Filestack

filestack.com
Document Management
Weekend Project

The Best File Uploader & Upload API

How to Replace Filestack

Overview

Filestack is a comprehensive file management platform that enables developers to upload, transform, and deliver any file type into their applications. It provides powerful APIs, a beautiful file picker UI, and integration with 25+ cloud storage and social media sources. The platform includes advanced features like image transformation, document conversion, AI-powered content analysis, and global CDN delivery.

Features

54 features across 10 categories

AI Intelligence(7)

Emotions AnalysisAI

Understand how people are feeling in images using emotions analysis

Image CaptioningAI

Automatically generate descriptive captions for images with advanced AI captioning service

Image SFW DetectionAI

Automatically detect and filter inappropriate content in images to keep platform safe and compliant

Image TaggingAI

Detect general features of uploaded images with automatic image tagging feature

Object DetectionAI

Automatically identify and label objects within images using AI-powered object detection

OCR (Optical Character Recognition)AI

Extract text from images and documents automatically using advanced OCR technology for automated data capture

Video SFW DetectionAI

Automatically detect and filter inappropriate content in videos to keep platform safe and compliant

Also in: Aderant

Account Management(1)

Parent App ManagementPremium

Manage limits smartly and build Apps family with shared allocation pools

Also in: Keeper, 1Password, Bitwarden

Automation(2)

Custom Workflow Processing

Run predefined workflows on files to automate multi-step transformations and processing tasks

WorkflowsPremium

Build powerful automation pipelines for complex file processing and multi-step transformations

Also in: monday.com, Notion, Airtable

Customization(3)

Custom AuthPremium

Use your own OAuth clients and logo instead of default OAuth consent screens

Custom Picker DesignPremium

Easily customize the Filestack Picker with CSS

Whitelabel SolutionsPremium

Remove branding from Picker with whitelabel solutions

Also in: monday.com, Obsidian, Smartsheet

Delivery(5)

Adaptive Delivery

Automatically optimize file delivery based on user's device, browser, and connection speed

Document Viewer and SliderPremium

Preview PDF files or files that can be converted to PDF in normal or slide view

Embeddable Viewer

Display content inside application with Filestack embeddable viewer

Global CDN

Deliver content from servers closest to users with global Content Delivery Network

Smart Caching

Intelligent caching strategies ensure optimal performance and reduced bandwidth usage

Also in: Litmos, Mux, AWeber

Developer Tools(7)

Angular Integration

Angular integration for Filestack

JavaScript SDK

JavaScript SDK for quick integration with Filestack

Mobile SDKs

SDKs for mobile platform integration

PHP SDK

PHP SDK for quick integration with Filestack

Python SDK

Python SDK for quick integration with Filestack

React Components

React components for Filestack integration

Ruby SDK

Ruby SDK for quick integration with Filestack

Also in: Jobber, Hugging Face, 1Password

Integrations(8)

Dropbox as Upload SourcePremium

Allow users to upload files directly from Dropbox

Storage AliasesPremium

Use existing storage as source to use Filestack Transformations and other add-ons for files not uploaded through Filestack

Upload to Amazon S3Premium

Integrate with Amazon S3 for file uploads and storage

Upload to AzurePremium

Integrate with Azure cloud storage for file uploads and storage

Upload to DropboxPremium

Integrate with Dropbox for file uploads and storage

Upload to Google Cloud StoragePremium

Integrate with Google Cloud Storage for file uploads and storage

Upload to RackspacePremium

Integrate with Rackspace cloud storage for file uploads and storage

WebhooksPremium

Integrate easily with backend or frontend via webhooks

Also in: ReadMe, Hugging Face, Setmore

Security(6)

Copyright DetectionAI

Detect protected images to prevent display of copyrighted content

Domain Whitelisting

Prevent unauthorized websites from using API key by restricting File Picker embedding to approved domains

Path-Based Security

Enforce fine-grained access control by restricting file operations to specific storage paths

Phishing DetectionAI

Detect potential phishing attempts and secure platform by blocking malicious HTML files

Security Policies

Authenticate and authorize requests with flexible policy-based security to protect files and account

Virus DetectionAIPremium

Scan every file during upload to check for malicious content and immediately quarantine dangerous files

Also in: Hugging Face, Notion, Airtable

Transformations(10)

Audio & Video Conversion

Easily convert audio/video formats by calling the Filestack API without impact to infrastructure

Document Conversion

Convert files, graphic documents and webpages through a URL-based API with no infrastructure to own or manage

Document Processing

Extract PDF info, merge or convert PDFs, and transform documents into images in one call

Filters & Effects

Apply professional-grade filters including sepia, blur, sharpen, enhance, and creative effects

Image & Document Transformations

URL-based transformations for images and documents with 100+ supported formats

Image Resizing

Resize images to any dimension while maintaining optimal quality with smart cropping

Smart CropAI

Automatically crop images based on content detection (faces/objects) with optional coordinates output

Transformations UIPremium

Low-code, mobile friendly solution for users to customize images with filters, resizing, and advanced transformations

Video ConversionsPremium

Convert videos to other formats, resolutions, or codecs; crop recordings and add watermarks

Watermark & Overlays

Add watermark overlays on images with customizable position, size, and opacity

Upload(5)

Content Ingestion Network (CIN)

100X more reliable mobile uploads with asynchronous upload technology

Drag & Drop Interface

Intuitive drag and drop interface for quick file uploads with minimal integration effort

File Picker

Integrate file picker in seconds with copy-paste code snippet

Folder Upload Support

Upload entire folders with preserved folder structure and detailed upload progress

Multi-Source Upload

Upload from 25+ sources including Google Drive, Dropbox, Instagram, Facebook, local files, and more

Pricing

Start

$69/month
  • 75GB Bandwidth
  • 20,000 Uploads
  • 50,000 Transformations
  • 50GB Filestack Storage
  • Up to 5 Team members
  • 1GB Max File Size
  • Integrated CDN
  • Image transformations and document conversions
  • Custom Picker Design
  • Upload to Azure, Dropbox, Google Cloud Storage, Rackspace, Amazon S3
  • Dropbox as Upload Source
  • Webhooks
  • Transformations UI + Drag & Drop Pane
  • Video Conversions
  • Document Viewer and Slider
  • Custom Auth
  • Storage Aliases
  • Virus Detection

Grow

Popular
$199/month
  • 200GB Bandwidth
  • 50,000 Uploads
  • 150,000 Transformations
  • 150GB Filestack Storage
  • Up to 10 Team members
  • 2GB Max File Size
  • Integrated CDN
  • Image transformations and document conversions
  • Custom Picker Design
  • Upload to Azure, Dropbox, Google Cloud Storage, Rackspace, Amazon S3
  • Dropbox as Upload Source
  • Webhooks
  • Transformations UI + Drag & Drop Pane
  • Video Conversions
  • Document Viewer and Slider
  • Custom Auth
  • Parent App Management
  • Storage Aliases
  • Virus Detection
  • Platinum Support (Optional $90/month)

Scale

$379/month
  • 400GB Bandwidth
  • 125,000 Uploads
  • 300,000 Transformations
  • 350GB Filestack Storage
  • 10+ Team members
  • 5GB Max File Size
  • Integrated CDN
  • Image transformations and document conversions
  • Custom Picker Design
  • Upload to Azure, Dropbox, Google Cloud Storage, Rackspace, Amazon S3
  • Dropbox as Upload Source
  • Webhooks
  • Transformations UI + Drag & Drop Pane
  • Video Conversions
  • Document Viewer and Slider
  • Custom Auth
  • Parent App Management
  • Storage Aliases
  • Virus Detection
  • Platinum Support (Optional $100/month)
  • 25% - 50% discount on Overages

Cost Calculator

Keep Paying Filestack

Monthly$69/mo
Yearly$828/yr
5-Year Total$4.1k

Build It Yourself

Est. Build Time~4 hrs
Hosting$20/mo
DifficultyVery Easy

Total Cost Comparison

1 YearSave $588
SaaS
$828
DIY
$240
3 YearsSave $1.8k
SaaS
$2.5k
DIY
$720
5 YearsSave $2.9k
SaaS
$4.1k
DIY
$1.2k

DIY hosting estimate based on Vercel + Supabase free/pro tiers (~$20/mo). Build time estimated from 54 features at very easy complexity.

Build vs Buy

Should you build a Filestack alternative or buy the subscription? Estimate based on 54 features.

Buy Filestack

Better Value
Monthly cost$690/mo
3-year total$24,840
Time to deployDays

Build Your Own

Development cost$36,000
Maintenance$540/mo
3-year total$55,440
Dev time~3 months

Buying Filestack saves ~$30,600 over 3 years vs building.

Estimates based on 54 features and a BuildScore of 5/5. Actual costs vary.

Integrations

10 known integrations

Amazon S3AngularAzureDropboxFacebookGoogle Cloud StorageGoogle DriveInstagramRackspaceReact