Around
Dropbox Paper
| Feature | Around | Dropbox Paper |
|---|---|---|
| Pricing | Free / from $10/mo | Free / from $11.99/mo |
| Free Plan | ✓ Yes | ✓ Yes |
| Rating | 4.3 / 5 | 4 / 5 |
| Best For | remote-teams, hybrid-teams, developers, creative-teams | small-teams, startups, dropbox-users, creative-teams |
| Founded | 2019 | 2015 |
| Floating Bubbles | ✓ | ✗ |
| Noise Cancellation | ✓ | ✗ |
| Auto Leveling | ✓ | ✗ |
| Screen Sharing | ✓ | ✗ |
| Reactions | ✓ | ✗ |
| Meeting Notes | ✓ | ✗ |
| Calendar Integration | ✓ | ✗ |
| Collaborative Editing | ✗ | ✓ |
| Task Lists | ✗ | ✓ |
| Timelines | ✗ | ✓ |
| Media Embedding | ✗ | ✓ |
| Templates | ✗ | ✓ |
| Presentations | ✗ | ✓ |
✓ Around Pros
- Minimal screen footprint with floating video bubbles
- Excellent AI noise cancellation
- Auto-equalizes audio levels between participants
- Designed for casual always-on collaboration
✗ Around Cons
- Limited features for formal presentations
- Smaller user base than major platforms
- No recording on free plan
✓ Dropbox Paper Pros
- Clean interface
- Good for teams
- Embedded media
- Free with Dropbox
✗ Dropbox Paper Cons
- Limited formatting
- Tied to Dropbox
- Basic features
The Verdict
Around is built for remote teams and hybrid teams, with a focus on floating-bubbles and noise-cancellation. Dropbox Paper targets small teams and startups and leads with collaborative-editing and task-lists.
Pricing is close: Around starts at $10/mo versus $11.99/mo for Dropbox Paper — not a deciding factor on its own.
Both offer free plans, so you can test each with your real workflow before committing to a subscription.
Feature-wise, Around offers broader built-in capabilities (7 features vs 6), while Dropbox Paper takes a more focused approach — which can mean a simpler, faster onboarding experience.
Both tools are a solid fit for creative teams — in those cases, the decision often comes down to workflow style and how your team prefers to organize work.
Bottom line: Around has a slight overall edge — but if clean interface matters most to you, Dropbox Paper may still be the right call.