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From your Mac

The best file sharing apps for Mac.

Your Mac already has most of what you need. Here's what each option is best at, with the facts from Apple's and Google's own help pages.

Quick picks

  • Someone in the same room, on Apple: AirDrop.
  • A big file by email: Mail Drop.
  • Anyone, on any device: a Google Drive link.
  • Someone you already text: Messages.
  • The same few people, over and over: Sendoff.

AirDrop

Best for: a nearby iPhone, iPad or Mac, including your own.

AirDrop sends photos, videos, documents and more without a cable. Both devices need Wi-Fi and Bluetooth on and need to be within 30 feet (10 meters). The other person accepts or declines each transfer, and transfers are encrypted. Between your own devices signed in to the same Apple Account, items are accepted automatically. On a Mac, click Share in the toolbar and choose AirDrop, or drag the file onto someone in the AirDrop window in Finder.

Keep in mind: it only works with Apple devices. Apple says it’s best for a small selection of files. More: Sendoff vs AirDrop, AirDrop alternatives for Mac and AirDrop not working?

Mail Drop

Best for: emailing a file too big for a normal attachment.

Mail Drop is built into Apple Mail. It uploads attachments up to 5 GB to iCloud, and the people you send to get 30 days to download them. Mail Drop attachments don’t count against your iCloud storage. You need to be signed in to your Apple Account. To check it’s on, choose Mail > Settings > Accounts > Account Information.

Keep in mind: it won’t send an uncompressed folder, so compress it first (how). The recipient’s email app may have a smaller limit. Stuck? See Mail Drop not working on Mac.

Google Drive links

Best for: sending to anyone, on any device, including Windows and Android.

Upload the file at drive.google.com, click Share, then under General access choose “Anyone with the link” and copy the link. People with the link can open it without signing in to a Google Account. Gmail does this for you when attachments go over its 25 MB limit for personal accounts. If you’d rather work from Finder, Google Drive for desktop puts your Drive files on your Mac like any other drive.

Keep in mind: uploads count toward your Google storage, and work or school accounts may block link sharing. More: File too large for Gmail? and WeTransfer vs Google Drive.

Messages

Best for: people you already text.

With iMessage, you can send documents, high-resolution photos and videos, and links to another Apple device over Wi-Fi or cellular, and the conversation is end-to-end encrypted. On a Mac, drag a photo or video into the message field and press Return. If you have an iPhone, your Mac can also send SMS, MMS or RCS texts to any mobile phone, depending on your carrier and region.

Keep in mind: iMessage is for Apple devices. SMS and MMS aren’t end-to-end encrypted. More: Send a file by iMessage and AirDrop vs iMessage.

Sendoff

Best for: the people you send to most: your accountant, your teammate, your mom.

Sendoff is our app, so weigh this one accordingly. It lives in the MacBook notch. Drop a file, pick the person, press Send off. It ranks your regulars by how often you send to them and remembers whether each one gets Gmail or iMessage. It routes around what won’t work: a 48 MB video for someone you usually email goes by iMessage instead. It’s all keyboard, with 3 seconds to undo. Slack is coming soon.

Keep in mind: it’s not out yet, and it sends by Gmail or iMessage, not AirDrop.

Try Sendoff

Join the waitlist below, and tick the beta box if you want to test it first.