The best AirDrop alternatives for Windows and Android
Published
AirDrop is great until a Windows PC or an Android phone is involved. Here are the main ways to send files across all your devices, and when each one makes sense.
1. Browser-based sharing (OmniBeam, PairDrop, Snapdrop)
Open the same website on both devices and they find each other, much like AirDrop. Nothing to install, it works on iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac and Linux, and files go directly between the devices when the network allows it.
OmniBeam adds pairing codes for different networks, end-to-end encryption when the direct path fails, resume after a dropped connection, links for people who aren't online, and an optional Windows tray app.
2. Quick Share (Android and Windows)
Google's Quick Share works well between Android phones and Windows PCs with Bluetooth and Wi‑Fi. It doesn't support iPhones, and the PC needs the Quick Share app.
3. LocalSend
A free, open-source app for every platform that sends files over your local network. Very fast, but it must be installed on each device and only works when both are on the same network.
4. Cloud links (Google Drive, OneDrive, WeTransfer)
Upload, then share a link. Good for sending to someone far away or for keeping a copy, but every file goes up to the internet and back down, which is slow for big videos, and the files sit on someone else's server.
5. Messaging apps
Quick for a photo or two, but most chat apps compress pictures and videos. See how to keep full quality.
Which one to choose
- Mixed devices, nothing to install: a browser app such as OmniBeam.
- Only Android and Windows: Quick Share.
- Lots of large files on one network, every day: LocalSend, or OmniBeam in the browser on the same Wi‑Fi.
- Someone who isn't online right now: a link. OmniBeam's links are encrypted on your device and expire on their own.
Side-by-side details are in Compare OmniBeam.