IDrive vs Synology C2 (2026): which should you pick?

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 Synology C2 if

• Fits if you own a Synology NAS and want an offsite copy
• Works for teams that want S3 object storage at a flat per-terabyte rate

Look elsewhere if

• Not for you if you want a consumer file sync app, because C2 is built around Synology NAS and S3 workloads
• Skip it if you don't own Synology hardware or an S3 tool to connect
• Watch out: prices exclude VAT, which is added at checkout
• Tight if you want deduplication or custom rotation, which need the Advanced plan of C2 Storage for Hyper Backup
• Watch out: OneStorage pricing is shown only by a capacity calculator

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.

Synology C2

• C2 Storage is designed for Synology NAS; it is not a general-purpose consumer file sync app.
• The OneStorage price is shown only by a capacity calculator, so no figure was readable; $7.99 per TB is the Object Storage rate on its page.
• Prices exclude VAT, which is added at checkout by billing address.
• Deduplication and custom rotation need the Advanced plan of C2 Storage for Hyper Backup.

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.

Synology C2

C2 Storage for Hyper Backup

Backs up Synology NAS data with versioning, deduplication on the Advanced plan and client-side AES-256 encryption.

Hybrid Share

Connects branch-office NAS devices to central cloud storage, streaming requested files and caching frequent ones locally.

C2 Object Storage

S3-compatible API with versioning and Object Lock, in EU and US data centers, with 11 nines of durability.

Web portal restore

Browse and download backed-up files from a browser, or restore with Hyper Backup Explorer on Windows, Mac and Linux.

C2 Express Box

A physical device for moving the first large batch of data into C2; options are available by contacting Synology.

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.

Synology C2

• C2 Object Storage$7.99

  per TB / month

  S3-compatible storage with free retrieval, no API or deletion fees and no minimum storage duration.

• C2 OneStorageCustom

  One capacity plan covering Hyper Backup, Hybrid Share, Object Storage and Surveillance365; price shown by a calculator.

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.

Synology C2

No public discounts listed.