Nextcloud is one of our favorite services at XDA. For those unaware, it's a cloud-based platform that allows you to store files, collaborate with others, and work on documents, presentations, spreadsheets, and more. Essentially, it is a replacement for Google Drive. What makes it a widely used service among several writers here at XDA is that Nextcloud can be self-hosted on a local server, which means you get all the goodness of the platform with its features without paying for additional cloud storage and storing your data on a remote server. While it works perfectly well, I recently started to face some performance issues with Nextcloud. File uploads would be slow, and syncing large folders would mean I had to wait for a long time. So, I started looking for alternatives that could perform the same tasks but with better efficiency.

That's when I found Seafile. While it's not technically a like-for-like replacement for Nextcloud, it shares a lot of similarities and fits the bill perfectly for my use. So, I decided to give it a shot. Just like Nextcloud, I self-hosted Seafile via Docker on my laptop, but you can also use a device like a Raspberry Pi if you wish to. After using it for a few days, I can safely say that I'm not going back to Nextcloud anymore. Here are my findings, along with why you should consider switching as well.

Fast uploads and syncing

Block-based sync is helpful

One of the clear differentiators when using Seafile is how fast your files can be synced compared to Nextcloud. This is primarily due to the fact that Seafile uses what's known as a block-based sync approach, which essentially only syncs blocks of files that have undergone some change or variation. For instance, let's say you're backing up multiple folders from your computer. If there's already a copy of an earlier backup synced to Seafile, it will only sync the new changes introduced in the latest backup. So, if two files out of nine have changed, it only has to upload two files, which saves a ton of time and bandwidth.

On the other hand, Nextcloud makes use of the more traditional file-based sync, which means it uploads and syncs the entire folder — resulting in a lot more time and bandwidth consumption. It also increases the load on the server for a longer duration. Notably, Seafile is primarily designed for file sharing, so it's more optimized for that purpose compared to Nextcloud. As a result, I was easily able to run Seafile on a virtual machine, even with just 4GB of RAM and a low-end CPU. Nextcloud is much more resource-intensive, which can make it feel sluggish on underpowered hardware.

Built-in productivity suite

Create presentations and spreadsheets

The primary purpose of Seafile may be to sync and share files, but that doesn't mean it falls behind in other areas where Nextcloud excels. You get similar collaboration features thanks to the built-in productivity suite inside Seafile. Create documents, spreadsheets, presentations, and even Markdown files straight inside Seafile, and share them with your colleagues to work on them together. I use Excel quite frequently and found that the spreadsheets inside Seafile resemble Excel closely, which means you will feel right at home when switching from Microsoft Office.

That said, Seafile lacks some additional integrations available on Nextcloud, such as Calendar and Contacts, which would make it a more complete alternative to G Suite for those seeking to de-Google their life. I hope Seafile rolls out more such additions in the future so that I can stop being overly reliant on Google to sync my data. Additional perks like end-to-end encryption, a better mobile app, and a large community that you can turn to for help and support make Nextcloud stand out when compared to Seafile. All things considered, though, my primary use case is the quick syncing and sharing of files, and for that purpose, Seafile is the clear winner. That's exactly why I'm sticking to it.

Simple and fast

For me, the highlight of Seafile is its simple and clean UI, as well as the fact that it syncs files as blocks, unlike Nextcloud's file-based sync system. This saves a major chunk of time when uploading large backups while also reducing network congestion. I also like the focused and streamlined approach of Seafile, since it doesn't try to do too many things. It's good at syncing and sharing files while also aiding with collaborations when working with colleagues. If your usage is limited to these tasks, I would say switching to Seafile is a smart move. It's lighter on resources and arguably snappier to use.