Google Drive’s free tier got tight, the paid tier scans for content moderation, and a lot of small businesses now want to know exactly where their files sit. Nextcloud lets you run Drive, Docs, Calendar, and contacts on hardware you control.

What you gain

• File sync, calendar, contacts, video calls in one self-hosted app
• Choose your own region, your own backup policy
• Office collaboration via Collabora or OnlyOffice add-ons
• Apps for every desktop and mobile platform

What you give up

Setup is real work, plan a weekend for the first install. Ongoing maintenance, security patches, backups, and storage growth are now your problem. Performance and reliability sit on whatever VPS or NAS you chose.

The math

Nextcloud software is free. A capable VPS runs $5 to $20/month depending on storage, so $60 to $240/year all-in. Google Drive comparable plans run $30 to $100/year per user. Self-hosting wins for teams of three or more.

Who should switch

Small agencies, regulated industries, and homelabbers who already maintain a server. If you’ve never administered a Linux box, hire someone or pick a managed Nextcloud host instead.