How to Transfer Dropbox to Google Drive: Free Methods

By Blossom Smith

Updated Oct 5, 2026Published May 13, 20218 min read

Note (October 2026): MultCloud’s free plan is not unlimited – it includes 5 GB of data traffic per month – and Google Workspace now has a built-in Dropbox migration tool for business accounts. This guide has been updated to reflect both.

To transfer Dropbox to Google Drive for free, download the files from Dropbox (folders come down as a .zip of up to 250 GB and fewer than 10,000 files) and upload them to Google Drive, or use a cloud-to-cloud tool such as MultCloud, whose free plan moves up to 5 GB a month. Google Workspace business admins can use Google’s built-in Dropbox migration instead.

Cloud storage services keep your data backed up off your device and let you reach it from anywhere. They are a step up from the traditional approach of keeping sensitive data only on one hard drive, where a crash or a lost drive can mean lost files.

Transfer Files From Dropbox to Google Drive

That is why many people store data on services such as Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive. But what if you want to transfer Dropbox to Google Drive or Google Drive to Dropbox, or sync from your Dropbox to your Google Drive? There are several ways to do it, from a simple download and re-upload to direct cloud-to-cloud transfer, all covered below.

Why Transfer Dropbox to Google Drive?

As of October 2026, the free Dropbox Basic plan includes 2 GB of storage, while a free Google Account includes 15 GB shared across Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos, so moving files to Google Drive can give you more free space.

In addition, Google Drive works directly with Google Docs, Sheets and Slides, which is an advantage for people who use it for work.

Since these documents remain in the cloud, you can access them from any device, anytime, anywhere. As a result, you can easily share them or invite others to collaborate on them.

Some people move the other way, from Google Drive to Dropbox, for Dropbox’s own features. One of its main draws is quick link-based file sharing.

Another is Dropbox Paper, a collaborative document editor; Paper docs now live inside Dropbox as files with a .paper extension.

Whatever the reason, moving data between cloud storage services is a common need. For personal or work reasons, you may also need the same files on more than one service.

In those cases, a reliable way to copy data between two cloud storage services saves a lot of time. Read on to learn how.

Transfer Files from Dropbox to Google Drive with MultCloud

The traditional method of migrating data from one cloud service to another is downloading and uploading. This method is relatively simple to operate, but if the amount of data is large, it will take a lot of time.

The operations involved are: first log in to one cloud, select the data to be migrated, wait for it to download, and then log in to another cloud and perform the upload operation.

This method also does not keep the data in the two clouds consistent after the copy. Cloud-to-cloud transfer tools avoid the download-and-upload round trip, as shown below.

MultCloud is a web-based cloud storage manager with a free plan, designed for people who want to move data from one cloud service to another. As of October 2026, the free plan includes 5 GB of data traffic per month and 2 transfer threads; paid plans remove the traffic cap. You use it by creating an account (an earlier guest login portal is no longer shown on MultCloud’s pricing page).

As of October 2026, MultCloud says it supports more than 30 cloud storage services, including Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, MEGA and others.

Here in the following part, you will learn how to transfer data from Dropbox to Google Drive.

Step 1. Create a MultCloud account and log in. (Older versions offered an “Experience without signing up” option for a temporary account; as of October 2026 MultCloud’s pricing page shows only sign-up and log-in.)

Step 2. Add your clouds to MultCloud: click “Add Clouds” and select Dropbox.

Follow the prompts to authorize MultCloud to access your Dropbox account. Later, your Dropbox will be displayed on the left side. Add your Google Drive to MultCloud using the same way.

Step 3. After both accounts have been added to MultCloud, you can manage your cloud files through MultCloud easily. To move data from Dropbox to Google Drive, click on “Cloud Transfer”, choose files or folders that you want to transfer under Dropbox as the source, select target location under Google Drive as the directory, click on “Transfer Now” and the process will start immediately.

According to MultCloud, its transfers run offline on its servers, so you can close the page or shut down your PC once the task starts. On the free plan, transfers count against the 5 GB monthly traffic allowance.

Summary

As a cloud file manager with a free tier, MultCloud removes the need to download and re-upload files, which saves time on larger transfers. Moving more than 5 GB a month requires a paid plan.

MultCloud also offers cloud-to-cloud sync and backup, which count toward the same monthly traffic allowance.

Which Method Should You Use to Move Dropbox Files to Google Drive?

The best way to move Dropbox files to Google Drive depends on how much data you have and what kind of account you use. The table below compares the main options as of October 2026.

How to Transfer Dropbox to Google Drive Manually (Free)

The manual method works for any account and costs nothing. It uses your own internet connection, so it suits smaller transfers.

1. Sign in at dropbox.com and select the files or folder you want to move.
2. Click Download. According to Dropbox Help, a folder downloads as a .zip file and can only be downloaded if it is smaller than 250 GB and contains fewer than 10,000 files, including files in subfolders.
3. Unzip the download on your computer.
4. Open Google Drive in your browser, click New, then choose File upload or Folder upload.
5. Check the file count in Google Drive against the original before deleting anything from Dropbox.

Google Drive accepts individual files of up to 5 TB, according to Google Drive Help. Google’s Workspace documentation also states that each user can upload and copy 750 GB to Drive within 24 hours, so very large moves may take more than one day.

Using the Desktop Apps

If both services are installed on one computer, the desktop apps can do the heavy lifting. Google’s app is called Google Drive for desktop and runs on Windows and macOS. Copy the files from your synced Dropbox folder into your Google Drive folder, and Drive for desktop uploads them in the background. This avoids the 250 GB folder-download limit, but the files must first be available locally, so you need enough free disk space.

Google Workspace’s Built-In Dropbox Migration

Google Workspace has a native option for organizations. Google announced on January 5, 2026 that migrating files from Dropbox to Google Drive was generally available, after an open beta in November 2025. According to the Google Workspace Updates blog:

• It migrates data from Dropbox business accounts, including files, folders and associated permissions.
• Super admins find it in the Admin console under Menu > Data > Data Import & export > Data Migration (New).
• Data from Dropbox users goes to their My Drive, and team folders go to Google shared drives.
• It includes migration reports and delta updates for files added or changed after the first pass.
• It is available in Business, Enterprise, Essentials, Education and Nonprofit editions.

This tool is for business accounts, so personal Dropbox users still need one of the other methods.

What About Dropbox Paper Docs?

Dropbox Paper docs are stored in Dropbox as .paper files, and Dropbox Help states that they can be exported to .docx (Microsoft Word), .md (Markdown) or .pdf. Export Paper docs to .docx before moving them, so they can be opened in Google Drive or converted to Google Docs.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Deleting the Dropbox copy before checking that every file and folder arrived in Google Drive.
• Forgetting the free storage gap: 15 GB on a free Google Account is shared with Gmail and Google Photos, so check free space first.
• Assuming a free cloud transfer tool is unlimited – MultCloud’s free plan stops at 5 GB a month.
• Expecting shared-folder permissions to carry over when you download and re-upload; they do not, so re-share files in Google Drive.

For more on keeping files safe across services, see why backing up and recovering data in the cloud matters, the different types of data backup, and this guide to transferring between clouds with MultCloud.

Written byBlossom Smith

Blossom Smith has published 161 articles on Justwebworld since 2021, mostly covering Tech, Business and Digital.

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