{"id":"bridge-devices.how-is-bridge-different-from-a-cloud-account","url":"/faq/bridge-devices/how-is-bridge-different-from-a-cloud-account","category":{"id":"bridge-devices","title":"Bridge & your devices"},"subcategory":{"id":"about-bridge","title":"About Bridge"},"question":"How is a Bridge device different from a cloud account?","alt_questions":["Bridge vs cloud storage","Is Bridge a cloud service?","Do Bridge files get uploaded anywhere?","Why use Bridge instead of Dropbox between my computers?","Difference between Devices and Accounts in Storage Studio"],"short_answer":"A cloud account stores files on a provider's servers. Bridge stores nothing anywhere else: files stay on your device and travel straight to your Mac over a direct, end-to-end encrypted link — but only while that device is on and connected.","answer_markdown":"A cloud account keeps your files on a provider's servers; a Bridge device keeps them on the device itself and sends them straight to your Mac. With Bridge there's no server, no cloud and no storage plan in the middle — the link is direct and end-to-end encrypted between your two devices.\n\nThe trade-off: a cloud account is reachable whenever you're online, while a Bridge device's folders are only reachable while that device is switched on and connected. When it's offline, Storage Studio simply skips it until it's back.\n\nBoth kinds can appear side by side inside the Storage Studio location in Finder.\n\n- [Where do shared folders appear?](/faq/bridge-devices/where-do-shared-folders-from-a-device-appear-on-my-mac)\n- [Cloud accounts](/faq/cloud-accounts/)","answer_html":"

A cloud account keeps your files on a provider's servers; a Bridge device keeps them on the device itself and sends them straight to your Mac. With Bridge there's no server, no cloud and no storage plan in the middle — the link is direct and end-to-end encrypted between your two devices.

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The trade-off: a cloud account is reachable whenever you're online, while a Bridge device's folders are only reachable while that device is switched on and connected. When it's offline, Storage Studio simply skips it until it's back.

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Both kinds can appear side by side inside the Storage Studio location in Finder.

\n","answer_text":"A cloud account keeps your files on a provider's servers; a Bridge device keeps them on the device itself and sends them straight to your Mac. With Bridge there's no server, no cloud and no storage plan in the middle — the link is direct and end-to-end encrypted between your two devices.\n\nThe trade-off: a cloud account is reachable whenever you're online, while a Bridge device's folders are only reachable while that device is switched on and connected. When it's offline, Storage Studio simply skips it until it's back.\n\nBoth kinds can appear side by side inside the Storage Studio location in Finder.\n\n- Where do shared folders appear?\n- Cloud accounts","tags":["bridge","cloud","comparison"],"related":[{"id":"bridge-devices.what-is-storage-studio-bridge","question":"What is Storage Studio Bridge?","url":"/faq/bridge-devices/what-is-storage-studio-bridge"},{"id":"bridge-devices.where-do-shared-folders-from-a-device-appear-on-my-mac","question":"Where do folders shared from a Bridge device appear on my Mac?","url":"/faq/bridge-devices/where-do-shared-folders-from-a-device-appear-on-my-mac"},{"id":"bridge-devices.what-happens-when-a-paired-device-is-offline","question":"What happens to a paired device's folders when it's offline?","url":"/faq/bridge-devices/what-happens-when-a-paired-device-is-offline"}],"applies_to":"all","last_reviewed":"2026-10-01","title":"How is a Bridge device different from a cloud account? — Storage Studio FAQ","description":"A cloud account stores files on a provider's servers. Bridge stores nothing anywhere else: files stay on your device and travel straight to your Mac over a direct, end-to-end encrypted link — but only while that device is on and connected.","crumbs":[{"name":"Home","path":"/"},{"name":"FAQ","path":"/faq/"},{"name":"Bridge & your devices","path":"/faq/bridge-devices/"},{"name":"How is a Bridge device different from a cloud account?","path":"/faq/bridge-devices/how-is-bridge-different-from-a-cloud-account"}],"jsonld":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/bridge-devices/how-is-bridge-different-from-a-cloud-account","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-10-01","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"How is a Bridge device different from a cloud account?","alternateName":["Bridge vs cloud storage","Is Bridge a cloud service?","Do Bridge files get uploaded anywhere?","Why use Bridge instead of Dropbox between my computers?","Difference between Devices and Accounts in Storage Studio"],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"A cloud account keeps your files on a provider's servers; a Bridge device keeps them on the device itself and sends them straight to your Mac. With Bridge there's no server, no cloud and no storage plan in the middle — the link is direct and end-to-end encrypted between your two devices.\n\nThe trade-off: a cloud account is reachable whenever you're online, while a Bridge device's folders are only reachable while that device is switched on and connected. When it's offline, Storage Studio simply skips it until it's back.\n\nBoth kinds can appear side by side inside the Storage Studio location in Finder.\n\n- Where do shared folders appear?\n- Cloud accounts","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/bridge-devices/how-is-bridge-different-from-a-cloud-account"}}]},"fragment":"
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Bridge & your devices · About Bridge

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How is a Bridge device different from a cloud account?

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Short answer: A cloud account stores files on a provider's servers. Bridge stores nothing anywhere else: files stay on your device and travel straight to your Mac over a direct, end-to-end encrypted link — but only while that device is on and connected.

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A cloud account keeps your files on a provider's servers; a Bridge device keeps them on the device itself and sends them straight to your Mac. With Bridge there's no server, no cloud and no storage plan in the middle — the link is direct and end-to-end encrypted between your two devices.

\n

The trade-off: a cloud account is reachable whenever you're online, while a Bridge device's folders are only reachable while that device is switched on and connected. When it's offline, Storage Studio simply skips it until it's back.

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Both kinds can appear side by side inside the Storage Studio location in Finder.

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Last reviewed

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Related questions

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