I’m reworking my backup setup and I’m stuck between Backblaze and Dropbox. I need reliable cloud storage for large files, automatic backups, and easy file recovery across multiple devices. If you’ve used either (or both), which would you pick and why—especially for long‑term backup, restore speed, and overall cost?
Backblaze vs Dropbox: What Actually Makes Sense To Use For What
Short version: they are built for totally different jobs, and that’s where most confusion comes from.
Think of it like this:
- Dropbox is your working desk.
- Backblaze is the fireproof safe in the basement.
You can shove everything on your desk into the safe, and you can try to use the safe like a desk, but both will make your life more annoying than it needs to be.
What Dropbox Is Actually Good At
If you are constantly opening, editing, sharing, and re-editing files, Dropbox fits that use case really well.
Stuff it’s good for in normal day-to-day use:
- Keeping the same folder available on your laptop, desktop, phone, etc.
- Working on documents that change all the time (design files, code, marketing docs, etc.).
- Sharing stuff with other people, commenting, sending links instead of giant attachments.
- Letting a team work on the same set of files without emailing revisions around.
The mental model:
Dropbox is where your currently active work lives. It is “live storage,” not really “oh no I screwed up my computer” storage.
What Backblaze Is Actually Good At
Backblaze is the quiet background process that doesn’t care about your productivity “flow.” It just copies… everything.
Typical use:
- Constant, automatic backup of your whole machine.
- Includes system files, user folders, random stuff buried deep in
/whatever/folder/you/forgot. - Can include external drives, depending on your setup.
- Designed for the “my computer died / got stolen / SSD just nuked itself” type disasters.
The mental model:
Backblaze is insurance. You do not work out of it. You hope you never need it, but you are very glad it’s there when things explode.
Do You Need Both?
Honestly, in a lot of setups, yes.
I use this combination:
- Dropbox for anything I’m actively touching: docs, projects, PDFs I open weekly, shared folders with clients.
- Backblaze to silently back up everything, including stuff that never goes in Dropbox: old archives, big photo libraries, weird little config files I forget exist until they break.
If you only pick one, you’re kind of forcing a tool to do a job it wasn’t built for:
-
Using Dropbox as your only “backup”?
Ok until you delete a folder, empty the trash months later, and only then realize you still needed it. -
Using Backblaze as your daily file browser?
Technically possible, but painful. It’s just not meant to be a normal “open, edit, save, repeat” workspace.
Making Backblaze + Dropbox Less Annoying To Use Together
The part that gets messy: cloud storage interfaces.
Web UIs are fine for the occasional download, but living in them every day is torture.
What helped me a ton was using a tool that turns cloud storage into something that behaves like a local drive.
One example is CloudMounter:
What it does in practice:
- Lets you connect Backblaze B2 and Dropbox.
- Mounts them so they show up like another drive in Finder or File Explorer.
- You can drag and drop, rename, sort, and open files like they’re regular folders on your machine.
- No need to jump to a browser, log in, click through directories, download, re-upload, etc.
So instead of:
- Open browser
- Log in
- Navigate 6 folders deep
- Download
- Edit
- Re-upload
You just:
- Open Finder / File Explorer
- Click into the mounted drive
- Edit like any local file
That setup is especially useful with Backblaze B2, which is more “raw” than consumer cloud services. Mounting it as a drive makes it feel much less like some mysterious IT thing and more like “just another disk.”
Visual Example
Here’s roughly what it ends up looking like on my machine:
Cloud stuff (Backblaze, Dropbox, etc.) sits next to my physical drives, and I don’t have to mentally switch modes between “local” and “cloud” all the time. I just use one file manager and get on with life.
TL;DR
-
Use Dropbox if you want:
- Sync across devices
- Easy sharing and collaboration
- A “work-in-progress” workspace
-
Use Backblaze if you want:
- Automatic, full-computer backups
- Protection from hardware failure, theft, or “I nuked my OS” moments
-
Use both if:
- You want convenient day-to-day file access
- Plus an “everything, including the stuff you forgot about” safety net
- Bonus points if you mount them locally with something like CloudMounter so you stop living in browser tabs
That combo has been the least annoying in my own setup.
4 Likes
If your goal is backups, and you’re choosing Backblaze vs Dropbox, you’re basically comparing a smoke alarm to a microwave. Both live in your house, only one is going to help when the wiring catches fire.
I’ll disagree slightly with @mikeappsreviewer on one thing: you can force Dropbox into being a sort-of backup if you’re very disciplined with version history and don’t mind paying more. But the moment you forget to put something in the Dropbox folder, it’s not backed up. That’s the killer.
Here’s how I’d frame it for what you said you need:
1. “Reliable cloud storage for large files”
- Dropbox
- Great if those large files are active projects you’re opening often.
- Sync client is solid, but big libraries (video, RAW photos) can be annoying and chew through local space unless you micromanage selective sync.
- Backblaze Personal Backup
- Doesn’t really care what the files are, it just slurps them up.
- Better for giant piles of stuff you don’t want to babysit.
- If you’re thinking Backblaze B2 (their object storage):
- Cheaper long term than Dropbox for big archives.
- Not as friendly without a tool to mount it.
This is where something like CloudMounter is actually useful: it turns Backblaze B2 or Dropbox into a “normal” drive, so those big files feel local without burning SSD space.
2. “Automatic backups”
This is where Dropbox really falls down as a true backup:
- Dropbox
- Sync, not backup.
- If you delete or corrupt a file, it syncs the deletion/corruption to all devices.
- Version history helps, but only for stuff that lives in the Dropbox folder and only within the retention window.
- Backblaze
- Designed for “set it and forget it.”
- Backs up your whole machine in the background, including folders you’d never remember to put in Dropbox.
- Strong fit for your “automatic” requirement.
If automatic backup is non‑negotiable, Backblaze wins that part by a mile.
3. “Easy file recovery across multiple devices”
This is the one area where I’ll give Dropbox more credit than some people do:
- Dropbox
- Super convenient if you want to grab current files from any device.
- Mobile and desktop experience is better for day‑to‑day access.
- Backblaze
- Recovery is more “I restore stuff when disaster happens” than “I browse things all day.”
- Fine for “my laptop died” or “I need that one old folder.”
- Less smooth for constant cross‑device browsing.
If “easy recovery” in your head means “I just want to get my active work anywhere,” Dropbox is nicer.
If it means “I want to know that if my laptop is stolen, I can restore everything,” Backblaze is the one you actually need.
So what should you choose?
Given your list:
- Large files
- Automatic backups
- Multi‑device recovery
I’d do this:
- Backblaze Personal Backup for your full machine and external drives.
That covers the “oh crap” scenarios. - Dropbox only for:
- Active projects
- Stuff you need to share
- Files you constantly open across devices
- If you’re tight on budget and must pick one:
- Choose Backblaze if you care more about not losing anything.
- Choose Dropbox if your priority is collaborating and moving between devices and you’re willing to accept weaker backup.
Where CloudMounter fits in
If you end up doing a combo like:
- Dropbox for active stuff
- Backblaze B2 for archives and long‑term storage
Then CloudMounter earns its keep. It:
- Mounts Backblaze B2 and Dropbox as drives.
- Lets you browse, drag, drop, and open files like local folders.
- Helps avoid the “I’m stuck in 15 browser tabs trying to find one file” problem.
For big files especially, that “mounted drive” workflow is a lot less painful than constant downloading and re‑uploading.
If I had to translate all that into a one‑liner:
Use Backblaze for peace of mind, Dropbox for day‑to‑day sanity. For what you described, Backblaze is non‑optional, Dropbox is “nice to have.”
You’re basically trying to decide between a wrench and a fire extinguisher for “home improvement.” Both useful, not for the same job.
@mikappsreviewer and @shizuka already nailed the big picture, so I’ll just zoom in on the practical “what should I actually do with my setup?” side and disagree on a couple small points.
1. Treat Dropbox as sync first, backup only second
Yeah, people say “Dropbox isn’t a backup,” but in reality a lot of us do treat it as a soft backup layer. I do too, with rules:
-
Stuff that is:
- Actively edited
- Shared with others
- Needed on multiple devices all the time
→ Goes in Dropbox.
-
Stuff that is:
- Archival
- Huge (video, RAW photos, VMs)
- Rarely opened
→ Does not go in Dropbox. It will just eat SSD space and bandwidth, and you’ll be fighting selective sync every week.
So I slightly disagree with the idea that you need Dropbox for sanity. If you mainly work on one main computer and don’t collaborate a ton, Dropbox goes from “must have” to “nice luxury.”
2. Backblaze: only a win if you actually let it back up everything
With Backblaze Personal, people mess it up in two ways:
-
They exclude too much because they’re scared of upload bandwidth.
Result: the “backup” misses exactly the folders you forget about. -
They don’t plug in external drives regularly.
Backblaze will drop an external drive from backup if it has not been seen for a while. If your big files are on USB drives you rarely attach, this can bite you.
If your large files live on a main internal drive or an external that is connected frequently, Backblaze is perfect for you. It just chugs along and doesn’t care how big the files are, which fits your “large files + automatic” requirement way more cleanly than Dropbox.
If your big files are on a shelf of rotating external drives you plug in once every few months, Backblaze becomes less reliable as a true safety net unless you’re very disciplined about connecting them.
3. Multi device recovery: be honest about what you actually mean
People say “I want easy recovery on multiple devices” but that can mean two very different things:
-
“I want to open my current project from my laptop, desktop and maybe iPad.”
→ That’s a Dropbox problem. Sync + nice client apps. -
“If any one of my devices dies, I want to be able to restore my stuff to a new machine.”
→ That’s a Backblaze problem. Disaster recovery.
If your reality is:
- 1 main machine that does 90% of the work
- 1 secondary machine where you sometimes need some files
You do not need to mirror your entire life into Dropbox. For that, a smaller Dropbox plan with just your “active” folders plus Backblaze on the main machine is a nice balance.
4. Large files: think about your workflow, not just storage
Where both @mikappsreviewer and @shizuka are right is that large files are a pain if you’re trying to work with them directly in Backblaze. The web UI is not meant for bouncing in and out of giant video files or project archives.
If your use case is more like:
- Large files you occasionally need to access or restore
- Archival libraries (photos, video, code archives, project zips)
Then a good move is:
- Store them locally
- Let Backblaze back them up quietly
- Optionally mirror old or cold stuff to Backblaze B2 instead of keeping it on your hot SSD
This is where CloudMounter actually earns its keep in real life, not in marketing slides. If you go the B2 route, CloudMounter lets you:
- Mount Backblaze B2 like a normal drive
- Mount Dropbox the same way
- Move folders between the two with drag and drop in Finder or Explorer
- Browse backups and archives without living in multiple browser tabs
So for big files and archives, the combo “Backblaze B2 + CloudMounter” is way saner than manually uploading / downloading through a web UI.
5. So what would I pick in your shoes?
Based on your requirements:
reliable cloud storage for large files, automatic backups, and easy file recovery across multiple devices
If I had to rank:
-
Top priority: don’t lose anything ever
→ Get Backblaze Personal Backup on your main machine. Non‑negotiable if you care about real backup. -
Second: easy access on multiple devices
- If you really live on several machines all day, grab a Dropbox plan and put your active work there.
- If it’s more “sometimes I need stuff on my laptop,” a smaller Dropbox plan or even just selective sync of a few key folders is enough.
-
Large files
- Keep them local + backed up by Backblaze.
- If you start drowning in them, consider archiving older ones to Backblaze B2 and manage them with CloudMounter so they appear like a regular mounted drive.
If budget is tight and you can only choose one right now:
- Pick Backblaze if you care more about not losing data than about convenience. It actually solves the “backup” part.
- Pick Dropbox only if collaboration and hopping between devices constantly is your life, and you’re willing to accept that this is more sync than true backup.
Personally, I’d do:
- Backblaze Personal on all main computers
- Dropbox for shared and active stuff only
- CloudMounter sitting on top to make both feel like they’re just extra drives
That way, nothing important lives in only one place, and you’re not trying to bend either tool into a job it sucks at.
If you boil it down to your three needs (large files, automatic backup, multi‑device recovery), I’d structure it like this:
1. Roles: who does what in your setup
I’d actually formalize the split a bit harder than @shizuka, @nachtdromer and @mikeappsreviewer:
- Backblaze = Non‑negotiable safety net
- Entire machine, including the ugly forgotten folders.
- Disaster recovery and “I nuked my drive” protection.
- Best fit for your large files that live on internal or frequently‑connected external drives.
- Dropbox = Optional convenience layer
- Only for stuff you are actively touching.
- Documents, shared work, WIP media projects.
- Not your photo archive from 2013 or RAW video dumps.
Where I disagree slightly with them: you do not always “need both.” If you are mostly on one main computer and do almost no collaboration, Backblaze alone plus a disciplined local folder structure is a perfectly valid setup. Dropbox then becomes a quality‑of‑life add‑on, not a requirement.
2. Concrete recommendation by scenario
Scenario A: One main machine, others are secondary
- Install Backblaze Personal on the main box.
- Put only your “current projects” folder in Dropbox.
- On the side machines, sync just that Dropbox folder.
- Everything else lives locally on the main machine and is covered by Backblaze.
Result:
- You can lose any one device and recover cleanly.
- You are not paying Dropbox to sync terabytes of archives you open twice a year.
Scenario B: You jump constantly between two powerful machines
Here I’d lean more on Dropbox for your active project trees, particularly if the projects are medium‑sized (code, docs, design assets).
- Both machines run Dropbox with the same “Projects” root.
- Both also run Backblaze, so each entire system has an independent full backup.
- Archives and giant media libraries: local + Backblaze only.
You get:
- Real‑time continuity between machines.
- Plus machine‑wide restore if either one dies.
3. Large files: where the tradeoffs actually hurt
A subtle point that I think is underplayed:
- Dropbox is great until you hit multi‑hundred‑GB folders that you do open often but do not need on every device.
- At that point you live inside selective sync, which gets annoying and error‑prone.
For those cases I would:
- Keep the master copy on a single workstation.
- Let Backblaze back it up automatically.
- If you sometimes need to browse those archives like a remote drive, this is where CloudMounter shines.
4. CloudMounter in this mix
CloudMounter has been mentioned, but here is a more practical angle, plus pros/cons so it is not just praise.
What it changes:
- Mounts Backblaze B2 and Dropbox as drives in Finder / Explorer.
- Lets you move or copy folders between them using normal drag and drop.
- Makes cold storage (B2) feel like a slow external drive instead of a weird “bucket” in a web UI.
Pros:
- Single file manager view for local, Dropbox and B2.
- No constant browser hopping to fetch one file.
- Great for curating big archives: move “finished” projects from Dropbox into B2 without manual upload/download.
- Reduces the temptation to use Dropbox as a dumping ground, since you have a cleaner path to B2 archive storage.
Cons:
- It adds another app to your stack, which also means another thing to configure and trust.
- Performance depends on your connection; working directly on huge remote files can be sluggish.
- If you are not already planning to use Backblaze B2, the benefit shrinks to “nice UI over Dropbox,” which might not justify the extra cost for everyone.
So I would see CloudMounter as a power‑user tool:
- Extremely useful if you are serious about B2 as an archive tier.
- Overkill if your storage is small and lives fine in standard Dropbox + Backblaze Personal.
5. How I’d decide in your shoes, in one line per option
-
Budget for only one service right now:
Choose Backblaze. It satisfies “large files + automatic backup + disaster recovery” better than Dropbox. -
Can afford both and actively switch devices:
Use Dropbox only for active work and Backblaze for everything, then optionally add CloudMounter if you grow into B2 or hate web dashboards.
That way you are not forcing either tool into being something it is not, and your backup story stays clean instead of turning into “maybe Dropbox has it, unless I deleted it a while ago.”