SFTP.cloud vs Couchdrop
Both stream your files. Only one holds the keys to your storage.
Couchdrop and SFTP.cloud both put SFTP in front of storage you already own, without keeping a copy of your files. The difference is what each service needs to hold to reach that storage, and what you can prove afterwards.
Couchdrop details checked against its public website and documentation on 15 October 2026.
Credentials to your storage
Held by Couchdrop, in encrypted databases
Never leave your Connector
Post-quantum key exchange
Not mentioned in its security documentation
On every protocol
Audit record
One log, held by Couchdrop
Two signed records you verify yourself
01Storage credentials
Your files stay put either way. The question is who can reach them.
To read and write your bucket, a gateway needs a credential for it. Couchdrop keeps that credential in its own systems. SFTP.cloud's Storage Connector keeps it inside your network, where we never see it.
Couchdrop
Your storage credentials live with Couchdrop.
When you bring your own storage, files stay in it. To reach it, Couchdrop stores the credentials you give it.
- Amazon S3 connects with an IAM access key and secret entered into Couchdrop
- Usernames, OAuth tokens and other credential sets are kept in encrypted databases in the USA
- Couchdrop support staff can access customer accounts for troubleshooting, unless you turn that off
- Optional hosted storage keeps files in Couchdrop’s Amazon S3, encrypted with a key per customer
SFTP.cloud
Your credentials never leave your network.
Files stream through a Storage Connector you run next to your storage. It authenticates to your storage itself.
- We hold no access key, secret key, OAuth refresh token or service principal, and you never grant us a cross-account role
- You create the credential and store it where you choose. Rotate or revoke it without telling us
- The Connector only dials out, so there is no inbound rule to your network
- Optional encryption at rest with a key that lives on your Connector and is never sent to us
A breach of a gateway that holds your keys is a breach of your storage. With SFTP.cloud, there are no keys on our side to take.
02Encryption in transit
Traffic captured today stays unreadable tomorrow.
An attacker can record encrypted transfers now and keep them until a quantum computer can break classical key exchange. Post-quantum key exchange closes that window for files that must stay confidential for years.
| Connection | Couchdrop, as documented | SFTP.cloud |
|---|---|---|
| Post-quantum key exchange | Not mentioned. Its security page describes TLS 1.2+ for connections. | Hybrid post-quantum mlkem768x25519-sha256 for SFTP, post-quantum cipher suites for FTPS, FTPES and HTTPS |
| SFTP client keys | RSA, DSA and ECDSA are listed.DSA keys. Limited to 1024 bits in SSH and disabled by default in OpenSSH since 2015. | Not accepted |
| Unencrypted FTP | Available. Couchdrop recommends it only when FTPS or SFTP are not possible.Plain FTP. Sends passwords and files in clear text that anyone on the path can read. | Not offered |
Mutual TLS
Every component proves who it is, on every connection.
Encrypting the connection from your partner is only the outside layer. Inside SFTP.cloud, the Head, the control plane and your Connector authenticate each other with certificates and refuse any peer that can't. No component is trusted because of where it sits on a network.
- 01A foothold is not a way in.
An attacker who reaches the network between our components still can't pose as one of them without its certificate.
- 02No plaintext hop anywhere.
Every link between components is encrypted, not only the connection at the edge.
- 03Your Connector answers only to us.
It accepts instructions only from a control plane that proves its identity, so a forged server can't direct it at your storage.
Standard protocols, standard clients. Your partners connect with the software they already use. Nothing proprietary, nothing to install.
03Audit trail
A record you can check without taking our word for it.
Both products log every transfer. The difference is who holds the record, how long it lasts, and whether you can prove it is intact without relying on that party.
Couchdrop
One log, held by Couchdrop.
Authentication, transfers and admin events are logged and can be sent to your SIEM.
- Kept for 30 days on Link, 90 days on Essentials and 6 months on Business
- Custom retention on Enterprise
- Held by Couchdrop
SFTP.cloud
Two signed records, held by two parties.
Your Connector and our Head each keep their own record of every session, on machines owned by different parties. Neither side can quietly bring the other's record into line with its own.
- Your Connector records every file operation, allowed and denied, signed with a key that never leaves it
- A year of record kept by default on your Connector, on every plan, and signed commitments kept at least 400 days
- Every five minutes a signed commitment leaves the machine and is countersigned on arrival. From then on, not even the machine's owner can rewrite that period undetected
- Download the evidence file and check it with logverify, an open-source verifier that needs nothing from us
A log only one party holds asks you to trust that party. Two signed records let you check it yourself.
04Shield
Attackers are turned away before the handshake.
Shield watches every source address for failed sign-ins and remembers how each one behaved. A fast brute-force attempt is caught quickly, and so is a botnet that spreads its guesses thin so that no single address stands out.
Once an address is banned, its connections are refused at TCP accept, before any SSH or TLS key exchange begins. Turning away an attack costs almost nothing, so your legitimate users keep signing in while it is underway.
Shield is deterministic, so false positives are rare, and it is on for every SFTP.cloud endpoint from the first day. It is not related to Couchdrop’s Transfer Shield, which is a data-loss-prevention add-on.
A real attack
6 September 2026, less than two hours after SFTP.cloud opened for early access.
05Side by side
Plans, storage and protocols, line by line.
Checked on 15 October 2026
| Couchdrop | SFTP.cloud | |
|---|---|---|
| Plans and price | ||
| Entry plan | Link: $50 a month for 1 SFTP/FTP user, 1 mailbox and 10 GB of transfer a month | Shared: $240 a month, or $2,400 a year, with 15 transfer accounts and 3 Storage Connectors |
| Larger plans | Essentials and Business: contact sales | Dedicated: $840 a month, or $8,400 a year, on your own VM |
| Usage charges | Extra transfer at $75 per TB, extra hosted storage at $60 per TB | No per-gigabyte or transfer charge |
| Free trial | 14 days, no credit card | 14 days, no credit card |
| Storage | ||
| Where files are kept | In your storage, or in optional hosted storage on Couchdrop’s Amazon S3 | Only your storage |
| Credentials to your storage | Held by Couchdrop, in encrypted databases | Stay on your Connector |
| Storage it connects to | 30+ integrations, including SharePoint, Google Drive, Dropbox and Amazon S3 | Amazon S3, Azure Blob, Google Cloud Storage, S3-compatible stores and on-premises storage |
| Audit trail | ||
| Who holds the record | Couchdrop | Two signed records: one on your Connector, one on our Head |
| Retention | 30 days on Link, 90 days on Essentials, 6 months on Business | A year by default on your Connector, on every plan |
| Protocols and encryption | ||
| Protocols | SFTP, FTP, FTPS, SCP, HTTPS links and AS2 (add-on on Business) | SFTP, FTPS, FTPES and an HTTPS web client |
| Post-quantum key exchange | Not mentioned in its documentation | SFTP, FTPS, FTPES and HTTPS |
Couchdrop information comes from the Couchdrop website and public documentation as of the date above and may have changed since. Prices exclude taxes. Couchdrop is a trademark of Couchdrop Ltd. SFTP.cloud is not affiliated with or endorsed by Couchdrop.
06Choosing
When Couchdrop is the better fit.
The two products overlap more than most. In these cases, Couchdrop is the more direct choice.
- 01
Your files live in SharePoint, Google Drive or Dropbox.
Couchdrop connects to collaboration platforms as well as object storage. SFTP.cloud works with object storage and on-premises storage.
- 02
You need AS2, email mailboxes or no-code workflows.
Couchdrop offers AS2 as an add-on, mailboxes that save attachments to storage, and a no-code automation builder. SFTP.cloud automates with SyncJS scripts.
- 03
You have one partner and very little traffic.
Couchdrop Link costs $50 a month for a single user and 10 GB of transfer. SFTP.cloud plans start at 15 transfer accounts.
If no one outside your network may hold the keys to your storage, that is what SFTP.cloud is built for.
07FAQ
SFTP.cloud and Couchdrop, common questions.
Is SFTP.cloud an alternative to Couchdrop?
For SFTP and FTPS in front of your own object or on-premises storage, yes. Both stream files into your storage without keeping a copy. SFTP.cloud also keeps the credentials to that storage on your Storage Connector, inside your network.
Does Couchdrop store my storage credentials?
Yes. To connect Amazon S3, you enter an IAM access key and secret into Couchdrop. Couchdrop says usernames, OAuth tokens and other credential sets are stored in encrypted databases in the USA.
Does SFTP.cloud store my files or my storage credentials?
No. Files stream through the Storage Connector you run next to your storage and are never written to a disk we own. The Connector authenticates to your storage with credentials that never leave it.
Does Couchdrop support post-quantum key exchange?
As of 15 October 2026, Couchdrop’s security and protocol pages do not mention post-quantum key exchange. SFTP.cloud negotiates the hybrid post-quantum mlkem768x25519-sha256 for SFTP, and post-quantum cipher suites for FTPS, FTPES and HTTPS.
Is SFTP.cloud Shield the same as Couchdrop Transfer Shield?
No. Couchdrop Transfer Shield is a data-loss-prevention add-on that inspects files. SFTP.cloud Shield blocks attacking addresses at TCP accept, before any SSH or TLS key exchange begins.
How do the prices compare?
Couchdrop Link is $50 a month for one user and 10 GB of transfer; Essentials and Business are quoted by sales. SFTP.cloud Shared is $2,400 a year with 15 transfer accounts, and Dedicated is $8,400 a year, with no per-gigabyte or transfer charge.
Keep your files. Keep your keys.
Connect your own storage, invite a partner and send your first file. Fourteen days, no credit card, and nothing to cancel if it is not for you.
Want the details first? Read about security or how it works.