any phone · which app

Which app to transfer files from your mobile or phone to your PC

Short answer: for your own phone and your own computer, on the same Wi-Fi, use an app that sends the original file directly and checks it on arrival. ZiggSend does that on iPhone, Android, Mac and Windows, free, with no account. Here is how the other options compare, including where each one is the better pick.

On the computer: Windows · MacOn the phone: App Store · Google Play

What to check before you pick one

Seven questions settle it. Does it run on your phone and your computer (iPhone and Windows is the pair most apps skip)? Does the file arrive as the original, or recompressed? Does it go device to device, or through a server? Does it check what arrived? Is there a size cap? Does it resume a transfer that dropped? And what does it cost, including ads. The table answers them for the seven paths people actually search for.

The seven options, side by side

AppPhone → computerPath and checkPrice
ZiggSendiPhone, Android → Mac, WindowsDirect over your Wi-Fi (or a cable, Android to Mac); SHA-256 on every file after it is on disk; resumesFree forever; Founder badge optional
LocalSendiPhone, Android → Mac, Windows, LinuxDirect, same network; SHA-256 since 1.18, can be switched offFree, open source
Quick ShareAndroid → Windows (no Mac app)Direct if the PC has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi; check not advertisedFree
Phone LinkAndroid → Windows 10/11; iPhone only messages and the share sheetMicrosoft account; check not advertisedFree
PairDrop / SnapdropAny browser → any browserDirect, a tab open on each side; check not documentedFree, open source
Send AnywhereiPhone, Android → Mac, Windows, webLinks and “send to device” go through their servers (up to 48 h); check not advertisedFree with ads
USB cableAndroid (MTP), iPhone (Photos import) → Windows; Mac without Android File TransferDirect; no check at allAlready in your drawer

Where each one fits

A couple of photos to a friend on the same Wi-Fi: LocalSend or PairDrop, nothing to set up. Android to a Windows PC that pairs cleanly: Quick Share is fine. Messages and calls on the PC: Phone Link. Sending to someone in another city: Send Anywhere’s key or a cloud link. A camera roll, a 4K clip, a client’s footage or a folder you would mind losing, between your own phone and your own computer: an app that moves the original directly and proves it arrived — the column ZiggSend was built for.

What ZiggSend does differently

Every file is checked after it is written to disk, before it gets its final name, and the fingerprint stays in History for you to compare. A dropped transfer resumes where it stopped instead of starting over. The computer app works with several phones, and from Android to a Mac there is also a cable mode that replaces the retired Android File Transfer. Nothing is uploaded anywhere, there is no account, and the apps are free on every platform.

Step by step, under a minute

Install ZiggSend on the computer (Windows or Mac) and the free app on the phone. Open both on the same Wi-Fi. On the phone, tap Connect phone or computer and point the camera at the QR code on the computer screen. Pick the files and send; they land in a folder on the computer, shown on screen as they arrive, each one verified. We measured 806 MB in 46 s on home Wi-Fi and up to 49.7 MB/s from a Mac to an iPhone (method on How we measure).

Measured, not promised. 22 GB in 184 files with 0 failures from an Android to a Mac over a USB 2 cable (about 28 MB/s); an 806 MB video over home Wi-Fi in 46 s; up to 49.7 MB/s over Wi-Fi from a Mac to an iPhone. Every file is checked against the original on arrival. How we measure.

What people ask before they trust a transfer app

“I don’t trust my private photos to a site I don’t know.”

Neither do we. ZiggSend has no site in the middle: the file goes from one device to the other over your home Wi-Fi (or, from Android to a Mac, a cable), and no file is stored anywhere else. The computer app only contacts ZiggSend to check for updates, to register a random install ID when it opens and, once you buy it, to activate the license and check its status once a day; the privacy policy lists exactly what goes out.

“Mine fails at 64% every time.”

A transfer that breaks resumes where it stopped. Every file is written as a temporary part and only gets its final name after the SHA-256 check passes — you never end up with a half file that looks whole.

“I’m out of space and need to empty the phone.”

Move everything to the computer first: only files that pass the SHA-256 check get their final name, and History shows each fingerprint. Then delete on the phone. Originals, no size limit.

Free forever, on your phone and on your computer.

No account, no ads, no limits. Want to help ZiggSend grow and keep improving? Become a Founder for $9.99, once.

Get ZiggSend

On the computer: Windows · MacOn the phone: App Store · Google Play

Questions people actually ask

Can I transfer files with a QR code?

Yes. That is how ZiggSend pairs: the computer shows a QR code, the phone points its camera at it once, and from then on sending is one gesture. Between two phones, one shows its QR and the other reads it.

And between two phones?

ZiggSend connects an Android and an iPhone, or two of the same, over the same Wi-Fi: one shows its QR code, the other reads it, and the file goes across as the original. LocalSend does this too.

Does a video exported from CapCut or another editor arrive whole?

Yes. ZiggSend sends the file as it is on the phone, whatever app made it, and checks it on arrival. The only thing that shrinks a video is a path that recompresses it, like WhatsApp as media.

Which app transfers photos from an iPhone to a computer?

ZiggSend on the iPhone sends photos and videos to a Mac or a Windows PC as originals (HEIC, HEVC, ProRAW); with iCloud optimization on, it downloads the original from iCloud first. LocalSend covers the same pair without the on-disk check.

Is there a free mobile to PC file transfer app to download?

Yes, several. ZiggSend and LocalSend are free on the phone and on the computer; Quick Share and Phone Link come with Android and Windows; PairDrop runs in the browser. The differences are the pairs they cover (iPhone with Windows, Android with Mac) and whether anyone checks the file that arrived.

Which app works with an iPhone and a Windows PC?

ZiggSend, LocalSend and Send Anywhere have apps on both sides. Phone Link on iPhone only passes files through the share sheet; Quick Share and AirDrop do not cover that pair at all.

Does it work without internet?

ZiggSend, LocalSend and PairDrop need the two devices on the same Wi-Fi network, not an internet connection; a phone hotspot also works. Send Anywhere’s links and Phone Link’s account sign-in need internet.

Which is the fastest?

On the same Wi-Fi, apps that send directly are limited by your router, not by a server. ZiggSend measured 806 MB in 46 s over home Wi-Fi and 22 GB over a USB 2 cable from Android to a Mac with zero failures; Bluetooth stays at a fraction of a megabyte per second, and cloud links depend on your upload speed.

Related guides

Videos from a phone to a PC or laptop without compressionVideos from Android to a Mac or MacBook without compressionVideos from iPhone to a Mac or MacBook without compressioniPhone not showing up in WindowsPC not recognizing your phone over USBOpen HEIC files on Windows

Compared with

ZiggSend vs LocalSendZiggSend vs Quick Share (ex Nearby Share)ZiggSend vs Phone LinkZiggSend vs Snapdrop and PairDropZiggSend vs Send AnywhereZiggSend vs USB cable