MEGA vs Proton Drive
Price, platforms and features side by side. The table says where each price was read and when.
MEGA
Zero-knowledge encrypted cloud storage with a 20 GB free plan
Proton Drive
End-to-end encrypted cloud storage from the maker of Proton Mail
Where they differ
- MEGA starts at €3.33 per month, charged yearly. Proton Drive starts at $3.99 per month, billed yearly.
- Only MEGA lists a Linux app.
- Only MEGA lists a browser extension.
- Proton Drive is open source, according to its own site.
- MEGA also covers video calls.
- Proton Drive also covers documents and spreadsheets.
At a glance
| MEGA | Proton Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free plan | Free plan |
| Starts at | €3.33 per month, charged yearly | $3.99 per month, billed yearly |
| Free plan | 20 GB of storage with a limited transfer quota. Calls are capped at 1 hour and 100 participants, and Rewind is view-only. | Proton Free: 5 GB of end-to-end encrypted storage for files, photos and documents, including the online document and spreadsheet editor. |
| Free trial | None listed | None listed |
| Web | ||
| macOS | ||
| Windows | ||
| Linux | ||
| iOS | ||
| Android | ||
| Browser extension | ||
| Made by | MEGA | Proton AG |
| Price read from | mega.io | proton.me |
| Checked | Oct 5, 2026 | Oct 5, 2026 |
Who each one suits
MEGA
- People who want encrypted storage with a 20 GB free tier
- Linux users: official packages cover Debian, Ubuntu, Fedora, Arch and others
- Large personal archives, with individual plans of up to 20 TB
Proton Drive
- People who want encrypted storage under Swiss jurisdiction
- Proton Mail, VPN or Pass users who can bundle storage with Unlimited
- Private collaboration on documents and spreadsheets
Worth knowing
MEGA
- Prices are set and charged in euros; amounts shown in other currencies on the site are estimates.
- Downloads count against a transfer quota, which is limited on the free plan and 1 TB a month on Pro Lite.
- Business and Pro Flexi are usage-based, starting from €15.00 per month for a 3 TB base. Business needs at least 3 users.
- The Essential plan is shown only with yearly charging on the pricing page.
Proton Drive
- The free plan is limited to 5 GB.
- Desktop sync apps exist for Windows and macOS only; Linux users get a command-line client and the web app.
- The lowest prices require yearly billing. Drive Plus costs $4.99 a month when billed monthly.
- Individual storage above 200 GB comes only through the Unlimited, Duo and Family bundles, which include other Proton products.
Key features
MEGA
- Zero-knowledge encryption
- Data is encrypted before it leaves the device, and MEGA says only the owner and the people they authorize hold the keys needed to read it.
- Sync and backup
- The desktop app for Windows, macOS and Linux syncs folders and backs up a computer to MEGA, replicating changes as they happen.
- Sharing with link controls
- Files and folders can be shared with people who have no MEGA account, with read-only or full access. Links can carry a password or an expiry date.
- File versioning and Rewind
- Every plan keeps up to 100 versions of a file. Rewind goes back up to 60 days on paid plans and is view-only for up to 30 days on the free plan.
- Chat and meetings
- Private messaging and video calls are built in. Free accounts are limited to 1-hour calls with up to 100 participants; paid plans remove both limits.
- Bundled VPN, passwords and S4
- Paid plans include MEGA VPN and the MEGA Pass password manager, and plans from Pro Lite up add S3-compatible object storage.
Proton Drive
- End-to-end encryption
- Files are encrypted before they are uploaded. Proton states that only the owner and the people they share with can open them, and that Proton itself cannot.
- Sharing controls
- Files, photos, documents and spreadsheets are shared by link, with password protection, expiry dates and the ability to revoke access at any time.
- Proton Docs and Sheets
- Encrypted document and spreadsheet editors with real-time collaboration are built into Drive, and the editor is included on the free plan.
- Photo backup
- The mobile apps back up photos automatically and support collaborative albums for sharing them.
- Desktop sync
- Desktop apps for Windows and macOS sync files between the computer and the cloud. A command-line client is offered for Linux, macOS and Windows.
- Long version history
- Paid plans from Drive Plus allow previous versions of a file to be recovered for up to 10 years.
Plans
MEGA
Free€0
20 GB of storage, a limited transfer quota, 100 file versions and view-only Rewind for up to 30 days.
Essential€3.33
per month, charged yearly
200 GB of storage and 2.4 TB of transfer over the year, with MEGA VPN, MEGA Pass and unrestricted chat and meetings.
Pro Lite€4.99
per month, or €5.00 per month charged yearly
750 GB of storage and 1 TB of transfer a month, plus object storage, MEGA VPN and MEGA Pass.
Pro I€9.99
per month, or €8.33 per month charged yearly
3 TB of storage and 3 TB of transfer a month, plus object storage, MEGA VPN and MEGA Pass.
Pro II€19.99
per month, or €16.67 per month charged yearly
10 TB of storage and 10 TB of transfer a month, with the same extras as Pro I.
Pro III€29.99
per month, or €25.00 per month charged yearly
20 TB of storage and 20 TB of transfer a month, with the same extras as Pro I.
Proton Drive
Proton Free$0
5 GB of storage for files, photos and documents, with the online document and spreadsheet editor.
Drive Plus$3.99
per month, billed yearly at $47.88 ($4.99 billed monthly)
200 GB of storage and 10 years to recover previous file versions.
Proton Unlimited$9.99
per month, billed yearly at $119.88 ($12.99 billed monthly)
500 GB of storage plus Proton VPN, Proton Mail, Proton Calendar and Proton Pass.
Proton Duo$14.99
per month, billed yearly at $179.88 ($19.99 billed monthly)
2 TB of storage for up to 2 users, with everything in Unlimited and advanced account protection.
Proton Family$23.99
per month, billed yearly ($29.99 billed monthly)
3 TB of storage for up to 6 users, with the Proton premium products that are included in Duo.
Drive Professional$7.99
per user / month, billed yearly ($9.99 billed monthly)
Team plan with 1 TB per user, user access management, and sync across devices and users.
Ways to pay less
MEGA
- Annual discount
Save up to 17% with yearly billing
MEGA's pricing page advertises up to 17% off for yearly billing: Pro I drops from €9.99 to €8.33 a month, Pro II from €19.99 to €16.67 and Pro III from €29.99 to €25.00.
Proton Drive
- Annual discount
20% to 25% off with yearly billing
Billed yearly, Drive Plus is $3.99 a month instead of $4.99 (20% off), Proton Unlimited is $9.99 instead of $12.99 (23% off) and Proton Duo is $14.99 instead of $19.99 (25% off).
