Your folder holds the files. Where is the missing-document list?

You shared the client folder. A bank statement arrived, but it stops before the closing balance. Equipment receipts are still missing. The next job is to show the client exactly what to send and where to send it.

Droplana is a client document portal for repeated, two-way exchange: each client gets one private portal, with no account to create. A request list, uploads, file comments and returned work sit in that portal. Your internal working files can stay in your existing drive.

First, check the workflow you already have

Keep your current setup if clients can find the request, upload successfully and get their completed work without repeated help. Adding another tool has a cost, even when its first plan is free.

Try Droplana if you keep a separate list of missing documents, explain corrections in email and send fresh delivery links for the same client. Test that whole exchange before changing how the rest of your business works.

This comparison is published by Droplana. Google Drive, Dropbox and OneDrive are separate products with different plans and settings. We do not treat a capability we have not verified as a missing feature, or claim that every cloud drive lacks comments, requests or approvals.

Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive: compare your actual plan

Use a non-sensitive sample document and a client test address. Record the plan, external-sharing settings and result; do not judge the flow only while signed in as its owner.

Your current product	What to establish in your own setup
Google Drive	Record the personal or Workspace plan and sharing controls. Can your external client open the request, upload the requested file and respond to a correction with the account they use every day?
Dropbox	Record the exact plan and any request or sharing features you use. Does your current flow show the client both what is missing and the work you return, or do you maintain another list?
OneDrive	Record the personal or business plan and Microsoft 365 external-sharing controls. Can the intended recipient upload and retrieve files without help from your administrator?

For each product, check whether the specific request, comment, approval or signing feature you need is included, paid separately or unavailable in your configuration. Check current vendor documentation before buying or changing plans. This page makes no claim about those vendors' current prices or feature entitlements.

Where a shared folder gets harder

A cloud drive is excellent working storage. Your team edits documents together, files sync to every laptop, and most clients have used one before. Sharing a folder with a client works for the first few. With dozens of clients, the work moves from the files to the setup around them:

• Every client needs setup. A folder, a sharing setting, a link and a welcome email, done slightly differently by each colleague.
• Permissions decide what the client can change. Upload access to a folder can also mean the client can rename or delete what is in it, depending on the product and setting.
• The missing-document list lives somewhere else. You remember what is still outstanding, and chase it by email.
• Access outlives the work. When a relationship ends, someone has to find every folder and link the client still has.

These are reasons why shared folders get messy, not signs that anyone is careless.

What the same request looks like in Droplana

In this app demonstration, the client has sent the payroll summary and bank statement. The equipment receipts remain on the list. The client can choose a file or photograph the paper from their phone.

Actual app with fictional data, cropped below the header. Inspect the client screenshot.

The business still checks completeness. Here, it asks for every page of the bank statement in a comment on that file. The client uploads a separate complete copy; Droplana does not merge revisions.

Actual comment panel with fictional data. Inspect the correction screenshot.

After the review, upload your completed work to the same portal. The client uses the same address to retrieve it, subject to access and retention rules.

What you get, and what you still manage

Document job	Droplana's behavior	Your responsibility
Request documents	A checklist shows requested and received items	Name the document and period clearly; review the upload
Follow up	Default-on stall reminders: client after 7 inactive days, business after 14; each stage once per stall	Handle urgent deadlines yourself; the schedule is not configurable
Correct a file	Comments stay with that file	Explain the missing page or detail; review the new upload
Return work	Upload the deliverable to the client's portal	Choose the final copy and keep required independent records
Review or sign	File approval/rejection and identified in-browser PDF signing	Decide whether those actions meet your needs; signing is not a qualified electronic signature
End access	Revoke portal sessions and links	Deal separately with any copies already downloaded

Droplana has no document editor, desktop sync, automatic version history or connector to your drive. It is not a replacement for restricted team permissions, long-term records management or a required compliance certification. Read the security boundaries before sending sensitive documents.

Optional checklist due dates are visible to both sides and show overdue when an item remains open past its date. A due-date reminder is prepared two days before and on the date, and reaches the client with their next email, which can be later that day or the next day. The business and client can turn them off.

Droplana stores files, comments and metadata on Hetzner infrastructure in Germany, and is operated by an EU company in Croatia, with a data processing agreement on every plan. Where your drive keeps data depends on the product, plan and region settings you chose, so check that in your own account.

Try it alongside your drive

1. Choose one client and one current document set. Leave historical files in your existing system according to your records policy.
2. Create the client with a name and URL slug. Add the request checklist and manually upload any documents you need to send.
3. Open Share, add the authorized email and select Add & Send. Default Strict access verifies that email on a new device.
4. Ask the client to upload a sample, respond to one correction and download the work you return.
5. Decide whether this removes enough coordination work to use again. There is no automatic migration or sync to configure.

Use the editable client invitation and manual migration checklist, or follow the illustrated setup guide.

Check price, file size and access before moving work

Free supports 3 clients, 2 GB total storage and 100 MB per file. Each Free file is kept for up to 180 days after upload. Paid plans start at 19 EUR/month plus tax for Solo, with unlimited clients and separate storage, file-size and team limits.

Free and Solo have the owner's seat only. Practice and Studio support invited colleagues, who share access to the business's clients. Studio, or an active paid-plan Storage addon, supports individual files up to 5 GB. If you need larger files, live editing or narrower staff access, keep a tool that meets those requirements.

On Free, each file expires 180 days after upload. Your clients and their access stay active, so you can keep sharing new files. Active paid plans have no plan-imposed retention limit. Expiry settings, deletion and cancellation rules still apply; a persistent portal address does not guarantee permanent file availability. Team sizes include you. No setup fees or automatic overage charges. Prices exclude applicable tax.

Compare plan details

Plan limits and services. Team sizes include the owner.

Included	Free	Solo	Practice	Studio
Team size	Just you	Just you	5	Unlimited
Clients	3	Unlimited	Unlimited	Unlimited
Storage	2 GB	50 GB	250 GB	1 TB
Maximum file size	100 MB	1 GB	2 GB	5 GB
File retention	180 days from upload	No limit	No limit	No limit
Your Droplana address	Includes a random suffix	Your chosen name	Your chosen name	Your chosen name
Data Processing Agreement	Standard	Standard	Countersigned available	Countersigned available
Support	Email	Email	Priority	Priority
Personal setup call	Not included	Not included	Not included	Included

Need more storage?

Add 500 GB for €15/month + tax, or €150/year + tax. Each storage add-on also raises your maximum file size to 5 GB.

Available on all paid plans from your billing page. Add more than one for another 500 GB each. Your team size stays the same.

Questions about using a portal with a drive

Do clients need a Google, Dropbox or Microsoft account?

No. Droplana clients do not register an account or install an app. Default Strict access verifies an authorized email on a new device. The browser is remembered for 90 days after verification, separately from file retention.

Can I keep my cloud drive alongside Droplana?

Yes. Keep internal working files where they belong and manually upload the documents you want to exchange through Droplana. There is no connector, automatic import or two-way sync with Google Drive, Dropbox or OneDrive.

Can clients edit or delete files I send?

Droplana files cannot be changed after upload. Clients can delete their own uploads, but not files sent by the business. Revised documents are separate uploads, without automatic version history.

Does Droplana replace every sharing permission?

No. Droplana separates clients, but the business team shares access to the business's clients. Contacts authorized for one client share that portal. There are no restricted matter teams or per-file permissions. Revoking portal access cannot recall downloaded copies.

Can I use Droplana as my permanent archive?

Free files are kept for up to 180 days after upload. Active paid plans have no plan-imposed retention limit, but explicit expiry, deletion and cancellation rules still apply. Keep independent records where your work requires them.

For the broader buying decision, see the client portal guide. For an attachment-based exchange, compare Droplana with email. The accounting page shows a recurring monthly document job, and document checklists explains the reminder rules.