Pixabay Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET's key takeaways If you need to sync Linux to the cloud, you have options. You can sync to various cloud accounts and even locally. Some of these options are free, while others are paid. For a long time, I used cloud storage as a means to access my files anywhere, as well as a backup option. Not only did those cloud storage services serve me well, but they also made it possible for me to share files and folders with collaborators. These days, I've migrated to an internal cloud option (Nextcloud) for two reasons: I don't want third parties profiling me with my work. I don't want third parties training artificial intelligence LLMs with my work. Even though I have migrated to an in-house cloud solution, it doesn't mean there isn't value to external cloud storage solutions. In fact, most users live and die by their cloud storage, and that's great. If you're a Linux user, you might feel a bit left out with regard to cloud sync tools. You don't have to. There are actually quite a few outstanding cloud sync tools you can use that work well with different providers. 1. Syncthing Syncthing can connect to any computer on your LAN, which makes it one of the more flexible and useful cloud sync tools on the list. If you're really clever, you can also use Syncthing to sync local files/folders to your Google Drive account. To do that, you have to mount your Google account locally (more on that in a bit) and then use Syncthing to sync local files/folders to the newly mounted Google Drive. Yes, it's a kludgy workaround, but it's certainly possible. Also: Why ZorinOS 18 might be the new best Linux distro - and I've tried them all The great thing about Syncthing is that you can use it to sync files and folders to any device on your network. Because of that, here's another handy trick. Say you have a MacOS machine that syncs with your Google Drive account (because Google offers a MacOS client for Drive). You could then use Syncthing to sync from Linux to MacOS, such that your Linux files/folders sync with the local Drive folder on MacOS. Instant Google Drive syncing. Synthing is free to install and use. 2. Insync For the longest time, Insync was my go-to tool for syncing Linux files/folders to Google Drive. Insync has a ton of features, all wrapped into a well-designed GUI that makes it fairly easy to sync between your Linux devices and your Google Drive account. But Insync isn't just limited to Google Drive. You can also use this app to sync Linux to OneDrive and Dropbox. Insync integrates with your file managers, allows selective sync and even one-way sync. You can merge folders, sync peripherals, use multiple accounts, share files/folders, convert docs, create ignore rules, and more. Keep in mind that Insync is not free. You can try Insync for 7 days and, if you like it, make a one-time purchase for only $39.99. That license also gets you 1 year of Insync Care (support). For Linux, there's also a command-line tool, which means you could use it with cron for more flexible scheduled syncing. 3. pCloud pCloud is the outlier here because it only syncs Linux to your pCloud account. The big caveat to pCloud is that the lifetime plans are expensive. For instance, 500GB of cloud storage sets you back a one-time fee of $199. For $399, you get 2TB of storage, and for $1,190, you get 10TB of storage. Also: Thinking about switching to Linux? 6 things you need to know Fortunately, you can opt for a more standard account, such as the Premium 500GB option for $49.99/year. Or, just drop the $199 and never have to pay again. As far as features are concerned, you get unlimited file size as well as unlimited upload and download speeds. If a speedy sync is important, pCloud is outstanding. You also get file sharing, synchronization, TLS/SSL encryption, access via Web, desktop, and mobile, versioning, and integrations. 4. Nextcloud Nextcloud has become my cloud-sync tool of choice. I run it locally (a server on my LAN), but that ensures my files and data cannot be accessed by a third party. I've had a few scares where third parties were using my work to train LLMs, and it's not easy putting a stop to that, which is why I pulled my important documents from Google Drive and keep them within my LAN. Nextcloud is a great option because it's incredibly flexible. I can configure Nextcloud exactly how I want it (even extend the feature set with apps), and install a desktop app on Linux for easier integration. Get the biggest stories in tech every Friday with ZDNET's Week in Review newsletter. The only caveat to using Nextcloud is that you have to have the skills to deploy it, which can be a bit tricky. You can find out how to install Nextcloud in my article on how to easily install a cloud service at home in an hour or less. Although Nextcloud can take a while to install, it's free and certainly worth the effort. As a bonus, the desktop client is quite good. 5. Built-In Finally, there are the built-in tools. The GNOME desktop environment makes it easy to connect your Linux computer to various online accounts, such as Google Drive, OneDrive, and Nextcloud. Also: Do you need antivirus on Linux? Connect GNOME to your cloud account, and it mounts the account such that it's easily accessible in your file manager. Keep in mind that it doesn't offer an actual sync option, which is why I mentioned Syncthing earlier. You can add your cloud account and then use a tool like Syncthing (or rsync) to sync files/folders to the mount directory, which will then be automatically synced with your cloud account. I've found that this option is a bit slower than others, but it's free and includes file manager integration, so it's very much worth the effort.