Drive, Dropbox or WeTransfer? They are not the same tool.
Every photographer eventually runs this comparison and most run it wrong, because two of the three are storage products and one is a delivery product. They fail in different places, they cost you in different currencies, and the right answer depends less on price than on who is doing the clicking at the other end.
Storage and delivery are different products
Drive and Dropbox are shelves. You put a file on the shelf, it stays there, it counts against your quota until you take it off, and you share it by granting someone access to a location. Access is a permission, and permissions have settings, and settings are where client deliveries go wrong.
A transfer tool is a courier. You hand it a parcel, it carries it, it hands it over, and then it is gone. There is no permission to misconfigure because there is no location, only a link with an expiry on it.
Almost every delivery complaint traces back to using the shelf as a courier. "It says I need access" is a permission problem. "I deleted it from my Drive and now the client cannot get it" is a location problem. Neither can happen with a courier.
What each one gives you free
Published figures, checked August 2026:
| Service | Free ceiling | Shape | Recipient needs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Google Drive | 15 GB storage, shared with Gmail and Photos | Storage | Often a Google account |
| Dropbox Basic | 2 GB storage | Storage | Nothing, for a shared link |
| WeTransfer free | 3 GB per transfer, 3 GB and 10 transfers per 30 days | Delivery | Nothing |
| Kepla Free File Transfer | 10 GB per transfer, no monthly cap | Delivery | Nothing |
The Drive number reads best and behaves worst, because 15 GB is shared with an inbox that has been filling since 2011. Check what is actually free before you plan a delivery around it.
The part that decides it
Price is not what makes a delivery method good or bad. The number of decisions your client has to make is.
Count them. A Drive folder share: open the link, discover you are signed into the wrong Google account, request access, wait for the photographer to approve it, sign in again, select all, download, find the ZIP. That is six or seven steps with two places to give up, and the giving up happens silently. You find out three days later when they ask where the photos are.
A transfer link: open the link, press the button. Two steps, no account, nothing to get wrong. This is the entire reason WeTransfer became a verb despite the limits.
The other friction nobody counts is yours. Setting up a shared folder, checking the permissions, and remembering not to reorganise your Drive for the next month is work. A link that expires on its own is work that ends.
What to actually use
Split it by job, not by brand:
- Delivering a finished gallery to a client: a transfer tool. One link, no account, expires by itself. If the set is over 3 GB, which any full wedding is, Kepla Free File Transfer takes 10 GB free with no monthly cap.
- Working with a second shooter or an editor: Dropbox or Drive. You want a persistent shared location that both of you can write to, which is exactly what storage is for.
- Your own archive: neither. Consumer cloud storage is not a backup strategy. Two local copies and one offsite is.
- Sending a handful of social crops: whatever is fastest. It does not matter at that size.
Most photographers need both a shelf and a courier. The mistake is buying one and asking it to do both jobs.
FAQ
Is Google Drive good for sending photos to clients?
It works, but it is storage rather than delivery. The files count against your 15 GB until you delete them, and recipients often hit a permissions prompt or need a Google account, which is where client deliveries stall.
Is Dropbox or WeTransfer better for photographers?
For delivering a finished gallery, a transfer tool wins because the client only clicks once and the link expires on its own. For collaborating with a second shooter or editor, Dropbox wins because you want a persistent shared folder.
How much can I send free on each service?
Checked August 2026: Google Drive gives 15 GB of storage shared with Gmail, Dropbox Basic gives 2 GB, WeTransfer free allows 3 GB per transfer within a 3 GB and 10 transfer rolling monthly cap, and Kepla Free File Transfer allows 10 GB per transfer with no monthly cap.
Do clients need an account to download?
Not for a transfer link or a Dropbox shared link. Google Drive frequently asks for a Google sign in or an access request depending on how the folder is shared.
Should I use cloud storage as my photo backup?
No. Consumer cloud storage is convenience, not a backup strategy. Keep two local copies and one offsite copy, and treat Drive or Dropbox as neither of the three.
Never cull alone at 1 AM again.
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