This isn't the first time that ES File Manager has been flagged for deliberately installing instrusive bloatware
!! (Can't remember if it was removed from the Play Store for policy violations the last time they did it though???) Can't remember exactly when it was either, (2, maybe 3 years ago now), It was pretty controversial at the time.
Personally, I've avoided using it since & only used it if I was completely stuck & had no other choice. Otherwise, I removed it from all but 1 device a long time ago.
I've always used the paid version of
File Commander (FK) with Android which has always been excellent & it's pretty much the main alternative to ES. I use it on all of my Android devices & it's damn handy. But, they've made some unpopular changes to FK recently
. It has a free version but that has some restrictions & obviously has the usual ads in app. FK has many similar features to ES & it's easy to configure the app & if you login it'll sync your in app settings & preferences across your devices. It can access all of my SMB network shares, (I can easily move, alter or delete files on my Synology NAS boxes from the File Commander app for example). It can also easily access several cloud based services (Google Drive, OneDrive, Amazon, Dropbox, etc.), & it has an FTP facility like ES too, (not that I use it). It also has a direct to PC transfer.
The problem is.... I have the original "premium" version which just involved a one off payment upfront like most apps & I can install it on all of my Android devices.
(As such it works well for me, it's done & paid for!!!) However, they've recently been making some unpopular changes to make the app subscription based annually
. I'm not sure if the "premium" version is still available from the Play Store, but it's probably available somewhere on apk mirror sites etc.
I also use it in conjunction with OfficeSuite Pro from the same company. Again, I got the original "Pro" version which was also a one off upfront payment, I can install it on all of my devices & I even get the free Windows version as well, (or at least I did lol, I haven't used/checked that recently). However, they've also made changes to that based on annual subscription fees as well
.
In the past changes to File Commander were criticised on the Play Store review system by so many paid users that it caused them to roll back the changes at the time
.
If you're happy to pay for File Commander it's pretty much the best alternative to ES File Manager. It is an excellent app & it's done everything I need which meant I could bin ES File Explorer. I just don't agree with these changes they've made to the annual subscription fees instead of paying for the app once upfront.
.
It really depends what you need subjectively.