Comparisons & alternatives · Cloud storage and online-only files
How does Data Transfers compare with web-based cloud-to-cloud transfer services?
Short answer: Web services copy on their own servers using your sign-ins. Data Transfers runs on your Mac with the accounts you've connected, so nothing sits in between, and jobs resume after interruptions — but your Mac needs to be on while it works.
Web-based transfer services run the copy on their own servers, which means signing your accounts in to them. Data Transfers runs on your Mac, using the accounts you've connected to Storage Studio — no third-party service sits between your accounts.
What that means in practice:
- your Mac needs to be on and connected while a job runs, though jobs resume where they left off after a restart or a dropped connection;
- you can copy, move, sync one way or both ways between any two connected accounts, folders or servers;
- you can schedule repeats and preview with a dry run.
If you need a huge migration to run while your Mac is switched off, a server-side service may suit that one job better. See Data Transfers.