Open Transfer
AirDrop for every device. Your Windows PC, Mac, Android phone and Samsung tablet find each other on the same Wi‑Fi — pick one, several or all of them and send. Files go straight from device to device. No account, no cloud. Devices without the app can join from any browser by scanning a QR code.
Website · Download · Docs
▶ Watch the 20-second demo with sound · recorded from the real app: four devices, one real transfer
Contents
Why Open Transfer
| Open Transfer | AirDrop | Cloud drives |
|---|
| Windows ↔ Mac ↔ Android ↔ tablets, in any direction | ✅ | Apple only | ✅ |
| Finds nearby devices automatically, sends to the ones you pick | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Device to device — files never leave your network | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Works on devices without the app (any browser, via QR code) | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| No account, no size caps, no subscription | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ |
| Open source, self-hostable, scriptable (curl) | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ |
Quick start
Option 1 — Download the app (no Python needed)
Install it on each device from the latest release. Open it on two devices on the same Wi‑Fi and they appear in each other's Nearby devices.
| Device | File | First launch |
|---|
| Windows 10/11 (x64) | open-transfer-windows-x64.exe | SmartScreen may warn about an unknown publisher → More info → Run anyway. Allow Private networks when the firewall asks (needed to be found). |
| macOS 11+ Apple silicon | open-transfer-macos-arm64.dmg | Open the .dmg, drag Open Transfer to Applications. The app isn't notarised yet: the first time, right-click → Open (or System Settings → Privacy & Security → Open Anyway). Allow local network access when asked. |
| macOS 11+ Intel | open-transfer-macos-x64.dmg | Same as above. |
| Android 10+ phones & tablets (incl. Samsung Galaxy Tab) | open-transfer-android.apk | Allow installing from your browser/Files app when Android asks ("Install unknown apps"). Allow notifications so you see incoming files. 64-bit devices only. |
| Linux (x64, command line) | open-transfer-linux-x64.tar.gz | tar -xzf open-transfer-linux-x64.tar.gz && ./open-transfer — opens in your browser |
Received files go to Downloads/Open Transfer on every platform.
With Homebrew (Mac): brew install --cask itsonu/tap/open-transfer. The first launch needs the same Open Anyway step as above.
Check your download (optional): every release has a SHA256SUMS file. Put it next to what you downloaded and run shasum -a 256 -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing (macOS) or sha256sum -c SHA256SUMS --ignore-missing (Linux); each file should say OK. On Windows: Get-FileHash .\open-transfer-windows-x64.exe and compare with the line in SHA256SUMS.
iPhone / iPad, or a device you can't install on? Open the link or scan the QR code shown under Add device on any device that runs the app. The browser joins the group and can send and receive (through that device).
Build the apps yourself (Python 3.10+, on the OS you want it for):
python3 scripts/build_app.py --desktop # Windows: dist/Open Transfer.exe · macOS: dist/open-transfer-macos-<arch>.dmg
python3 scripts/build_app.py # the single-file command-line build
gradle -p android assembleRelease # Android (needs the Android SDK; see android/README.md)
CI builds every platform on each run (downloadable from the run's Artifacts) and smoke-tests them: the desktop apps open their real window, and the Android app receives a real transfer in an emulator.
Option 2 — Run from source
You need Python 3.10+ (download). Everything else is installed for you in a private .venv folder on first run.
macOS / Linux
git clone https://github.com/itsonu/open-transfer.git
cd open-transfer
./run.sh
Windows (PowerShell)
git clone https://github.com/itsonu/open-transfer.git
cd open-transfer
.\run.ps1
Your browser opens and the terminal shows the address and a QR code:
Open Transfer v3.0.0
This device Studio-Mac · visible to nearby devices
On this computer http://localhost:5000
On your network http://192.168.1.24:5000
Saving files to /Users/you/open-transfer/uploads
Scan with your phone's camera:
▄▄▄▄▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄ ▄▄▄▄▄▄▄
█ ▄▄▄ █ ▀█▄▀ █ ▄▄▄ █ …
This is the beginning of the README. Read the rest at the original. Read the full README ↗
