What happens to my files when I downgrade my account?

[Camile]

How do I do a  downgrade of my account? What happens to my files after the downgrade? If I transfer them to a different folder in dropbox will they  be lost after the downgrade takes effect?

[Lusil · Accepted solution]

Hey there @Camile! Let’s tackle your questions one by one. 

First, if you’d like to cancel your Plus or Professional plan:

1. Sign in to dropbox.com
2. Click your avatar or profile picture.
3. Click Settings.
4. Click Plan.
5. At the bottom of the page, choose Cancel plan.

If you’re a member of a Business team, you can leave the team. If you’d like to cancel your Business subscription and you’re the admin:

1. Sign in to dropbox.com with your admin account.
2. Click Admin Console.
3. Select the Billing tab.
4. Click Manage subscriptions.
5. Click Cancel your plan.

Please remember that when you downgrade, your Dropbox account may go over quota. This means that your files will no longer sync between devices that are connected to your Dropbox account and you won’t be able to add/restore/edit files via the website. 

Furthermore, I’d kindly recommend moving files to other folders before the downgrade, in case your account goes over the storage limit after the downgrade. In order to make space, I’d recommend either making space by removing unwanted content (including shared folders), as well as earning space. You can find more info on your Dropbox account’s space by visiting your Plan tab in your Settings.

Nevertheless, please remember that already existing files in your Dropbox accounts won’t get deleted after the downgrade. 

I hope this helps! 

[Sarakatrine]

But I have deleted most of my files and it’s still telling me that’s filled and that I have to upgrade. ..? It’s like it’s not accepting that I’ve emptied the account?

[Lusil]

Hey @Sarakatrine, 

If you’re getting a notification that you don’t have space in your account, one of the first steps to take would be to navigate to your Plan tab. There, you can find more info about how much storage is available, as well as how much is being taken up by regular and shared content. 

You can then decide if you want to remove unwanted files or/and leave shared folders that you don’t want to be a member of. Please also note that deleted and permanently deleted files do not take up space in your account. 

Finally, you can increase your storage by earning space:

• Completing the Dropbox getting started guide.
• Referring your friends and family to Dropbox.
• Contributing to the Community.

I hope this helped to some extent. 

[mike020]

I used Smart Sync and then I downgraded. Now I'm unable to get my files back.

[Rich]

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@mike020 wrote:

I used Smart Sync and then I downgraded. Now I'm unable to get my files back.

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You can still access and download your files through the Dropbox website.

[Lusil]

Hey @mike020, welcome to the Dropbox Community!

As @Rich said, whether you downgrade or upgrade, your files are still accessible through the website. 

However, if you're getting any error messages, don't hesitate to get back to us with any additional info and screenshots (without personal info). 

Let us know!

[Seanx]

I am having the same issue.  I emailed the support desk to ask if I can downgrade to basic, but I was not advised to change my folder smart sync setting to 'local' before the downgrade.  Now thousands of files are in Dropbox storage but not in my local drive.  It's not feasible to download them from the website individually.  I tried to download the folder but it says "zip download failed" - maybe due to the size? Please help!

[Lusil]

Hi there @Seanx, thanks for nudging us on this thread. 

Out of curiosity, have you tried opening one of those files? Do you see any relevant option when you right-click on them?

Let me know what you find, cheers!

[Seanx]

Since I have some 40,000 files, 3000 folders, total 40GB data in my Dropbox folder, only 30GB in my local drive, there is no way for me to locate each individual file on the website, but to use Smart Sync.  So I decided to resubscribe back to a pro plan just to use the smart sync.  Luckily there is a 15-day trial option, so now I am able to get all files sync back to my computer in a much efficient manner.  One recommendation to Dropbox support, please advise your customer to set smart sync to local before any downgrade, it saves lots of trouble and time for everyone.  Again, thanks for the help!