Karolina Sedlackova
What actually happened
Uloz.to — for two decades the default place Czechs stored large files, sent movies to grandparents, and quietly shared things that maybe weren’t theirs to share — pulled the shutter on its consumer file-sharing service in 2023 under pressure from the EU’s Digital Services Act. The company still exists (its business-oriented cloud offering Uschovna.cz continues), but the “upload anything, share a link, no questions” era is over.
Which leaves millions of Czechs, expats, and small businesses looking for a replacement. This guide compares the realistic options for people who need a cloud-storage service today.
The five services worth considering
| Service | Free tier | Cheapest paid (per month) | Data residency | Czech UI | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| pCloud | 10 GB | ~110 CZK for 500 GB, or a one-off €199 for 500 GB lifetime | EU (Luxembourg) | No | Buyers who hate subscriptions |
| Google Drive | 15 GB | ~65 CZK for 100 GB | Global (US-headquartered) | Yes | Casual users already in Gmail |
| Dropbox | 2 GB | ~230 CZK for 2 TB | EU or US (choose) | Yes | Team file sharing |
| Mega | 20 GB | ~230 CZK for 2 TB | EU (Malta / Luxembourg) | Yes | Privacy-focused users |
| iCloud+ | 5 GB | ~30 CZK for 50 GB | EU (Ireland / Denmark) | Yes | iPhone / Mac households |
Best for photos: iCloud+ or Google Drive
If your primary use case is “back up my phone photos so I don’t lose them if the phone drops in the Vltava”, the choice is basically dictated by your phone. iPhone users get iCloud+ for essentially free (30 CZK/month for 50 GB is trivial and integrates perfectly). Android users get Google Photos as part of Google Drive.
Neither is the cheapest option per GB — but for phone-only users the platform integration outweighs the cost difference.
Best for large files (video, RAW photos): pCloud
pCloud’s lifetime plan (a one-time payment for perpetual storage) is the reason people who used Uloz.to for decades gravitate here. €199 for 500 GB with no monthly fee ever is unusual in the industry and the maths favors it if you plan to hold data for more than 3–4 years. pCloud’s client-side encryption add-on (pCloud Crypto) is optional and costs extra.
External hard drive alternative
If you don’t want any cloud service and just need cheap capacity:
- WD My Passport 4TB portable HDD — the workhorse. USB 3.0, works with Windows/macOS/Linux out of the box.
- Samsung T7 Shield 2TB SSD — drop-proof, water-resistant, much faster than a spinning drive. Costs more per GB but worth it for anyone who moves the drive between locations.
- SanDisk Extreme Pro 128GB microSD — for phone or camera offloads.
Best for a small business or family: Dropbox or Google Workspace
If several people need to share and edit the same files, the true cost isn’t per-GB storage — it’s the time lost to version conflicts. Dropbox’s file-lock, selective sync, and version history are still best-in-class. Google Workspace is functionally equivalent and cheaper if you’re already using Gmail for the company domain.
Best for privacy and GDPR sensitivity: Mega or pCloud with Crypto
If you handle personal data of Czech residents (client photos for a wedding photographer, financial documents for a small accountant, medical records for a psychologist), GDPR imposes real obligations. Both Mega and pCloud (with the Crypto add-on) provide end-to-end encryption where the provider itself cannot read your files — meaning you can honestly say to a client that their data is protected even if the storage provider is compromised.
Google Drive, Dropbox, and iCloud can decrypt your files server-side. That’s fine for holiday photos; it’s not fine for HIPAA/GDPR-sensitive client work.
Home NAS: the “own your storage” option
For power users, a home NAS combines the cost efficiency of a hard drive with the anywhere-access of cloud storage. Setup is fiddly (plan a rainy Sunday) but the total cost of ownership over five years is very low.
- Synology DS223 2-bay NAS — the current default. Easy DSM interface, great mobile apps, third-party backup packages for every use case.
- Pair it with two identical NAS-rated drives — Seagate IronWolf 4TB or WD Red Plus 4TB — configured as RAID 1 so one drive failure doesn’t lose your data.
Migrating your Uloz.to archive
Uloz.to gave paid users a bulk-download tool that expired in early 2024. If you still have Uschovna paid access, use that. If not, and you have specific files you can’t find elsewhere, the Wayback Machine has archived some Uloz.to preview pages — check web.archive.org before assuming a file is gone forever.
FAQ
Is Uschovna the same as Uloz.to now?
Uschovna is a business-oriented file-transfer product from the same company. It works for one-off sends (like WeTransfer) but isn’t a durable cloud storage replacement.
Do any of these support Czech language in the UI?
Google Drive, Dropbox, Mega, and iCloud all have Czech localization. pCloud and Synology’s DSM interface are English/German/other but not Czech.
Which is cheapest per GB long-term?
A lifetime pCloud plan or a home NAS — both amortize to a few CZK per TB per month over 5+ years. Everything else is more expensive over the long haul.
