GB/US: Has cloud storage managed to capture the digital space?

Cloud storage has redefined the way we operate in the digital world. Consumers can now access their data anywhere, anytime. But increasing concerns around data security and privacy have made consumers skeptical about going digital. In a recent YouGov survey we presented consumers in Britain and US with a statement and asked if they agree or disagree with it – I save all my data to the cloud.

Slightly over a third of Britons say they save all their data on the cloud. For the US that figure drops to just above a quarter of consumers (28%). Data indicates that even though a sizeable share of consumers are uploading all their data to these services, more are not. Around two in five consumers in both markets (40% each) say they disagree, registering 10-12-points higher. This suggests that cloud storage providers like Google Drive, OneDrive and iCloud among others haven’t yet convinced many consumers of their usefulness and safety.

Further analyzing the data reveals that younger consumers in both markets are more likely to say they store all their data to the cloud. Nearly half of consumers over 55 in both markets aren’t fully backed up into cloud services (48% GB and 50% US). But this number halves among 18-24-year-olds in both markets (24% GB and 26% US).

As seen in the overall figures, when broken down by age, Britons continue to be more likely than Americans to say they save all their data to the cloud. There’s at least a two-point difference between Brits who save all their data to the cloud and Americans who act similarly across all age groups.

Both American and British women are more comfortable than men with using cloud storage. While around a third of women are fully backed-up in the cloud (34% GB and 30% US), fewer men (27% GB and 25% US) do the same.

A similar number of women in both markets (34% GB and 35% US) aren’t saving data this way. Among men the figure increases by more than ten points to over two in five consumers (44% GB and 45% US).

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Methodology: The data is based on interviews of adults aged 18 and over in US and Great Britain with sample sizes of 1,488 in US and 2,014 in GB. All interviews were conducted online in April 2022. Data from both market uses a nationally representative sample.