Best enterprise file sharing solutions in 2026: compared on security, control and search

Last updated November 2026

Enterprise file sharing is three different problems that vendors like to sell as one. The first is internal storage and collaboration: giving every employee a place to keep files, edit them together and find them later. The second is secure external sharing: sending contracts, financials or designs to clients, auditors and partners with control over who can open them and for how long. The third, newer one is knowledge retrieval: making the contents of all those files searchable, so people can find the answer instead of the folder.

Most enterprise buyers already have the first problem solved by Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace. The real decision is usually whether that tool is good enough for the other two, or whether you need something alongside it. This guide groups ten solutions into those three buckets, sets out what enterprise buyers check before signing, and shows what each costs for teams of 25, 100 and 500.

Prices and features were checked on vendor pages in November 2026. Several vendors only publish pricing for lower tiers, and some feature placement by tier is not fully public; we note where you should confirm with sales.

Quick answer

Best for internal storage at scale: Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive (if you run Microsoft 365) or Box (if you want a neutral platform that works with both Microsoft and Google).

Best for secure external sharing: Progress ShareFile for regulated client portals, Tresorit for end-to-end encryption, and Kiteworks for government and defence requirements including FedRAMP.

Best AI-searchable workspace: Fabric, for teams that want storage, AI search across every file, and tracked external sharing in one tool. It is not the pick if you need SSO, SCIM, SOC 2, FedRAMP or DLP today.

Which bucket are you in? If your problem is "people cannot collaborate on files", you need internal storage. If it is "we email sensitive files to outsiders and have no control", you need external sharing. If it is "we have the files but nobody can find anything in them", you need an AI-searchable workspace.

What enterprise buyers check

Before price or features, most security and IT teams run through a checklist like this one. Use it to filter vendors before you book demos.

At a glance

Internal storage and collaboration

Box

What it is. Box is a cloud content management platform used by a large share of the Fortune 500. It is vendor-neutral, integrating with both Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace, which makes it popular in companies that use both.

Strengths. Unlimited storage on every business plan, granular folder permissions, and over 1,500 integrations. DLP and watermarking are available from the Business plan. Enterprise adds HIPAA and FedRAMP Moderate. Box Shield (classification and threat detection), Box Governance (retention and legal hold) and Box Zones (data residency) extend it for regulated industries.

Limitations. Shield, Governance and Zones are paid add-ons on most plans, so the full enterprise feature set costs well above the headline price. File upload limits vary by plan.

Pricing. Business $15, Business Plus $25, Enterprise $35 and Enterprise Plus $50 per user per month, billed annually, with a three-seat minimum.

Best for. Mid-size and large companies that want a single content platform across mixed Microsoft and Google environments. See Box vs Dropbox.

Microsoft SharePoint and OneDrive

What it is. SharePoint and OneDrive are the file layer of Microsoft 365. OneDrive is personal storage; SharePoint hosts team sites and shared libraries.

Strengths. If you already pay for Microsoft 365, it is effectively free and deeply integrated with Teams, Outlook and Office. SSO through Entra ID is included in every plan. Purview DLP appears from Business Premium and E3, and E3 adds audit and eDiscovery. Government clouds support FedRAMP High.

Limitations. Standalone OneDrive and SharePoint plans stopped being sold to new customers on May 31, 2026, so storage now comes as part of a Microsoft 365 bundle. External sharing is functional but complex to govern, and per-recipient engagement tracking is limited to audit logs. Business plans cap at 300 users.

Pricing. Business Basic $7, Business Standard (now bundled with Copilot) $23.50 and Business Premium $32 per user per month. Microsoft 365 E3 is $39 per user per month. All include 1 TB of OneDrive storage per user.

Best for. Organisations standardised on Microsoft. See best SharePoint alternative and best OneDrive alternatives.

Google Drive

What it is. Google Drive is the storage layer of Google Workspace, with shared drives for teams.

Strengths. The best real-time co-editing in the category. SAML SSO and Drive audit log events are in every Business edition. Data regions start at Business Standard, and Vault (retention, legal hold and eDiscovery) at Business Plus. Strong certification portfolio including FedRAMP High.

Limitations. Business Starter includes only 30 GB per user, pooled. Full DLP and client-side encryption sit on Enterprise editions. Business editions cap at 300 users. No per-recipient view analytics for external shares.

Pricing. Business Starter from $7, Business Standard $14 and Business Plus $22 per user per month, with Enterprise on quote. Confirm whether your quote is annual or flexible billing.

Best for. Companies running on Google Workspace.

Dropbox

What it is. Dropbox is a cloud storage and sync platform with team features layered on top.

Strengths. Reliable sync across every platform, including Linux. All paid team plans include link expiry, passwords, download disabling, watermarking and viewer history, which is more external control than most internal storage tools offer. HIPAA support is available. Data residency in Australia, the EU, Japan and the UK is available for eligible teams.

Limitations. SSO and audit logs with file events start on the Advanced plan. DLP and legal hold placement should be confirmed with sales.

Pricing. Standard $15 per user per month and Advanced $24 per user per month (three-user minimum), with Enterprise on quote.

Best for. Teams that value sync reliability and want solid external link controls without a separate tool. See Fabric vs Dropbox.

Egnyte

What it is. Egnyte combines cloud file sharing with content governance, and is popular in architecture, engineering, construction and life sciences.

Strengths. Hybrid support for on-premises and cloud files, large upload limits (up to 150 GB), and governance features including retention, lifecycle policies and ransomware detection from Enterprise Lite. Ultimate adds classification, DLP integration and customer-managed keys. SSO and data residency are supported.

Limitations. The Business plan caps at 100 users. Several governance features sit on higher tiers.

Pricing. Business $22, Enterprise Lite $39 and Elite $48 per user per month, with Ultimate on quote.

Best for. Regulated or project-heavy industries that need governance and hybrid storage.

Secure external sharing

Progress ShareFile

What it is. ShareFile is a secure file sharing and client portal platform, widely used by accounting, legal and financial services firms.

Strengths. Client portals, request lists and e-signature built in. The Advanced plan includes Active Directory SSO, activity logs, link expiry, view-only sharing and access alerts. Premium adds dynamic watermarks, HIPAA BAA eligibility and SEC/FINRA archiving. Enterprise adds SCIM and native DLP. A Virtual Data Room plan adds click-trail analytics.

Limitations. Less suited to everyday internal collaboration. Pricing per user adds up for large teams.

Pricing. Advanced $16.50, Premium $26 and Enterprise $35 per user per month, with a three-seat minimum. Storage starts at 3 TB plus 1 TB per licence.

Best for. Professional services firms that exchange sensitive documents with clients every day.

Tresorit

What it is. Tresorit is end-to-end encrypted file sharing owned by Swiss Post.

Strengths. Zero-knowledge encryption, SSO (Okta, Azure AD, Google) on Business, data residency choice, and encrypted links with passwords, expiry and open or download limits. ISO 27001, HIPAA, GDPR and TISAX. Enterprise adds provisioning through Azure AD or Okta, SIEM integration, dynamic watermarks and document analytics.

Limitations. Encryption means no server-side search inside files. Prices are not always visible on the public pricing page.

Pricing. Business is about $19 per user per month billed annually, with a three-user minimum and 2 TB per user. Enterprise is quoted for 50 or more seats.

Best for. European legal, healthcare and finance teams that need encryption on every share.

Kiteworks

What it is. Kiteworks is a private content network that consolidates secure file sharing, email, SFTP and managed file transfer under one set of policies.

Strengths. FedRAMP Moderate authorised and FedRAMP High Ready, with CMMC support. Deploys on-premises, in a private cloud, single-tenant or in FedRAMP- and IRAP-hosted environments. Detailed audit trails across every channel.

Limitations. SSO, MFA, LDAP and SIEM integration are Enterprise features, and SCIM is an Enterprise add-on. No public pricing, and implementation is heavier than cloud-native tools.

Pricing. Quote only. Business is sold in packs of 5 to 500 users; Enterprise is custom.

Best for. Government contractors, defence suppliers and highly regulated enterprises.

Proton Drive for Business

What it is. Proton's business plans bring end-to-end encrypted storage to teams, alongside Proton Mail, Calendar and Pass.

Strengths. Swiss jurisdiction, end-to-end encryption including file names, and a simple price. Workspace Premium adds data retention policies. Proton claims ISO 27001 certification.

Limitations. Enterprise identity features for Drive (SSO, SCIM) and audit logs are less developed than the tools above; confirm before buying. No Linux desktop app yet.

Pricing. Drive Professional from $7.99 per user per month with 1 TB each (from two users). Workspace Standard is $12.99 and Workspace Premium $19.99 per user per month.

Best for. Small and mid-size European teams that want encrypted storage and email from one vendor.

AI-searchable workspace

Fabric

What it is. Fabric is a team cloud and context layer. It stores files, makes everything inside them searchable with AI, and shares them externally with per-recipient tracking, all in one place.

AI search across every file. Fabric's AI search reads inside PDFs, documents, images and transcribed audio and video, and understands natural-language questions. It also searches connected Google Drive, Dropbox, Notion, Gmail and Outlook accounts from the same search bar, with files staying where they are (see how to search Google Drive by what is inside files). The AI assistant answers questions about your company's files with citations back to the source.

Tracked external sharing. Share or publish any file or folder, protect it with a password, and create a named link per recipient. You can also share files on your own domain and keep shared files out of search engines. Link analytics show when each person opened it, how many times and how long they spent. Recipients do not need an account.

Storage and collaboration. A cloud drive that streams files on demand without filling laptops, shared team folders, real-time collaboration, and roles from viewer to admin at space and file level.

Security today. AES-256 encryption in transit and at rest, CASA Tier 2 compliance, activity history for shared content, and a policy of never using customer data to train AI models. See private and secure.

What Fabric does not have yet. Fabric does not currently offer SSO/SAML, SCIM provisioning, an enterprise admin audit log or SOC 2. It also does not offer DLP, legal hold, watermarking or FedRAMP. If your security review requires any of these, Fabric is not ready to be your primary enterprise file platform. It can still work well for a department or team alongside your main storage.

Pricing. Free tier available. Paid plans start at $8 per month billed yearly. Self-writing documentation is available on Fabric for Teams plans starting at $125 per month.

Best for. Startups, agencies, consultancies and teams inside larger companies that want storage, AI search and tracked client sharing in one tool, and do not yet need enterprise identity and compliance controls.

Internal vs external sharing: why most companies end up with two tools

Internal storage tools are built around trust. Everyone inside the company has an account, permissions follow the org chart, and the main risk is someone seeing a folder they should not. External sharing is built around the opposite assumption. The recipient has no account, the file may be forwarded, and you need to know whether it was opened and be able to take it back.

Microsoft 365, Google Workspace and Box handle the first job well and the second job adequately. That is why so many companies run a second tool for client-facing work: ShareFile for accountants and law firms, Tresorit for encrypted sharing, DocSend or Fabric for proposals and pitch decks, a virtual data room for deals. If your client-facing work is ongoing rather than deal-based, a client portal where each client only sees their own files is often the better pattern. For transactions, compare the best virtual data room providers. Before you buy a single platform that claims to do everything, check whether its external controls (per-recipient tracking, revocation, watermarks) match what your client-facing teams do every day.

If you are sending large files to people outside the company, see our guide on how to share large files securely.

What it costs: 25, 100 and 500 seats

List prices per year, billed annually, before any negotiated discount. Enterprise deals are usually discounted, so treat these as a starting point.

Microsoft 365 looks cheapest because storage is bundled with email and Office. If you already pay for Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, the real cost of a second tool is its own subscription on top. For a 25-person team, adding Fabric for AI search and tracked sharing costs far less than moving everyone to a new storage platform.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most secure enterprise file sharing software?

It depends on your threat model. For end-to-end encryption, where even the vendor cannot read your files, Tresorit and Proton Drive are the strongest. For government and defence work, Kiteworks offers FedRAMP Moderate authorisation, FedRAMP High Ready status and on-premises deployment. For broad enterprise governance, Box Enterprise with Shield and Governance, or Microsoft 365 E5, offer the deepest controls.

Which enterprise file sharing tools are SOC 2 and HIPAA compliant?

Box, Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Dropbox and Egnyte all offer SOC 2 reports and support HIPAA with a signed business associate agreement on eligible plans. ShareFile offers HIPAA BAA eligibility on its Premium plan. Tresorit is ISO 27001 certified and HIPAA compliant. Fabric does not have SOC 2 yet. Always confirm which plan the BAA covers before storing protected health information.

How do I share large files externally without email?

Use a shareable link from a file sharing tool rather than an attachment. Box, Dropbox, ShareFile, Egnyte and Fabric all let you share large files by link, with passwords and expiry. Egnyte supports uploads up to 150 GB, and Box Enterprise Plus up to 150 GB. Fabric streams large files to recipients without a download wait. See how to share large files securely and how to send large files securely.

Can I see who opened a file I shared outside my company?

With some tools. Fabric creates a named link per recipient and shows when each person opened it, how many times and how long they spent. Dropbox includes viewer history on team plans, ShareFile has access alerts, and Tresorit Enterprise offers document analytics. Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace record access in audit logs rather than per-link analytics. See how to track if someone opened your shared link.

Box or SharePoint for enterprise file sharing?

SharePoint is the natural choice if your company runs on Microsoft 365, because it is already paid for and integrates with Teams and Office. Box is better if you use both Microsoft and Google, want unlimited storage, or prefer a vendor-neutral platform with simpler external sharing. Box's governance features are add-ons, so compare the full cost.

Which enterprise file sharing tools support SSO and SCIM?

Microsoft 365 includes SSO through Entra ID on every plan. Google Workspace includes SAML SSO on every Business edition. Dropbox adds SSO on Advanced. ShareFile includes Active Directory SSO on Advanced and SCIM on Enterprise. Tresorit includes SSO on Business and provisioning on Enterprise. Kiteworks includes SSO on Enterprise, with SCIM as an add-on. Fabric does not offer SSO or SCIM yet.

Which file sharing tools let me choose where data is stored?

Box (through Box Zones), Microsoft 365 (Advanced Data Residency and Multi-Geo), Google Workspace (data regions from Business Standard), Dropbox (Australia, EU, Japan and UK for eligible teams), Egnyte and Tresorit all offer data residency options. Proton stores data in Switzerland.

Is there a FedRAMP-authorised file sharing tool?

Yes. Kiteworks is FedRAMP Moderate authorised and FedRAMP High Ready. Box Enterprise includes FedRAMP Moderate, with High available. Microsoft 365 government clouds and Google Workspace also support FedRAMP requirements.

Is Fabric suitable for enterprise file sharing?

For teams and departments, yes. Fabric is strong for storage, AI search across files and tracked external sharing. For company-wide deployment in an enterprise with strict IT requirements, not yet: it does not currently offer SSO/SAML, SCIM, an admin audit log, SOC 2, DLP or legal hold. Many larger companies use Fabric alongside Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace for client-facing and knowledge-heavy teams.

Can an AI search tool work on top of my existing file storage?

Yes. Fabric connects to Google Drive, Dropbox, Notion, Gmail and Outlook, and searches them alongside files stored in Fabric, without moving them. That means you can add AI search and question answering across your documents without migrating your whole company to a new platform. See connections, how to build an AI assistant for your team on your own data and how to use AI on confidential documents safely.

Is Fabric free?

Yes, Fabric has a free tier that includes the cloud drive and AI search. Paid plans start at $8 per month billed yearly ($10 monthly), with password protection, link analytics and team features on Pro and Team plans. Every paid subscription also funds mangrove restoration in Kenya and Brazil.

Related pages

Best OneDrive alternatives · Best SharePoint alternative · Fabric vs SharePoint · Box vs Dropbox · Fabric vs Box · Best virtual data room providers · What is a virtual data room? · Fabric data rooms · How to set up a client portal · How to share files securely online · How to share large files securely · How to set up a shared drive for your team · Fabric for law firms