iCloud

iCloud for Windows is Apple's desktop client for its cloud storage and sync service. Once you sign in with an Apple Account, iCloud Drive appears as a folder in File Explorer, so cloud files can be opened, edited and shared with links the same way local files are. Files stay in sync in both directions, so a document saved on an iPhone shows up on the PC without a manual transfer step.

Beyond file storage, the app brings across several other parts of the Apple ecosystem. iCloud Photos makes the photo and video library available on the PC, including Shared Albums and the Shared Photo Library. Contacts and calendars sync through Microsoft Outlook, Safari bookmarks are mirrored into a Windows browser, and a companion iCloud Passwords component handles saved credentials and browser autofill.

The app is distributed through the Microsoft Store rather than as a standalone installer from Apple's site, and it needs a recent build of Windows 10 or Windows 11 along with both a Microsoft account and an Apple Account. Apple also states that managed Apple Accounts and accounts secured with hardware security keys are not supported by the Windows client.

This is a sensible pick for anyone running a mixed setup with Apple hardware and a Windows PC, and it is the only supported way to reach an iCloud library from the desktop. It is not a general purpose cloud drive: everything runs through an Apple Account, storage is shared with iPhone and iPad backups, and the free allowance is small enough that heavy photo users will run into it quickly. Someone with no Apple devices has little reason to install it.