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Dropbox vs Panzura CloudFS comparison

 

Comparison Buyer's Guide

Executive SummaryUpdated on May 18, 2025

Review summaries and opinions

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Categories and Ranking

Dropbox
Ranking in Cloud Storage
3rd
Average Rating
8.2
Reviews Sentiment
6.7
Number of Reviews
90
Ranking in other categories
Content Collaboration Platforms (1st)
Panzura CloudFS
Ranking in Cloud Storage
12th
Average Rating
8.4
Reviews Sentiment
7.6
Number of Reviews
8
Ranking in other categories
File System Software (3rd), NAS (10th), Cloud Storage Gateways (1st)
 

Mindshare comparison

As of July 2025, in the Cloud Storage category, the mindshare of Dropbox is 5.4%, down from 5.8% compared to the previous year. The mindshare of Panzura CloudFS is 5.4%, down from 5.5% compared to the previous year. It is calculated based on PeerSpot user engagement data.
Cloud Storage
 

Featured Reviews

Edgar  Paez - PeerSpot reviewer
Work from anywhere and backup easily while being practical
I recommend Dropbox, yet not for all of the features it has. I am a basic user. In a personal mode, we have about 100 employees, and maybe 20 of them use Dropbox as a personal backup system. ShareFile is more secure than Dropbox. Five years ago, ShareFile was qualified as having better security control, access privilege management, and version control recovery, among many features that we were using for private documentation. Overall, I would rate Dropbox an eight out of ten.
Roger Clark - PeerSpot reviewer
Handles file locks effectively enabling seamless remote collaboration in global teams
It has not reduced the data storage cost. We have been trying to come up with a plan internally to archive project data at a certain time frame. However, our data continues to grow, so at the point of 25 terabytes, we had to buy another 25 terabytes license to exceed that threshold. It would have been nice if they had offered them in increments, of 5, 10, 15, or 20 terabytes than having to get a whole chunk of 25 terabytes again for licensing purposes, which is a little costly. It would be nice if Panzura offered data in increments instead of 25 terabytes per license. They have done a pretty good job of development from the point of offering new products. Pricing seems to be high for certain things, such as the audit feature of Panzura Data Services. It would be nice to see who deleted that 100 gig of data out there. They should make the pricing plan more attractive for a company of our size. We have almost 700 employees over the southeast from Texas to Florida and up to Tennessee, so we are a pretty big region.

Quotes from Members

We asked business professionals to review the solutions they use. Here are some excerpts of what they said:
 

Pros

"File syncing is the most valuable feature. I use it every day to sync files across to the cloud."
"It is straightforward and works seamlessly."
"I like how user-friendly the solution is."
"I can use the cloud version for storage and easy retrieval."
"I don't need to carry my laptop while traveling. I just synchronize whatever I've been doing to Dropbox. After the document is synchronized, I can leave my laptop and use Dropbox wherever I am. I can also easily share a document with my colleagues, no matter how big it is. I can allow them to edit, and the editing will be instant. I can see whatever changes they've made to the document. It doesn't delete a document automatically. If I make a mistake and delete a file, it doesn't automatically delete the file. It gives you the warning to say you're deleting a file. In terms of security, I haven't had any challenges with Dropbox where they tell you that your data is compromised."
"The most valuable feature of this solution is the ability to access files and documents from any device, anywhere."
"We haven't had any issues at all with the solution."
"Dropbox is easy to use."
"Panzura has not increased its data storage costs."
"Panzura CloudFS has helped to increase the network resilience by 100%."
"The best features of the Panzura CloudFS solution include collaboration, which is my top priority and top feature. No one else provides this as effectively."
"What I appreciate most about Panzura CloudFS is that it really solves the problem we had when we moved all our server workloads to Azure, reducing our on-prem data center footprint sizably."
"It is a very solid product. We keep all of our older files on their system. It is easy to restore if a file gets deleted. We have good disaster recovery. It is very reliable and very quick, and we do not have files that get overwritten because it locks the file."
"For instance, if I'm in India but need to access data in China or Spain, it simplifies the process and enhances collaboration."
"Primarily, it is the way Panzura CloudFS handles the file locks and the way these filers, along with the authoritative copy of all our data, which is about 27 terabytes located in an AWS bucket in the cloud, operate."
"The main thing in Panzura is that there are three key components: PanFS, NAS, and collaboration. These are strong features, and a big benefit is that you can access everything from anywhere."
 

Cons

"The solution could improve by being more secure and having more storage."
"I find it a little hard to organize my Dropbox folders on my mobile device."
"It is difficult to set up. I'd rate the solution maybe a six or seven out of ten."
"DropBox is a little more complicated to scale up than OneDrive. It isn't as seamless to scale up storage or change the number of users. We have two or three users in Mumbai, and we don't plan to add more."
"2 Gb of free space and then a not so cheap subscription (also if the competitors have similar proposals for customers)."
"The Security and privacy of this solution need improvement."
"Currently, it permits up to five users, but for larger families, it would be beneficial to have a more flexible offering."
"The mobile aspect of the solution needs improvement. For instance, if I want to use a file from Dropbox on my phone, I sometimes struggle to download images off of Dropbox. The solution lacks accessibility on different devices."
"It would be nice if Panzura offered data in increments instead of 25 terabytes per license."
"Previously, a new update would come out, and there might be something wrong with it, or it may not sync up as well as it should, or it may cause something to lose access to the server."
"One area for improvement regarding Panzura CloudFS is moving away from on-prem or local Active Directory. We're exploring a transition to Azure AD or Entra ID, aiming to keep the product functional without heavy reliance on the local Active Directory."
"In terms of improvements for Panzura CloudFS, I would like to see the Edge feature."
"One area for improvement regarding Panzura CloudFS is moving away from on-prem or local Active Directory. We're exploring a transition to Azure AD or Entra ID, aiming to keep the product functional without heavy reliance on the local Active Directory."
"Master Snapshot feature is the only exceptional feature, but the rest of the features are similar to other storage solutions."
"It should be easy for people not on the network to connect and access their files."
"It is a little costly. The NFS service needs development."
 

Pricing and Cost Advice

"We are using the unlicensed free version of Dropbox."
"Dropbox could be less expensive, and I pay monthly."
"We use a yearly license. The pricing is not a bad price. I'd rate it about a five out of ten, with ten being expensive and one being cheap."
"We must pay when we upsize to a larger space."
"I find their pricing to be fairly standard and competitive when compared to the rest of the market."
"I use the free version of the solution."
"I am using the free version of the solution."
"Dropbox offers a freemium model which is very convenient and affordable. Beyond that, the pricing is favorable."
"Overall, it is quite costly compared to NetApp and similar solutions."
"It's competitive. I don't know what competitors are charging, but they have been very transparent, which is nice, and we've negotiated to avoid percentage increases."
"The solution's pricing is on the expensive side."
"It is not bad. It is like everything else. Pricing has gone up quite over the last couple of years, but everybody's pricing has gone up. For what they deliver, it is right in line with what everybody else has."
"The pricing seems high on certain products and features, such as the audit feature of Panzura Data Services. They should consider more attractive pricing for companies of our size. The renewals are yearly, but the pricing is a little high for us."
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Top Industries

By visitors reading reviews
Educational Organization
35%
Financial Services Firm
7%
Computer Software Company
6%
Construction Company
5%
Computer Software Company
15%
Construction Company
14%
Financial Services Firm
10%
Manufacturing Company
7%
 

Company Size

By reviewers
Large Enterprise
Midsize Enterprise
Small Business
 

Questions from the Community

What do you like most about Dropbox?
For me, the biggest thing is version history. I can easily go back and view older versions.
What needs improvement with Dropbox?
One area of improvement would be to allow multiple users to edit a file simultaneously and see edits in real time, similar to OneDrive. In Dropbox, once a file is opened on one system, it locks the...
What are the products that Panzura provides?
Panzura offers four main products: CloudFS, data services, smart apps, and global services. They call this "all-in-one solution" and it's for end-to-end cloud data management. Why is it called that...
What kind of industries does Panzura serve?
Hello, I think businesses from all industries that have their data on a cloud can benefit from Panzura. Especially if you have offices in various locations or your employees are working from home a...
Why was Panzura acquired? Is the acquisition going to cause a change?
I think Panzura may change in a positive direction now that it's been bought by Profile Capital. That's a very big investment company for technology businesses and I think it's an opportunity for ...
 

Comparisons

 

Also Known As

No data available
Panzura Freedom
 

Overview

 

Sample Customers

Vita Coco, BCBGMAXAZRIA Group, Centric Project, Kayak, FourSquare, Asana, Huge Adversting , USA Gymnastics, Appen, Valliant, Radio Lab
Petrofac, Komatsu, HCA Healthcare, Vanguard, Disney, Pokemon, US Department of Justice, Gensler, Fluor, AFRY, Milwaukee Tool, Navy Federal Credit Union, TechTarget
Find out what your peers are saying about Dropbox vs. Panzura CloudFS and other solutions. Updated: July 2025.
862,077 professionals have used our research since 2012.