Nextcloud
Your own file sync, sharing and office suite, on hardware you control.
What it is
Nextcloud is a self-hosted file sync and share platform. Desktop and mobile clients keep folders in step across devices, and the web interface adds calendars, contacts, notes, talk and a full online office suite through the included Collabora and OnlyOffice integrations.
It is a large PHP application that runs on a web server with a database. The easiest way in is the All-in-One container, which packages the application, database, caching, office suite and certificate handling into one managed Docker setup and then walks you through configuration from a web page.
It appeals to people and small organisations who want the collaborative features of a cloud drive without handing their documents to a provider, and who accept that keeping a PHP application patched is part of the deal.
Why we recommend it
It replaces the cloud drive, not just backs it up
Real two-way sync, share links with passwords and expiry dates, and version history. This is a working substitute for the storage product you are paying for, not an archive you copy files into.
The office suite is included
Collabora Online and OnlyOffice both integrate, so documents can be edited in the browser without a Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace subscription.
Apps turn it into what you need
Calendars, contacts, tasks, notes, password management, video calls and email are installable from an app store, which keeps related work on the same server instead of spread across services.
All-in-One removes most of the setup pain
Instead of wiring PHP, a database, Redis and a reverse proxy yourself, the All-in-One image manages them and gives you a single web interface for the whole configuration.
How it scores
These are our editorial ratings, not benchmark results. We score on how the project behaves in practice — how long it takes to get running, how good the documentation is, how responsive the maintainers are, and how well it holds up over time. The licence and star count above are read from GitHub and are a snapshot.
Pros and cons
Strengths
- Genuine desktop and mobile sync clients, not just a web interface
- Large built-in app ecosystem covering office, calendar, contacts, talk and more
- The All-in-One Docker image handles database, caching and certificates for you
- Share links with passwords, expiry dates and fine-grained permissions
- Very large community and a long support history
Trade-offs
- PHP applications need regular patching, so running behind a reverse proxy and staying current with releases is ongoing work
- The built-in office suite needs its own container and a reasonable amount of RAM, making the full stack heavier than file sync alone suggests
- Large installations need tuning, since caching, background jobs and database configuration all start to matter as user counts grow
- Licensed AGPL 3.0, so modifications distributed to users carry copyleft obligations
How to get it
One-line install
Prefer the terminal? Copy a command and you are done.
docker run -d --init --sig-proxy=false --name nextcloud-aio-mastercontainer --restart always --publish 80:80 --publish 8080:8080 --publish 8443:8443 --volume nextcloud_aio_mastercontainer:/mnt/docker-aio-config --volume /var/run/docker.sock:/var/run/docker.sock:ro nextcloud/all-in-one:latest
Source and documentation
At a glance
| Category | Self-hosted |
|---|---|
| Licence | AGPL 3.0 |
| Written in | PHP |
| GitHub stars | 36,765 |
| Repository | nextcloud/server |
Licence and star count were read from the GitHub API when this page was generated and are a snapshot. Check the repository for the current figure and the authoritative licence text.
Other Self-hosted tools
We are not affiliated with Nextcloud or its maintainers. We list it because it is genuinely useful and genuinely free. If you plan to build a commercial product on top of it, read the licence on the repository first.