Alternatives to AES Crypt
Free open-source cross-platform command-line and GUI tool for single-file AES-256 encrypti
AES Crypt ranks #7 of 11 in File encryption tools, with an Alt Score of 65. It is proprietary, sold as a one-time purchase from $39.99 and available on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. 7 of 9 checklist rows are verified against a public source.
AES Crypt is a free, open-source utility (since 2005) for encrypting individual files with the AES-256 cipher, available as both a GUI (right-click integration) and a command-line tool on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. It is intentionally simple and single-purpose, without vaults, key management, or cloud sync, appealing to users and scripts that just need to drop a password-protected .aes file.
Individuals, businesses, and server administrators who need to encrypt individual files (rather than whole disks or volumes) before storing them at an outside location, emailing them, or syncing them to cloud storage, on Windows, Mac, Linux/Unix, BSD, or Android.
A GUI (Windows right-click context menu, Mac drag-and-drop/Open-With) and a command-line tool (aescrypt) that encrypt and decrypt files using 256-bit AES in CBC mode, with a PBKDF2 (HMAC-SHA-512) key derivation function and HMAC-SHA-256 integrity checking; the software is sold as a perpetual, one-time-purchase license after a 30-day free trial, with source code published for inspection but not under an open license.
The user selects one or more files and supplies a password (or a generated key file for unattended/automated use), and AES Crypt produces a corresponding encrypted file with the same base name plus a ".aes" extension, leaving the original file untouched; decrypting reverses the process using the same password or key file, and the same file format is read and written identically across all supported operating systems.
Why people leave AES Crypt
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Ranked alternatives
Ordered by Alt Score. Click any score to see the breakdown.
AxCrypt is a file and folder encryption app that lets users right-click to encrypt individual files with AES-128/256, rather than mounting a container or volume.
BestCrypt Container Encryption, from Finnish vendor Jetico, creates mountable encrypted containers on Windows, macOS, Linux and Android, similar in concept to VeraCrypt.
NordLocker, from the makers of NordVPN, creates password-protected encrypted folders (lockers) on the user's device using AES-256 and Argon2, with drag-and-drop file/folder encryption and optional end.
Tomb (the Crypto Undertaker), maintained by the Dyne.org Foundation since 2007, is a lightweight shell-script CLI that wraps Linux's cryptsetup/LUKS to create, open and manage encrypted volume files (.
DiskCryptor is an open-source Windows encryption tool that can encrypt entire disks, partitions, external drives and file-based containers using AES, Twofish and Serpent.
Feature comparison
How AES Crypt compares with its alternatives, feature by feature.
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| File encryption tools checklist | AES Crypt | VeraCrypt | AxCrypt | BestCrypt Container Encryption | age | Cryptomator |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | ||||||
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| Per-file encryption | ||||||
| Cloud-friendly (per-file sync) | ||||||
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| Open source & audited | ||||||
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| CLI |
Every fact and feature listed for AES Crypt is verified against its own pages. Each alternative is sourced on its own page.
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Pricing model One-time verified 2026-07-30
30-day free trial precedes purchase; there is no ongoing subscription.
Purchased licenses for AES Crypt are perpetual (i.e., no expiration and no subscription) and are valid for all AES Crypt updates for the desktop or server releases.
https://www.aescrypt.com/download/ -
Status active verified 2026-07-30
Commit dated 2026-06-04, roughly two months before this research. The aescrypt_cli CHANGELOG's latest entry (v4.6.0) also lists ongoing feature work (KDF iteration increase, new stdin key-file input).
Corrected typo in comment
https://github.com/terrapane/aescrypt_cli/commit/4b716d182a364b2f1596be4436533592fd358d9b -
License Proprietary verified 2026-07-30
Source code is published for inspection on GitHub (terrapane org), but LICENSE.md there states the same commercial terms; no rights to the source are conveyed.
AES Crypt is commercial software published and supported by Terrapane Group, Inc.
https://www.aescrypt.com/license.html -
Starts at $39.99 verified 2026-07-30
Per-license one-time price for 1-19 units (Graduated License Pricing table); volume pricing drops to US$19.99/unit at 1000+. Android app is a separate purchase via Google Play; its price is not shown
1 - 19 ... US$39.99
https://www.aescrypt.com/buy/ -
Platforms Windows, macOS, Linux, Android verified 2026-07-30
Same page has dedicated Windows, macOS (Apple Silicon/Intel), and Linux (RPM/deb/Arch/tgz, plus FreeBSD/OpenBSD) download sections. iOS excluded: page states an authorized third-party (not Terrapane)
AES Crypt for Android is available as a separate purchase via Google Play.
https://www.aescrypt.com/download/ -
Container / volume encryption No verified 2026-07-30
.aes" extension." — AES Crypt operates strictly at the individual-file level; no mountable container or volume feature is described anywhere in the official Windows/Mac guides or the CLI reference.
AES Crypt will produce an encrypted file with the same name as the original file, but with an
https://www.aescrypt.com/windows_aes_crypt.html -
Per-file encryption Yes verified 2026-07-30
.aes" extension."
AES Crypt will produce an encrypted file with the same name as the original file, but with an
https://www.aescrypt.com/windows_aes_crypt.html -
Cloud-friendly (per-file sync) Yes verified 2026-07-30
Because each file is encrypted independently (see Per-file encryption), individual .aes files can be synced to cloud storage without needing to move a whole container.
A common use for servers running AES Crypt is facilitate secure, automated backup of a server where the encrypted backup file gets pushed to cloud storage or stored on external storage media.
https://www.aescrypt.com/faq.html#license -
Cross-platform Yes verified 2026-07-30
AES Crypt uses the same file format and encryption methods on all operating systems, so files can be easily exchanged between people who are using AES Crypt on different operating systems, including W
https://www.aescrypt.com/faq.html#interoperability -
Open source & audited Partial verified 2026-07-30
Source is published for inspection (source-available) on GitHub, but the LICENSE.md there confirms it is commercial/proprietary, not an OSI-style open license. No page reviewed mentions an independent
Our software source code is published for transparency to allow customers or potential customers to review the inner workings of AES Crypt. A license to use AES Crypt does not convey any rights to the
https://www.aescrypt.com/download/ -
Key files support Yes verified 2026-07-30
key file" in AES Crypt is pretty simple: it is merely a password stored in a file."
The concept of a
https://www.aescrypt.com/faq.html#key-files -
CLI Yes verified 2026-07-30
The AES Crypt command-line interface (CLI) program is available on Windows, Mac, and Linux/Unix systems an used to perform tasks directly from the command-line or via scheduled system tasks (e.g., cro
https://www.aescrypt.com/command_line.html
FAQ
Yes. VeraCrypt, AxCrypt and age have a free tier or are fully free. Free-tier limits in the comparison table are verified and dated.
VeraCrypt, age and Cryptomator — every license claim links its source.