Two things decide whether switching providers is worth it: how long your files take to move, and what the destination costs once they are there. This answers both from 52 verified plans across 10 providers.
31.7 hours
That is a realistic sustained figure — 70% of your line rate, which is roughly what large uploads achieve once protocol overhead and client-side encryption are accounted for. At a perfect 50 Mbps with no overhead at all it would be 22.2 hours, and nothing achieves that for a day at a time. Leave the machine on and awake.
The same 500 GB at every common upload speed. This is why two people report wildly different experiences of the same provider.
| Upload speed | Time to move 500 GB |
|---|---|
| 5 Mbps | 13 days 5 hours |
| 10 Mbps | 6 days 15 hours |
| 25 Mbps | 2 days 15 hours |
| 50 Mbps | 31.7 hours |
| 100 Mbps | 15.9 hours |
| 300 Mbps | 5.3 hours |
| 1000 Mbps | 1.6 hours |
34 plans we track can hold 500 GB. The cheapest paid option over three years is Filen Pro II at $144 (billed monthly). Ranked by what three years actually costs, because that is the only number that compares a one-time lifetime price against a subscription.
| Provider | Plan | Capacity | Room left | Monthly | 3-yr cost | Zero-knowledge | Verified |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filen | Pro II | 500 GB | 0 GB — tight | $3.99 | $144 billed monthly |
Yes | |
| Sync | Teams Standard | 1024 GB | 524 GB | $4.50 | $162 billed annually |
No | |
| NordLocker | Personal | 500 GB | 0 GB — tight | $2.99 | $180 billed annually |
Yes | |
| pCloud | Premium | 500 GB | 0 GB — tight | $4.17 $219 once, spread over 24 mo |
$219 one-time |
No | |
| NordLocker | Personal Plus | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $6.99 | $252 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Icedrive | Pro | 3000 GB | 2500 GB | $6.99 | $252 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Proton Drive | Drive Professional | 1000 GB | 500 GB | $7.99 | $288 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Wasabi | Pay-As-You-Go | Unlimited | No limit | $7.99 | $288 billed monthly |
No | |
| Sync | Solo Basic | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $8.00 | $288 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Internxt | Essential | 1000 GB | 500 GB | $33.00 $299 once, spread over 24 mo |
$299 one-time |
Yes | |
| Filen | Pro III | 2048 GB | 1548 GB | $8.99 | $324 billed monthly |
Yes | |
| MEGA | Pro I | 3000 GB | 2500 GB | $9.31 | $335 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Tresorit | Personal Essential | 1000 GB | 500 GB | $9.59 | $345 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Proton Drive | Proton Unlimited | 500 GB | 0 GB — tight | $9.99 | $360 billed annually |
Yes | |
| pCloud | Premium Plus | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $8.00 $499 once, spread over 24 mo |
$499 one-time |
Yes | |
| NordLocker | Business Plus | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $14.99 | $540 billed monthly |
Yes | |
| Proton Drive | Proton Duo | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $14.99 | $540 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Tresorit | Business Standard | 6000 GB | 5500 GB | $19.00 | $547 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Icedrive | Pro Plus | 5000 GB | 4500 GB | $4.80 $599 once, spread over 24 mo |
$599 one-time |
Yes | |
| MEGA | Pro Flexi | 3000 GB | 2500 GB | $16.83 | $606 billed annually |
Yes | |
| MEGA | Pro II | 10000 GB | 9500 GB | $18.58 | $669 billed annually |
Yes | |
| pCloud | Family 2 TB | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $31.21 $749 once, spread over 24 mo |
$749 one-time |
Yes | |
| Proton Drive | Proton Family | 3000 GB | 2500 GB | $23.99 | $864 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Tresorit | Personal Pro | 4000 GB | 3500 GB | $27.49 | $990 billed monthly |
Yes | |
| Sync | Solo Pro | 5000 GB | 4500 GB | $28.00 | $1008 billed annually |
Yes | |
| MEGA | Pro III | 20000 GB | 19500 GB | $28.00 | $1010 billed annually |
Yes | |
| pCloud | Ultra | 10000 GB | 9500 GB | $49.58 $1190 once, spread over 24 mo |
$1190 one-time |
Yes | |
| Filen | Pro X | 10240 GB | 9740 GB | $39.99 | $1440 billed monthly |
Yes | |
| pCloud | Family 10 TB | 10000 GB | 9500 GB | $77.04 $1849 once, spread over 24 mo |
$1849 one-time |
Yes | |
| Internxt | Premium | 2000 GB | 1500 GB | $37.42 $2999 once, spread over 24 mo |
$2999 one-time |
Yes | |
| Internxt | Ultimate | 5000 GB | 4500 GB | $66.00 $3999 once, spread over 24 mo |
$3999 one-time |
Yes | |
| Wasabi | Reserved Capacity Storage | 25000 GB | 24500 GB | $143.00 | $5163 billed annually |
No | |
| Icedrive | Pro Max | 6000 GB | 5500 GB | $149.00 | $5364 billed annually |
Yes | |
| Sync | Teams+ Unlimited | Unlimited | No limit | — | — | No |
This page gives you the numbers. These walk you through the move itself.
Prices and capacities come from our verified provider database, last updated Nov 14, 2026. Plans whose price fields currently contradict each other are left out of the results entirely rather than shown with a figure we cannot stand behind. Compare every plan side by side →