How to have friends download files

Best Tech Gifts for Kids Aged Awesome PC Accessories. Best Linux Laptops. Best Bluetooth Trackers. Best eReaders. Best Gaming Monitors. Best Android Phones. Browse All News Articles. TikTok Samsung TV. Spotify Shuffle Play Button. Windows 11 Performance. Edge Shopping Features. Spotify Lyrics. Windows 11 Mute Keyboard Shortcut. Edge Buy Now Pay Later. Windows 10 November Update. Apple Self Service Repair.

Find Downloaded Files on an iPhone. Use Your iPhone as a Webcam. Hide Private Photos on iPhone. Take Screenshot by Tapping Back of iPhone. Should You Upgrade to Windows 11? Browse All Windows Articles. OneDrive Windows 7 and 8. Copy and Paste Between Android and Windows. Protect Windows 10 From Internet Explorer. Mozilla Fights Double Standard. Connect to a Hidden Wi-Fi Network. Change the Size of the Touch Keyboard. Dear Lifehacker, I share a lot of large files with my friends, but it seems like everyone uses different services.

What's the easiest way to do it? Dear ST, If you can, the easiest way to share large files with friends is when you're near their computer , but that's not always an option. Thankfully, you have a bunch of solid ways to share big files over the internet. Depending on who and what you're sharing, some of your options are better suited than others.

Let's take a look at what's best and when. Show the supply chain who's boss Get a head start on your holiday shopping at Amazon, Target, Best Buy, and more. Cloud storage is typically the easiest way to share big files provided you already have an account and you have the storage space. Any of the big cloud storage providers, from Dropbox to Google Drive have ways to share a link to any file you have uploaded to their servers.

Unfortunately, most of these services have small file size limits. This means if you're sharing single, very large files, cloud storage often won't do the trick. Still, if your file size fits within the requirements of your cloud storage provider, it's the easiest way to share a link to download with your friends. It takes a little while to upload the file before you can share it, but if you're not in a hurry it's usually the simplest method. If you don't want to go through a third-party service, you have a bunch of massive files to share, or you're just sick of messing around with web apps, you can share files directly from your computer with a little set up.

You have a few options here, and each has their own strengths and weaknesses. With a range of secure file-sharing services and ones that are more collaboration-friendly, this list should have something for you.

However, if none of these options suit you, check out our full list of the best cloud storage providers, most of which have some sharing features. There are two ways to share with Sync.

The team-shared folders are great for collaboration and have some decent permissions, such as limiting users to view-only mode or stopping them from seeing who has access to the folder. The free plan lets you own three of these folders with some options, but this is unlimited for more premium plans. Similar to team folders, Sync. However, once created, you can easily share these via email or any chat app and secure them with an array of security features. Not only does Sync. There are even more options with a paid plan.

You can add an expiry date, download limit, preview-only mode and email notifications for any activity on your links. After spending some time getting used to the settings and permissions you can alter, Sync. The Basic plan will also give you access to helpful features like the advanced sharing tools, making it even better value.

If you want to learn more, read our full Sync. Much like Sync. There are no limits on how many of these you create, but remember that only pCloud business accounts can share encrypted folders. You can also create a sharing link and send that to people. These options are a little limited, but if you want to learn more, read our full pCloud review. Not only does pCloud have some nice sharing features on its main platform, but it also hosts pCloud Transfer.

This lets you send files of up to 5GB to up to 10 recipients. You can also encrypt the files with a password to keep them safe from prying eyes. Google Drive gives you less freedom than some other providers when sharing files, with only three permission levels available: viewing, commenting or editing. There are no passwords, expiry dates, end-to-end encryption or download limits, and everyone who has access sees any updates to the document in real time.

However, while Google Drive lacks in privacy and sharing options, it has plenty of collaboration features. You can send invites to people without Google accounts, and they can access the files as anonymous users. Learn more by reading our Google Drive review. The biggest feature that aids collaboration is Google Docs. This free online office software is great for working with others. You can make comments and suggestions, edit the page directly and use the full history to see what people have changed.

It even lets up to people work on a single document simultaneously, with everything kept in sync. WeTransfer is a dedicated transfer platform, so rather than sharing files stored in your account, you go to the website , add files and immediately send a link to the recipients.