Cloud storage is essential to the success of any modern business, allowing team members to safely access company files from anywhere, and giving your organization a secure place to store important data free of prying eyes. If your business has made the jump to cloud storage, you might be wondering whether Google Drive or OneDrive is better for storing data. It’s a question as hotly contested as the age-old Beatles vs. Stones debate, with industry experts coming down on both sides of the argument. Both G Suite and OneDrive have their own unique features and benefits that can be useful for businesses, but only one can reign supreme as the superior cloud storage platform.
Security: The integrity of your business data
The ability to store your files in a secure environment is the most important element in deciding which cloud storage platform is going to work best for you. The ideal platform will guarantee the security and integrity of your data, protecting it from both malicious actors and data loss while still easily allowing trusted employees to access important files.
Google Drive goes above and beyond what most other cloud storage providers offer, doing more than simply encrypting files in transit and at rest. Drive offers users the ability to protect accounts through 2-step verification (2SV), which can be easily implemented by employees or administrators, who have the option to make 2SV mandatory for all users. Businesses can also take advantage of Google’s mighty security infrastructure, which not only covers companies by keeping infiltrators out by any means necessary but is also used by Google to protect its own organizational data. The version history of Docs, Sheets, and Slides files are also available to Drive users, allowing you to see what was changed and by who, and gives you the ability to roll back documents to their previous state.
OneDrive’s security infrastructure is significantly less impressive than Google Drive’s. OneDrive only recently implemented file encryption for files that are at rest, previously only doing so for business-level subscribers. 2SV is available to OneDrive users, but only after administrators have enabled the feature. OneDrive also offers a similar feature to Drive’s version history, letting users see what changes have been made to documents and by who, allowing for quick rollbacks to previous versions of documents.
File Limits: How much data can you store on G Suite and OnDrive?
If your business has fully embraced a cloud-based work environment, it’s important that you’re reliably able to store all of your files, photos, and videos without running into file limits. Thankfully, both the Business and Enterprise editions of G Suite offer unlimited space to businesses with more than five employees (1TB for those under five), easing your worries about file limits. G Suite’s Basic subscription offers 30GB per user.
OneDrive offers a number of different plans for businesses, including OneDrive for Business Plan 1, which offers 1TB to each user, and OneDrive for Business Plan 2, which gives users unlimited space. The drawback to this is that MS Office applications like Word and Excel are not bundled with these plans. Office 365 Business Premium, which features the entire lineup of Office applications, offers unlimited storage for up to 300 users.
Cost: Current and future costs, ease of prediction for prices
Cost is every bit as important as features like security and storage - after all, you’re running a business. G Suite has made its pricing structure simple for G Suite plans: $6/user/month for G Suite Basic Edition, $12/user/month for G Suite Business Edition, and $25/user/month for G Suite Enterprise Edition. G Suite’s prices have remained extremely consistent since the platform’s inception, changing just once back in April 2019 and seeing incremental rises for Basic and Business Editions. G Suite’s consistency makes it easy for your business to predict future costs, allowing you to easily plan for the future.
Pricing structures for Microsoft Office 365 are much more complicated. Plans are broken down into Personal, Business, and Enterprise levels. Office 365 Business editions are as follows: $5/user/month for Office 365 Business Essentials, $12.50/user/month for Office 365 Business Premium, and $20/user/month for Microsoft 365 Business. All business plans have similar features and benefits, with the exception of advanced security and device management, which are exclusive to Microsoft 365 Business. Other plans are also available to Microsoft users, including Office 365 E3 ($20/user/month) and Office 365 E5 ($35/user/month).
No Learning Curve
Most younger employees are starting their careers with a background in G Suite, having used Google’s educational products in at least one of their school experiences. Google’s strategy of making its products free in the education sector has paid off in dividends by arming the next generation with familiarity with G Suite. This means that there is almost no learning curve - at least for G Suite and Google Drive - when a new employee onboards with your company.
Verdict
There’s simply no denying the advantages of using Google Drive over OneDrive. Google Drive offers impenetrable security backed up by the might of Google’s impressive infrastructure, unlimited storage for Business and Enterprise level users, and easily digestible pricing structures that are easy to predict for businesses. With so many benefits to using Google Drive for business, it’s clear why organizations around the world continue to choose G Suite over Microsoft Office 365 for their file storage needs.
UpCurve Cloud can help your business stand apart from the competition and harness the power of Google Drive, offering your team unlimited storage and unmatched cloud security. To find out more about how our expert team can seamlessly implement and integrate cloud-based solutions like G Suite and Google Drive into your workplace, contact us today.
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