IDrive vs Livedrive (2026): which should you pick?
As of Nov 12, 2026, IDrive grades higher than Livedrive: 3.2 against 2.2 out of 4.0.
Checked Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 · graded Oct 18, 2026 and Nov 12, 2026 by ToolGPA
IDrive grades higher on value for money, the free plan, features and platforms. They get the same grade on ease of use.
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
IDrive
Cloud backup for many devices in one account, with a sync folder
Livedrive
Unlimited PC and Mac backup with an online Briefcase folder
Which one is for you
Pick IDrive if
- Fits if your household has several computers and phones to back up in one account
- Works for small businesses backing up servers, NAS boxes and laptops together
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you mainly want Dropbox-style sync, as Cloud Drive is a separate service you have to switch on
- Pricey if you budget on the advertised price, since the 30% off covers the first year only and not app sign-ups
- Tight if you're staying free, as 10 GB won't hold a whole computer
- Watch out: going over your storage costs $0.25 per GB a month on Personal and $0.50 on Team and Business
- Watch out: Mini is yearly only, for new sign-ups and marked limited time, and server backup is $5 a server a month below Business
Pick Livedrive if
- Fits if you have a single PC or Mac and want it backed up with no limits
- Works for someone who wants Briefcase for access from other devices
Look elsewhere if
- Skip it if you have several computers: Backup covers one PC or Mac user
- Skip it if you want a free plan, as there is none and the trial's length isn't stated
- Watch out: Briefcase is a separate product, 2 TB alone and 5 TB in the Pro Suite
- Watch out: prices are in pounds by default and VAT is added on top
How we grade them
| 3.2GPAIDriveVery good | 2.2GPALivedriveFair | |
|---|---|---|
| Value for money | AGraded as backup. Mini is $0.25 a month for 100 GB billed yearly, far under the cheapest quarter of this category, and 500 GB is $0.83. Personal is $9.99 a month for 5 TB once the first-year discount ends. Go over your storage, though, and it's $0.25 per GB a month. | CBackup is GBP 7.69 a month, near $9.70, in the dearer quarter of the category ($9.99 and up) but not its dearest tenth. |
| Free plan and trial | CIDrive Basic is free with 10 GB and no credit card. That holds your documents, but a computer's worth of photos will go straight past it, so it's a cap most people will hit. | DA free trial is offered on each plan with no length stated, and no free plan. |
| Features | BGraded as backup, it does the whole job: many devices in one account, continuous backup, 30 versions of each file, snapshots, a private encryption key and drives sent by post for big restores. Cloud Drive adds sync, sharing and editing in the browser. | CBackup for one computer and a Briefcase folder, but a second computer or NAS is extra and Briefcase has its own 2 TB limit. |
| Ease of use | BNo store rating on record. Install the app, pick what to back up, and it carries on by itself as files change. The one catch is that Cloud Drive sync is a separate service you have to switch on. | BNo store rating on record, but you install it and it starts backing up. |
| Platforms and integrations | AWeb, Windows, Mac, Linux, iPhone and Android, plus Synology and QNAP NAS apps, and add-ons that back up Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Salesforce, Dropbox and Box. That covers every device type. | BWeb, Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android apps, with no integrations listed. |
| Best for | backing up lots of devices in one account | backing up one PC or Mac with unlimited space |
The GPA is the average of the five grades: an A is 4 points, an F is none. The full reasons are on each tool's page: IDrive and Livedrive. How we grade
Price against what you get
IDrive starts at $0.25 a month and scores 3.3 out of 4 on features, ease of use and platforms. Livedrive starts at about $8.59 a month and scores 2.7.
IDrive scores higher and starts $8.34 a month lower. Of the other file storage and sync services on the chart, none scores higher than IDrive for less, and 11 score higher than Livedrive for less.
Features, ease of use and platforms, averaged
What paid plans start at, a month (each step along is roughly double) →
- The best score at each price
- Has a free plan
- No free plan
Where they differ
At a glance
| IDrive | Livedrive | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free trial |
| Starts at | $0.25 per month for 100 GB, billed annually (Mini) | £7.69 per month (Backup), £76.90 billed annually |
| Free plan | IDrive Basic: 10 GB of backup storage, no credit card required. Add-ons such as cloud app backup can be bought on top of it. | None |
| Free trial | None listed | Free trial offered on each plan; length not stated on the page |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Made by | IDrive Inc. | Livedrive Internet Ltd. |
| Price read from | idrive.com | livedrive.com |
| Checked | Oct 18, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 |
Worth knowing
IDrive
- Advertised prices are 30% off the first year only, and the discount is not available when signing up from the mobile apps.
- Cloud Drive sync is a separate service that has to be activated; it is distinct from cloud backup.
- Going over the storage limit costs $0.25 per GB a month on Personal and $0.50 per GB on Team and Business.
- Server backup is a $5 per server a month add-on on Mini, Personal and Team, and is part of Business.
Livedrive
- Prices are shown in pounds by default; the page offers a currency switch whose US dollar figures could not be read here.
- Backup covers one PC or Mac user account; a second computer or a NAS drive is an extra purchase.
- Briefcase is a separate product with its own storage limit: 2 TB alone, 5 TB in the Pro Suite.
- Pricing notes say the VAT rate of your jurisdiction applies on top of the displayed amounts.
Key features
IDrive
- Many devices in one account
- Back up PCs, Macs, Linux machines, iPhones, iPads, Android devices and external or NAS drives into one account, with continuous backup of changed files.
- Cloud Drive sync and sharing
- Sync folders across linked devices in real time, share files with view or edit permissions, and edit Office files and PDFs in the browser.
- Snapshots and versioning
- Keeps up to 30 previous versions of every backed-up file, with snapshots for point-in-time recovery and a 30-day trash for deleted files.
- Private-key encryption
- Files are encrypted with 256-bit AES, optionally with a key you define that IDrive says is not stored on its servers.
- IDrive Express shipping
- Back up or restore bulk data by mail on a physical drive: free once a year on Personal, three times a year on Team and Business, then $59.95 a request.
- Cloud app backup add-ons
- Back up Microsoft 365, Entra ID, Google Workspace, Salesforce, Dropbox and Box accounts for $20 per seat a year, with a 7-day free trial.
Livedrive
- Automatic computer backup
- Installed on a Windows or Mac computer, the software copies files such as photos, documents and videos to UK data centres.
- Version history
- The backup page says up to 30 previous versions of files are kept so an unwanted edit can be restored.
- Briefcase folder
- Files placed in the online Briefcase can be viewed or edited from computers, phones and tablets.
- Private and public sharing
- Briefcase files can be shared by a link with a username and password, or by a public link.
- Two-factor sign-in
- Accounts support two-factor authentication, and the data centres are described as ISO 27001 certified.
Plans
IDrive
Basic$0
10 GB of storage with no credit card required.
IDrive Mini$0.25
per month for 100 GB, billed annually
One user. 500 GB is $0.83 a month. Sold on yearly billing only, to new sign-ups, and the pricing page marks it "Limited time only".
IDrive Personal$9.99
per month for 5 TB, billed annually ($11.99 billed monthly)
One user, multiple computers. Advertised at $6.99 a month for the first year. 10 TB is $14.99 a month and 100 TB $99.99, billed annually.
IDrive Team$9.99
per month for up to 5 users, billed annually ($11.99 monthly)
5 computers, 5 users and 5 TB, managed from a web console. Advertised at $6.99 a month for the first year; 10 users and 10 TB is $19.99 a month.
IDrive Business$19.99
per month for 500 GB, billed annually
Unlimited users, computers, servers and NAS devices. Advertised at $13.99 a month the first year; 1.25 TB is $49.99 a month, or $59.99 billed monthly.
Livedrive
Backup£7.69
per month, 1 PC or Mac user (£76.90 billed annually)
Unlimited cloud backup storage for one computer user account. Amounts exclude VAT where it applies.
Briefcase£11.99
per month (£119.90 billed annually)
2 TB of online folder storage to access, edit and share from any device, with tablet and mobile backup.
Pro Suite£17.59
per month (£175.90 billed annually)
Backup plus Briefcase: backup for 5 PC or Mac users and 5 TB of Briefcase storage.
Ways to pay less
IDrive
- Other savings
30% off the first year
New sign-ups on yearly Personal, Team and Business plans pay 30% less for the first year, such as $6.99 instead of $9.99 a month for Personal 5 TB. Standard pricing applies from the second year.
- Other savings
50% off the first year of a 2-year plan
Two-year plans take 50% off the first year: Personal 5 TB is $179.82 for 2 years instead of $239.76.
- Annual discount
Lower price with yearly billing
Personal and Team 5 TB cost $9.99 a month billed yearly against $11.99 billed monthly, a saving of about 17%.
- Education
50% off for students and schools
Students, educational institutions and anyone with a valid education email address can get Personal or Business at half price, as a limited-period offer.
Livedrive
- Annual discount
Save 16% with annual billing
Choosing annual instead of monthly billing is advertised on the pricing page as saving 16%.
Common questions
Which is cheaper, IDrive or Livedrive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, IDrive is cheaper to start with: $0.25 a month, against about $8.59 a month for Livedrive. IDrive starts at $0.25 per month for 100 GB, billed annually (Mini), and Livedrive starts at £7.69 per month (Backup), £76.90 billed annually.
Which has a free plan, IDrive or Livedrive?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only IDrive has a free plan. Livedrive does not, though it has a free trial.
Which platforms do IDrive and Livedrive run on?
As of Nov 12, 2026, only IDrive lists a Linux app. Both list a web app and macOS, Windows, iOS and Android apps. A platform missing from a listing is one its maker's pages did not mention.
More comparisons
How this page was made
- The verdict at the top follows a fixed rule. When both tools are in the same category and either is in our top three for it, the verdict follows that ranking: the higher-placed tool is our pick. The top three weigh who each tool suits as well as its grades, so a pick can go against the GPA. Otherwise the page does not pick one and says which grades higher: the higher GPA first; on a tie, the one with a free plan, then the one that starts cheaper in dollars a month, counted the same way for both; if they are still level, what the choice depends on.
- The grades are our own, from each tool’s review or report card. The GPA is their average.
- Prices, plans and platforms come from each tool’s listing. The table above says where each price was read and when.
- The differences and the answers to the questions are worked out from those listings.