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Updated July 2026 · real, multi-region App Store reviews
Head-to-head

Google Photos vs Dropbox

Google Photos 4.8★ · Free to download 75
Winner Google Photos
Dropbox 4.8★ · Free + IAP 60

Google Photos is better for general photo and video backup with AI-powered features, while Dropbox is more suited for file sharing and cross-device syncing, despite its recent issues with photo uploads and customer support.

Full reviews: Google Photos · Dropbox

Google Photos excels in automatic photo backup, AI-driven memory creation, and search capabilities, but faces criticism for app bloat, performance issues, and privacy concerns regarding full photo access. Dropbox is praised for reliable file syncing and sharing, but users report problems with photo uploads, storage management, and a lack of human customer support.

Head to head

Features & AI Capabilities edge: Google PhotosR5R11R15R20
Google Photos Google Photos users appreciate its automatic video creation, memory reminders, and powerful search functionality R5R11R20. However, some find the AI features intrusive and dislike recent UI changes like the new photo grid and lack of monthly view R15R31.
Dropbox Dropbox is valued for its core file syncing and sharing capabilities across multiple devices . Some users find the app has added too many unnecessary features they don't care about R100.
Ease of Use & Interface tieR1R6R13R15
Google Photos Google Photos is generally seen as easy to find and share photos and albums . However, recent updates have led to a 'terrible UX' for manual uploads, difficulty filtering backed-up photos, and issues with the new photo grid layout R1R6R13R15.
Dropbox Dropbox is considered easy to use for accessing files on multiple devices . However, many users find its interface awkward, confusing to navigate folder structures, and difficult to rearrange files . There are also reports of broken share link screens .
Reliability & Performance tieR3R9R10R12
Google Photos Google Photos users report significant performance issues, including the app being slow, freezing, crashing constantly, and not loading at all R9R12. There are also frequent complaints about photos not deleting, uploads failing, and albums disappearing or showing blank spaces R3R10.
Dropbox Dropbox is generally seen as reliable for backing up and synchronizing files . However, recent updates have caused glitches with photo/video uploads failing . Some users also report the app swelling in memory and basic functions like text editing failing .
Storage & Pricing tieR3R4R37R55
Google Photos Google Photos is no longer free and users feel there's little difference between paying for it and other cloud storage R3. Many users are frustrated by the app 'tricking' them into enabling backup, forcing them to buy more space, and taking up all their Google storage without an easy way to unlink R4R37R55.
Dropbox Dropbox offers a free tier but users frequently encounter pop-up warnings about being full and are forced to upgrade . Some users are dissatisfied with the cost of more memory and feel forced into expensive team plans for individual needs .
Privacy & Control tieR1R19R31R49
Google Photos Google Photos receives strong criticism for privacy concerns, with users feeling the app is 'nosy' and 'steals your privacy' R1R31R49R52. Many are frustrated that they cannot select specific photos to upload or share without granting 'full access' to their entire phone library R1R19R49R52.
Dropbox Dropbox users report issues with the app deleting personal photos and videos without consent after downgrading from a paid to a free account, or even when not syncing new content R67R75. There are also concerns about a lack of warnings for free users running out of storage .
Customer Support edge: DropboxR18R45R62R85
Google Photos Reviews for Google Photos do not directly mention customer support, but users express frustration with unresolved bugs and updates that worsen the user experience R18R45.
Dropbox Dropbox users are highly critical of its customer support, reporting no way to talk to a live tech and only getting robot responses R85R100. One user did have a positive experience with support helping restore an account R62.
Pick Google Photos if

you prioritize automatic photo backup, AI-generated memories, and powerful search capabilities for your personal photo collection R5R11.

Pick Dropbox if

you need a reliable service for syncing and sharing a wide range of files across multiple devices, and value the peace of mind of having documents and pictures safely stored .

Evidence note: Both apps have a high lifetime rating, but recent reviews for both show significant frustration with performance, UI changes, and storage management, indicating a decline in user satisfaction. Dropbox's free tier appears to generate much of its negativity due to storage limits and forced upgrades, while Google Photos' negativity stems from perceived privacy invasions and app functionality issues.

Frequently asked

Does Google Photos delete photos from my device?
Google Photos has been reported by some users to delete photos from their device, especially if backup settings are not carefully managed, leading to frustration and loss of content R16.
Can I manually upload photos to Google Photos?
Manually uploading photos to Google Photos, particularly from an iPhone, is described as a 'terrible UX' and 'borderline unusable' if you don't want to use automatic backup, as the app often tries to force full access to your photo library R1R13R19R52.
Does Dropbox delete my files if I downgrade to a free account?
Yes, some Dropbox users report that the app deleted their personal photos and files, including old memories, without consent after they downgraded from a paid account or exceeded storage limits R67R75.
Is Dropbox customer support helpful?
Dropbox customer support is largely criticized for being inaccessible, with users reporting no way to talk to a live support tech and only receiving automated responses R85R100.

What reviewers actually said

Built only from these 120 real reviews (foreign ones translated). Superscripts jump to the quote here. Apple has no per-review links, so [ref] opens that app's reviews on the App Store.

  1. [R5] Google Photos 5/5 · US Very cool!: I love how they make videos for you , very cool! keep up the great work!
  2. [R11] Google Photos 5/5 · US Awesome: Thank you for your help selecting special people, events and places and sharing with me.
  3. [R15] Google Photos 3/5 · US photo grid update: Myself and so many other users of google photos who I know, HATE, the new main photo grid. There is no need to have Recent moments, cinematics (which i turned off but still get), videos, and people and pets show up. there is literally a separate tab for that i can go to i don’t need it getting in the way of trying to find what i’m actually looking for in my photos. it’s large an
  4. [R20] Google Photos 5/5 · US Smiles: Goggle does a good job with photos to create fun memories!
  5. [R1] Google Photos 1/5 · US Nosy and not worth it: Wanted to upload my photos to a shared album on this app from a work team bonding event. It was a really fun day and I wanted to contribute. If I could select certain photos from my library I would’ve done just that and have a neutral to positive experience on this app. But no, I spent many minutes of my life poking around the app, not knowing why the selected photos I chose
  6. [R6] Google Photos 3/5 · US Good at one thing. And only that.: I’ve been using Google Photos for years. At its core, it’s great. It backs up my photos without my having to do anything. But that’s on one account. I have multiple Google accounts that I use regularly. The Google Photos app is only useful with the account I back up to. And here’s why. I can’t filter between backed up and non-backed up photos. The Google Photos
  7. [R13] Google Photos 1/5 · US Terrible UX: Which ever PM/Designer decided this should be a UX and it should be this hard to manually upload a photo to google photos should find a new career. This app is borderline unusable if you don’t want to use automatic backup… I want to manually upload a photo from my iphone, no, I don’t want to scroll through my entire google 10k+ google photo collection most of which are not on my iphon
  8. [R3] Google Photos 3/5 · US Photos won’t delete: I have been a longtime Google Photos user. We’re talking years!!! In the past 6 months I have noticed when I press delete on photos, it doesn’t actually delete. I will have to delete the same photo 3x sometimes Prior to it actually deleting and stop taking up my storage quota. Also, now that it’s not free, there’s little difference between paying here and paying for extra iClo
  9. [R9] Google Photos 3/5 · US Bring back MONTHLY VIEW!!: May 1, 2026: I WANT OFF THIS ISLAND!! These updates are seriously getting worse with EVERY update since changing and removing the monthly layout! July 4th: The updates are steady getting worse! Google Photos literally stopped working for me on July 3rd. It started freezing and not opening all the way. Multiple phone reboots did nothing. I hesitated but gave in and upda
  10. [R10] Google Photos 1/5 · US Never uploads correctly: I imagine this product works well on Android, but on iOS it has been a complete mess for sometime. Images will not upload even when you leave your phone open, you cannot remove images from albums, images disappear from albums, and the list goes on. Fire these PMs and start over from scratch.
  11. [R12] Google Photos 3/5 · US Performance is horrible: I used to love this app and am married to it because all my photos from over the years are in it. However, the last year or two the performance has continued to deteriorate. The app is so impossibly slow and sometimes doesn’t load at all. Hoping to amend this review if updates are finally made, but I’m tired of waiting and hoping.
  12. [R4] Google Photos 1/5 · US shady practice: This app keeps tricking me into enabling photo backup, forcing me to buy more space without understanding how I ran out in the first place. I just had to spend an hour undoing it manually because I’m worried the bulk undo option will erase photos I manually added to shared albums. You have lost my trust and I will be migrating to a different app.
  13. [R37] Google Photos 1/5 · US Took up all my Google storage, and I cannot unlink it from my Google account: I don’t even remember creating a Google Photos account and linking it to my iPhone camera roll, but somehow it has access to every single photo and video, and is taking up all my Google storage. I never use this app for anything, but there is no way to unlink it to free up more storage for my Google account (Gmail, drive
  14. [R55] Google Photos 1/5 · US Stolen photos - unable to delete: I downloaded Google Photos to upload photos to a friend’s wedding album. I did not turn on backups from my device and it stole every photo from my iPhone library and had the GALL to request money for “too much storage” without giving me the option to delete all the photos. It would take me hours to do this manually, and thus cannot access my Google budget without
  15. [R19] Google Photos 1/5 · US Won’t work unless you give Google access to all your photos: Do you want to add a few photos from vacation to a friend’s share Google photo album? Well, forget it, this app will not let you access and share a few photos, it wants every single photo on your phone. The app claims to allow “limited access” but you can punch that button all day, it won’t work. Then, once you allow “full access,” and h
  16. [R31] Google Photos 1/5 · US You can STOP: I don’t want you going into my photos at all. I did not ask for any of your little collages or montages. I don’t like you snooping through my stuff and then showing me what you made. If I want a collage, I will buy an app to make then myself. Eff Off!
  17. [R49] Google Photos 1/5 · US Steal your privacy: After update, you cant choose some photos to publish anymore. Only "give me all your photos" or "nothing" options.
  18. [R18] Google Photos 3/5 · US Photo to video feature is broken: With the most recent update, the photo to video feature does not work anymore. It states that every photo is “too small,” even though it fits perfectly within the frame. This was never an issue before. Update: after the newest update where they said there were bug fixes, the feature is still broken. Update: there have been several app updates since my initial re
  19. [R45] Google Photos 3/5 · GB Album custom order not working: This seems to be an issue that’s lasted for years now but when doing a custom order on albums, it keeps resetting the order of the images. It is extremely annoying as I like to have my photos set in a specific order. Oddly enough the desktop version works fine whilst the app doesn’t. Please fix this issue.
  20. [R62] Dropbox 5/5 · US Thank you!: I lost access to my old email address and Dropbox helped me restore my account, had to answer questions and I’m so appreciative of their support in the process. Thank you!
  21. [R85] Dropbox 1/5 · US Humans need human support: Having absolutely no way to talk to a live support tech will be the downfall of platforms like this!
  22. [R16] Google Photos 2/5 · US Deletes photos from your device.: Update to review: I got a response from the developer with links about my issues and how to resolve it, and typical of developers they did not read my review. They skimmed it to look for key words or used an AI to "read" it. The link they gave me was what I suggested in my review to new users. I had already read through their help section and it is the same as th
  23. [R52] Google Photos 1/5 · US Typical predatory behavior from google: You cant just select a subset of photos to share. This app will only work if you share everything (full access) from your phone. I’m already migrating to a personal photo server than use these horrible data pirates
  24. [R67] Dropbox 1/5 · US Beware: For the longest time, Dropbox never deleted anything of mine. The only time you had to purchase the storage was if you wanted to add more photos and videos. Not to keep your original photos and videos from being deleted. Without my consent, they deleted a lot of of my personal family photos and videos. Stay away from this scam company
  25. [R75] Dropbox 3/5 · US Wow deleting important photos of mine because I decided after several years of paying for your stora: So not cool of you Dropbox to DELETE my photos from several years including pictures of my nieces as babies, me holding them as babies, and my now dead grandmas 90th birthday! Why are you deleting my photos and files when I am not even synching anything new to yo yr app?! Oh you want money from me
  26. [R100] Dropbox 2/5 · US Support I’m paying for is just not there. All I get is a robot.: It does what it’s supposed to do. And they’ve added so much stuff I don’t care about and can’t escape that I’ve had enough. All sorts of unnecessary, for me, features. I want to store synced files and share them. That’s it. But it sings, dances, cooks, drives. I don’t care. My plan included support. Apparently they were kidding. Ther

Synthesized from 120 recent App Store reviews · updated July 2026 · View on the App Store