Comparison

FreeFileSync.org vs Syncthing

FreeFileSync.org lands on Depends, and Syncthing lands on Worth it.

FreeFileSync.org

freefilesync.org

Depends

Confidence: Medium

Buy it for free personal, cross-platform folder sync and local backups . enthusiasts widely recommend it.

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Syncthing

Worth it

Confidence: Medium

Buy if you're technical and want free, private device-to-device sync with no cloud middleman.

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FreeFileSync.org versus Syncthing
Compare	FreeFileSync.org	Syncthing
Verdict	Depends	Worth it
Best for	Personal file mirroring	Self-hosters
Who it's not for	Businesses . commercial use now requires paid Donation Edition	Non-technical users wanting Dropbox simplicity
Privacy	No known CVEs found; a 2018 malware-via-download incident and recurring antivirus false-positive reports; no dedicated security page.^⁷	3 public CVEs disclosed (most recent patched June 2023); no breach of the project itself, but malware operators abuse the tool for data exfiltration.
Support quality	Forum-only, donation-funded project	Community forum only; no quality evidence
Public sentiment	Reddit enthusiasts consistently recommend it for disk sync while repeatedly asking about download safety and the new business-use fee.	Users love the privacy and cross-device sync but consistently gripe about setup friction and no iOS support.¹³
Biggest gotcha	Commercial use now requires the paid Donation Edition; personal use remains free.^⁶	iOS unsupported; syncing with an iPhone requires third-party workarounds

Pick FreeFileSync.org when

Personal file mirroring
Cross-platform disk sync
Local backups to external drives
Open-source preference users

When FreeFileSync.org is not a fit

Businesses . commercial use now requires paid Donation Edition
Teams needing vendor support or SLAs
Compliance-driven orgs wanting security documentation
Set-and-forget cloud backup seekers

Pick Syncthing when

Self-hosters
Privacy-conscious multi-device users
Obsidian and note-sync users
Technical hobbyists

When Syncthing is not a fit

Non-technical users wanting Dropbox simplicity
iPhone-centric households and teams
Businesses needing vendor support or SLAs
IT managers wanting central admin of many users

Sources

FreeFileSync official sitefreefilesync.org
official
FreeFileSync download pagefreefilesync.org
official
FreeFileSync 13.1 review . PCWorldpcworld.com
review
FreeFileSync on G2 (0 reviews)g2.com
review
Trustpilot reviewstrustpilot.com
review
No longer free for business use . r/Backupreddit.com
review
Safe to use again? . r/DataHoarderreddit.com
review
Donation Edition too expensive . forumfreefilesync.org
official
Defender flags FreeFileSync . forumfreefilesync.org
security
Ransomware protection request . forumfreefilesync.org
security
Syncthing Review | Is it worth it? . ProPrivacyproprivacy.com
review
6 reasons Syncthing is still the best P2P file sync tool . XDAxda-developers.com
review
After 5 minutes of use: Syncthing is amazing . Redditreddit.com
review
Just started using Syncthing with Obsidian . Redditreddit.com
review
First-time user usability review . Syncthing Forumforum.syncthing.net
review
Syncthing does not sync and is stuck . Syncthing Forumforum.syncthing.net
review