbox
bc i think box.com is better and more affordable
Read full review
Return on Investment
Amazon AWS
  • AWS has lowered our employee cost, because you don't have to hire Network/Server Admins to manage infrastructure.
  • Increased productivity by incorporating Continuous Integration with AWS and our development life cycle.
  • Increased customer confidence by being able to provide HIPAA level security in our development and production environments
Read full review
Dropbox
  • Being a small business, the pricing is a little steep for my organisation, specially when it's not directly reimbursable to my clients. But the confidence of being able to access all my years of work in a few clicks saves me huge amounts of stress and effort. It's true power comes to light when an unfortunate incident causes panic about probable loss of access to valuable data. It is delightful when it gets resolved without breaking a sweat. Hence, I would say that it is eventually worth every penny.
  • I am a designer, and I like to create a lot of options for my work. Each of these options is a potential asset which can be potentially monetised directly, or at a future date. Hence, being able to retrieve it at the right time is priceless.
Read full review
ScreenShots

Dropbox Screenshots

Screenshot of the action bar, that sits across the browser page can be used to record the screen, edit PDFs, upload files, create folders, get signatures, or send and track documents.Screenshot of Dropbox Replay, that lets collaborators leave frame-accurate feedback and markups directly on project files.Screenshot of Dropbox Capture, which can be used to take screen recordings, screenshots, and GIFs with one click and share them with a link.Screenshot of the interface where Dropbox lets users upload, edit, send, and sign PDFs in one place.