OneDrive basics
A beginner's guide to OneDrive — Microsoft's cloud storage service — including how to save, access, and manage your files from anywhere.
OneDrive is Microsoft's cloud storage service — think of it as a hard drive that lives on the internet. Files you save to OneDrive are accessible from any computer, phone, or tablet where you're signed in to your Microsoft account.
Quick summary
Every Microsoft 365 business account includes 1 TB (terabyte) of OneDrive storage per user. Save files to OneDrive and they sync automatically across your devices. Access them at onedrive.com or through the OneDrive app. Files you store in OneDrive are backed up — even if your computer breaks, your files are safe.
Accessing OneDrive
Go to onedrive.com and sign in with your work email and password. Or, from the Microsoft 365 home page (microsoft365.com), click the OneDrive icon in the app launcher.
OneDrive has a desktop sync app for Windows (it may be pre-installed) and macOS. Once installed and signed in, a OneDrive folder appears in your file explorer (Windows) or Finder (Mac). Files you save there sync automatically to the cloud.
Download the OneDrive app from the App Store (iPhone/iPad) or Google Play (Android). Sign in with your work account to access all your files.
Uploading files
Open OneDrive in your browser at onedrive.com.
Click Upload at the top of the page, then select Files or Folder.
Choose the file(s) from your computer and click Open. The files upload to OneDrive.
If you have the desktop sync app installed, you can drag and drop files directly into your OneDrive folder in your file explorer — they upload automatically.
Organizing your files
OneDrive uses folders to organize files, just like a regular computer. To create a folder:
Click New → Folder in OneDrive.
Give the folder a name and click Create.
Drag files into the folder to organize them, or upload directly into it.
Finding your files
Use the Search bar at the top of OneDrive to search by file name or content. OneDrive can even search inside documents.
OneDrive also shows a Recent view — a list of files you've opened lately — which makes it quick to get back to work in progress.
Files on demand (Windows)
The Windows sync app has a feature called Files On-Demand. Files appear in your folder but don't take up space on your hard drive until you actually open them. You'll see a cloud icon next to files that are online-only. Click to download them when needed.
OneDrive vs SharePoint
OneDrive is for your personal work files — documents only you need, drafts, and personal projects. SharePoint is for team files — documents everyone in the business needs access to, like templates, policies, or shared project folders.
Think of OneDrive as your desk drawer, and SharePoint as the office filing cabinet.
Storage allowance
Every Microsoft 365 business user gets 1 TB of OneDrive storage. That's enough for hundreds of thousands of documents. See Storage & quotas in Microsoft 365 for details on how to check your usage.
Common questions
Related guides
- Sharing files in OneDrive
- SharePoint basics
- Storage & quotas in Microsoft 365
- Microsoft 365 on your phone
- Google Drive basics
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