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How to migrate between cloud storage providers (step-by-step)

Switching cloud storage providers is less painful than it used to be. The process is basically: copy files to your new service, verify they transferred correctly, then cancel the old one. The methods below are ranked from easiest to most manual. Choose based on how much data you have, what services are involved, and how much control you need.

Before anything else: Determine your total file count and size. Go to your current provider's storage usage page. You'll need this number twice — to confirm your new plan has capacity and to verify the migration completed successfully.

Method 1: Built-In Migration Tools (Easiest)

Some providers import directly from competitors, handling the transfer server-to-server without using your bandwidth or requiring any local disk space.

pCloud Transfer: pCloud can pull files directly from Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, and Facebook. You authorize the source via OAuth — pCloud never sees your password, only a scoped access token. The transfer runs on pCloud's servers. Speed depends on the source provider's API limits, not your home internet connection.

Steps:

  1. Log into your new pCloud account
  2. Navigate to Settings → Migration
  3. Select your source provider (Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive)
  4. Authorize access
  5. Select which folders to migrate
  6. Start transfer — you'll get an email when complete

Large libraries can take 24-72 hours via server-to-server transfer. The process resumes automatically if interrupted.

iDrive Migration Tool: iDrive's Express backup supports migration from Google Drive and Dropbox. Similar OAuth-based authorization flow.

Koofr: Koofr has a built-in "Connections" feature that can link your Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Amazon Drive, and others directly to your Koofr account. You can browse and copy files from connected sources without downloading them first. If you're migrating to Koofr, this is the cleanest approach — connect your old account, browse the files, and copy what you want into Koofr's storage.

Limitation: Built-in migration tools typically don't transfer file version history. You'll get the most recent version of each file. If you need historical versions (documents you've been editing for months), you either need to export them separately or use a manual method.

Method 2: rclone (Power Users)

rclone is an open-source command-line tool that connects to over 70 cloud storage providers and syncs, copies, or moves files between any two of them. It's the most capable free migration tool available.

Why rclone is the best option for large migrations:

Setup:

  1. Install rclone: brew install rclone (Mac) or download from rclone.org
  2. Configure your source provider: rclone config → follow the interactive setup for your source
  3. Configure your destination provider: add a second remote
  4. Copy files: rclone copy source:/ destination:/ --progress

Supported major providers: Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, iCloud (via WebDAV), pCloud, Backblaze B2, Amazon S3, Proton Drive, Sync.com (via WebDAV), Koofr, Filen, and dozens more.

For large migrations (100GB+): Run rclone on a cloud VM (a $5/month Hetzner or DigitalOcean instance works) rather than your home connection. This gives you datacenter-speed transfers and keeps your home internet free.

Sample rclone command for Google Drive to pCloud:

rclone copy gdrive:/ pcloud:Migration/ --progress --transfers=16 --checkers=32

rclone's --transfers flag controls parallel file transfers. 16 is reasonable for most connections. Increase to 32-64 for very fast connections.

Method 3: Third-Party Transfer Services

If you don't want to use the command line, paid services handle provider-to-provider migration through a web interface.

MultCloud: Connects 40+ cloud services. Offers scheduled sync (migrate now, keep the two services in sync during a transition period) and one-time transfer. Free tier allows 5GB of transfer per month; paid plans have unlimited transfer. Better-known and more polished than the alternatives.

CloudFuze: More enterprise-focused, but has consumer plans. Specializes in migrations from Box, Dropbox, and Google Workspace.

Important: These services require OAuth access to both your source and destination accounts. You are granting a third party the ability to read all your files during transfer. Review the provider's privacy policy. For sensitive documents, rclone or direct migration is preferable.

Method 4: Manual Download and Re-Upload

The most control, highest bandwidth cost, most reliable for edge cases.

When to use this method:

Steps:

  1. Download your files from the current provider to an external hard drive (don't use your primary drive — you want to keep the downloaded copy until migration is verified)
  2. Upload from the external drive to your new provider
  3. Verify file counts match
  4. Keep the external drive copy until you've used the new service for 30+ days

The bandwidth reality: Downloading 500GB on a 100 Mbps connection takes ~11 hours. Re-uploading at typical consumer upload speeds (25-50 Mbps) takes 22-44 hours. Plan around your internet connection and consider running the upload overnight.

Migrating Photos Specifically

Photo libraries are the most complex migration due to metadata (EXIF data, album structure, GPS tags, captions) and the risk of losing organization.

Google Photos → iCloud Photos:

  1. Use Google Takeout to export (google.com/takeout → select Google Photos)
  2. Google Takeout produces .zip archives with your photos and a JSON file per photo containing metadata (dates, descriptions, GPS)
  3. Import the photos into iCloud Photos using the macOS Photos app
  4. Note: Google Takeout JSON metadata isn't automatically imported into iCloud. GPS data embedded in the photo files (EXIF) will transfer correctly; Google-added captions and album organization will not.

iCloud Photos → Google Photos:

  1. On Mac: Photos app → File → Export → Export Unmodified Originals
  2. This exports photos with full EXIF metadata intact
  3. Upload to Google Photos via the web uploader or Google Photos desktop app
  4. Album structure will not transfer — you'll need to recreate albums manually

iCloud Photos → Local backup: The only reliable way to export the full iCloud library with metadata is via the macOS Photos app. You cannot bulk-download from icloud.com with metadata intact.

Avoiding duplicate detection issues: Most cloud photo services detect duplicate files using content hashes. If you're migrating from a service that modified your files (added watermarks, recompressed, etc.), you may get duplicates. Export originals whenever possible.

Version History: What Transfers and What Doesn't

Nothing transfers version history automatically. When you migrate to a new provider, you start fresh — only the current version of each file is transferred.

If you need version history, your options are:

  1. Keep the old account active (in a read-only state if possible) for the remaining version history period
  2. Export specific version histories manually from the source provider before migrating
  3. Accept the loss and use the migration as a clean start point

For Dropbox specifically: Dropbox's web interface lets you access previous versions under "Version history" for each file. If you need specific prior versions, export them separately before migrating.

Sharing Links Will Break

Every sharing link you've created in the old service points to files stored there. When you delete or cancel the old account, those links return 404 errors.

There is no automatic redirect from old sharing links to new ones. You must:

  1. Audit sharing links you've distributed (check your email, Slack, documents for links)
  2. Create equivalent sharing links in the new service
  3. Distribute the new links before the old service goes dark
  4. Accept that any links distributed publicly (social media, websites, docs you don't control) will break permanently

If you run a business or have shared links embedded in websites, prioritize this before canceling.

The Parallel Running Checklist

Don't cancel your old service until you've confirmed everything works in the new one. Run both simultaneously for at least 2-4 weeks:

Timing Your Cancellation

Cancel your old subscription after the next billing date, not immediately after migration. This costs you one more month but gives you a safety net if you discover something was missed. Most services offer a grace period where you can still access files after cancellation — check the specific policy before you cancel.

For annual subscriptions: Many providers offer prorated refunds within the first 30 days. Check refund policy before migration if you're on an annual plan with significant time remaining.

Provider-Specific Exit Notes

Google Drive: Use Google Takeout (google.com/takeout) for a complete export. Takeout exports Google Docs/Sheets/Slides as .docx/.xlsx/.pptx with reasonable fidelity. Complex formatting in Sheets or Docs may not survive the conversion perfectly.

Dropbox: Sync to desktop first (ensure all files are downloaded locally), then copy the Dropbox folder to your new provider's sync folder. This is often simpler than using API-based migration.

iCloud Drive: Enable "Download Now" on all iCloud Drive files on your Mac before migrating. Files stored as "iCloud only" (with the cloud icon) are not downloaded locally yet.

OneDrive: Download files via the Windows Explorer sync client or use rclone with the OneDrive backend.

Backblaze: Backblaze Personal Backup doesn't have a download-all feature from the web interface. Use the "Restore" function (with the zip restore option) to download your full backup, or use Backblaze's physical media restore if you have a very large library.

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