I love Dropbox. Ever since I found it a few years ago, the way I share files with friends, family and colleagues has changed completely. Dropbox, and similar services, make sharing big files and multiple files as easy as saving them on your own computer. What could be better?
The first signs of trouble start if the person or people you want to share with don’t use Dropbox. True, it only takes a few minutes to set up, if they’re computer savvy, but what if they aren’t? Did you ever find yourself struggling to explain how to install Dropbox, wishing you could simply share a link to the file and be done with it? I know I have! And surprisingly, there are simpler ways to share files than Dropbox.
Below you will find a list of extra simple file-sharing services. With these services, there are no accounts, no clients and no interfaces to learn. Simply upload your file, get a link, and share it. Sounds simple enough? It is!
Dropcanvas
Dropcanvas is a beautiful file-sharing platform, which makes use of “canvases”. You can upload files to a canvas and share it with anyone – no account needed. Start by dragging a file or several files onto the canvas to upload them. Once all the files are uploaded, a unique link will be generated for the canvas you’ve just created. You can give this link to anyone or share it via email, Facebook, Twitter or Reddit. The person receiving the link has access to the canvas, can preview the files if they’re images, download them, rename them, remove them and upload more files to this canvas.
A canvas is limited to 5GB, but you can create as many as you wish, so there is no actual limit to the amount of files you can store and share this way. You can create a Dropcanvas account for better management options of your canvases.
Pastelink
Pastelink lets you share files in seconds, and is completely free of charge. All you have to do is drag your file into the above square, or click it to browse your files directly. The files are immediately uploaded, and once that’s done, you get a short but unique link you can share with anyone. The person receiving the link can use it to download the file. There’s no preview before downloading.
There is no limit to the number of files you can share with Pastelink, but you can’t share several files at the same time. You can share files up to 250MB, and if you create a free account, the limit is upped to 2GB, which is great for sending large videos, presentations, etc.
Snaggy
Snaggy is an awesome image-sharing tool, which even lets you edit your picture before sharing it. To upload an image to Snaggy, all you have to do is copy and paste. This means you don’t even need to have the file on your computer, you can copy an image from any website and paste it into Snaggy. Snaggy accepts whatever’s in your clipboard that can lead to an image; this means you can paste an image, a URL of an image, etc.
Once you paste, the image will be uploaded and you will receive a unique link you can share. You can also share the image via Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Digg and StumbleUpon. Snaggy only works with one image at a time.
The cherry on top is the simple image-editing tool; after uploading and before sharing, you can also crop, rotate, write or draw on your image. Did someone say awesome already?
Droplr
Droplr is a great way to share files that is as simple or as complex as you want it to be. For super-simple file sharing, simply drag a file into the square, and receive a link you can share. If you want, Droplr also offers a Mac or Windows client, and an iPhone app. The iPhone app can be used for quick syncing of files between your computer and iPhone, which is always useful.
On the downside, files are limited in size to only 25MB, which is pretty small compared to similar free services. Files you upload are deleted within 7 days, unless you register for an account.
Ge.tt
Ge.tt is yet another simple file-sharing service which you can use to share any kind of file instantly. Simply drag and drop a file or several files into the square to get a link. You can also use Ge.tt to share your files on Facebook, Twitter or Google+. The person who receives the link can preview the files (if they’re images), download them, rename the “folder” and remove the files.
You can use Ge.tt without creating an account, and your files will be delete after 30 days. If you create an account, you can keep the files and also get download and view stats about them. Ge.tt is an excellent way to share photo albums quickly and easily.
Clipica
Clipica is similar to Snaggy in that it only works with images, and in its copy-paste upload method. Simply paste any image on the page to have it appear there instantly. Clipica then lets you crop your image and choose its size before you actually upload it. When you’re all set, your image is uploaded and you’re presented with a very short and easy-to-remember URL, which you can also share on Facebook or Twitter.
Clipica is also the only service in this list that provides a QR code. Clicking the link leads to the uploaded image and nothing else. You can log in to Clipica using Facebook to save a history of your uploads, or simply use it anonymously, as much as you’d like.
Bottom Line
While there are many file-sharing services out there, these 6 are the simplest ones I could find, and absolutely anyone can use them. Think there are simpler or better ones? Tell me about them in the comments!
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Hide 78 Comments
What about min.us ?
min.us is a great option, I didn’t include it because it’s a much wider service and can be used for many things. It has lots of options, and might not be the best choice if you just want to share a file with someone who’s not tech savvy.
Ok, I understand your answer. I prove the 6 services and i will use dropcanvas as first option and ge.tt as second option.
Thanks for this article. ;)
Great for “on the go” file sharing.
Lots of option right now for sharing a file. Nice article, will use one of this to my needs. Thank you
Great info, except that you don’t have to be a Dropbox user to access shared Dropbox files. If you have a Dropbox account, you can share files or folders with anyone. Just copy and share the link via email or whatever.
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/dropbox-update-lets-easily-share-files-folders-updates/
Yes, I know about this option (I even wrote the article you linked to :) ). I guess I forgot to mention it in the article, though. But it’s nice to have easy alternatives anyway!
I use dropbox for most of my sharing. It’s so much easier than those services because all I have to do is drag a file into my dropbox folder and get the link for it. It is nice to have alternatives though. Dropcanvas looks pretty cool.
Saw the date posted, so this is current. Im not sure if you know this, but you can also get links to share from dropbox easily. Just right click on the file, hover to dropbox and click “get link”.
Easy as 1,2,3. Where is the hard part on that?
Yes, I know. I guess I should have made it clearer in the intro. Thanks for pointing it out! I still feel the services mentioned are easier for short-term file sharing, though.
Justbeamit is another awesome file sharing tool. There is no account to setup and no file limit. The file transfer is direct and only limited by your connection.
Looks like a great service, thanks!
Yep. I use it too. The only problems being that my internet connection is (really) slow, and you can only upload 2 GB of files. The concept is a great one though – direct file sharing over different internet connections.
I use Justbeamit as well, don’t b eleive that it gets much easier than this. as far as the 2Gb goes, most files don’t reach this limit and if they does it isn’t difficult to split the file.
Brian
justbeamit.com is also a great way to share files
Thanks!
Excellent article. But dropbox is dropbox. I always use dropbox to share files with my clients.
I love Dropbox, I still haven’t found anything better. These services are for more short-term purposes, not for steady clients you always have to share files with.
Quite confused. You were the one wrote this article
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/dropbox-update-lets-easily-share-files-folders-updates/
LOL
anyways nice alternatives, thanks for posting :)
Yes! I know I know. :) I was just trying to get a point across. These services are better than Dropbox in that you don’t need accounts and can simply start sharing. I guess my specific example was confusing. :)
Sharing made easier. Good to know that some file sharing service allow us to share without having an account.
Hi,
There are many more file sharing websites available with good amount of storage space as well. One can share link,share file itself and some websites(4shared.com) gives freedom to copy and paste the file to our account after searching.This is cool.
Skydrive has that feature. It provides a download link for people without skydrive accounts. You can also choose between providing authorization to edit those files or just view and download.
Thanks for pointing it out. Dropbox has that feature too, but at least one side needs to have an existing account.
Sharefile.com – now a Citrix property – is another excellent & simple option.
Thank you!
Do these online services will go out just like some video downloading,pdf converter sites?
I’m not sure I understand the question…
Some will probably go the way of the dodo, but given that they’re used for temporary exchange of files, this is not going to a major problem ; – )
Great article, will share big time!
We use ‘wetransfer.com’ Up to 2GB per session. Fill out the email address of the recipient(s), fill out your own email address, select the files to transfer and upload.
You will receive email about progress, i.e. upload and download. Forgot a recipient? Sent them the link in the progress email. And all FREE
Just too many choices, but I think I’ll try DropCanvas to get pics & files to my “un-geeky” mother.
For real-time peer-to-peer free file transfer, try dushare.com. It’s P2P, so the file is transferred from your computer to your recipients without first being stored on dushare
Nice list!! I would be more happy to see a larges list including popular services like min.us and justbeamit.com! But I have to agree these are the simplest one!!
Does anyone remember drop.io
I used it heavily around 2008. You could see image previews as well as listen to songs on the inbuilt webplayer. It could also fetch files through download links. So sad they had to shut it down. :-(
Anyways, I use Skydrive now – the next best thing…
Thank you Make Use of! Lots of useful sites. I like pastelink and ge.tt the most. ridiculously easy! my two kids can use it!
Picasa and Minus for photo.
FileDropper and SkyDrive for other filetypes.
Thanks Yaara. Probably will use some of them in the near future, although with Dropbox I can do the vast majority of the features you mention in the services discussed in your post.
It’s true that you can do it all with Dropbox (it’s what I usually do). These services are more for when you need to share files quickly without opening accounts anywhere, etc.
A very nice article indeed! Though the alternatives mentioned here in this article are simple and could be used for short term purpose but personally I don’t think there’s any comparison between dropbox and these file sharing services. I still love dropbox. I have been using it for a quite long time and I am really happy with it. Anyway thanks for sharing the info. :)
Dropbox is a name people recognize, so it’s easy to make the comparison and give people context.
I agree that these don’t have to replace Dropbox, they can be used alongside it for different purposes. For some people, it can be a good replacement, though. Depends on what you use Dropbox for.
As for me, I can’t leave dropbox. :D So I use http://views.fm to integrate my dropbox features. views.fm has user friendly and easy ways to share files from dropbox.
Looks cool, thanks!
After experiencing a number of document sharing services and their intrusive collection and selling of very personal/business information, I only recommend Skydrive. Sharing files, photos along with group collaboration is a snap, and yes you can email a link to non-account holders to share files. I can be anywhere with a connected web browser and easily create and edit content on-line using Word, Excel, PowerPoint even OneNote. Microsoft’s Skydrive provides all this with up to 7gb storage for FREE.
Great article! There must be tons of them! I use this one https://www.wetransfer.com/ to send photos(mostly) to friends and bands. It’s a great service.
There does seem to be quite an abundance of these services. Didn’t know about this one, thanks!
Why don’t you ever mention YouSendIt.
This is the best service ever.
YouSendIt is not a free service, and even the free trial requires registration. It might be a great service, but it’s not a good fit for this article.
It is nice to see alternatives that do not require a login. Also, 2Gb of storage is quite generous for the majority of users.
clipica looks cool..
Great website! Regarding the 6 file sharing recommendations, is there a way with any of them to prevent a person from inadvertently deleting the files I’m trying to share? This is a problem with Dropbox and frequently I’ve had to repost the files that I’m trying to share with a group of people because someone inadvertently deleted them.
Thanks for any suggestions you can share.
Ron
I believe Pastelink only provides a way to download the shared file, without the ability to remove it. Hope that solves your problem!
I appreciate the post and research you’ve done, but in truth none of these match-up to dropbox as each has it’s draw-backs many which are definite deal-breakers to most users (single file at a time / images only / very restrictive space / temporary storage deletes over time, etc), can’t envision any of these options even coming close to dropbox as alternatives. They don’t compare. I will offer a few alternatives I’ve come across …
Folders.io
-> (very similar to dropbox), no sign-up for small files, super easy to get started / use, 2GB limit, not as convenient overall as dropbox folder on your desktop but a nice alternative that’s as close as any seem to be.
box.com
Google Drive I’m starting to learn is fairly convenient for quick access forwarding/sharing files, serves a different purpose entirely. dropbox = a place teams can post and share documents like large reports or lots of photos, google drive = a place to store commonly sent files (example independent contract agreement forms, etc, easy attach docs to calendars/meetings etc)
Thank you Mike for the elaborate comment!
I didn’t mean to suggest any of these services could replace Dropbox entirely, only for certain purposes. I’m definitely not giving up Dropbox any time soon. :)
Am new to this site and had been impressed with the contents.
Droplr got a nice interface, it’s really easy to use. I took few seconds to teach my mother how to use it!
That’s awesome!
this is usefull
MediaFire.com, hands down! They used to be one of those ultra-easy services where you didn’t even need an account. Now since they’ve been adding a bunch of new features, I’m pretty sure you have to create an account, but it’s still really easy. Check out the new image viewer/browser! They just put it out like a day or two ago (first I noticed it anyway).
Thanks! MediaFire always seemed more like Dropbox to me, with plenty more features but also a mandatory account and everything. I didn’t know it back when they didn’t require an account.
Dropbox=Crap Dropcanvas=Mind exploding awesome. Thanks so much you take the work out of the internet. Lol
This is Great Info! My Folks are in their late 60′s and early 70′s and at this age they want simple, hehe.
Lots of people commenting they like DropBox, and I like it too. But I wonder how many are aware of the leak of member email addresses that just occurred. If you’ve just started getting online gambling spam, as I have, then your address has likely been leaked. I know this was from DropBox in my case because I use disposable email addresses and the gambling spam I received was sent to the address that I only use for DropBox. Needless to say, I’m disposing of that address and changing to a new one for DropBox.
I haven’t heard of this… thanks!
I routinely share files with people using a link from Dropbox. You may want to update the intro to this story to not indicate that this is a limitation
Having said that, I will now be investigating some of these options! Great post.
Hi Greg,
Yes, you’re right in that it is possible to share files quickly in Dropbox. That being said, I still think the websites I mentioned make it easier for certain circumstances. Hope you can make use of them!
very nice & useful services !
I like the snaggy idea just crtl+V. :D
I try snag.gy but just loading
They are good but not the best…I go with Dropbox then Google Drive
Thank you for sharing.
I use http://www.mediafire.com/
It is a excellent file sharing website. It offers a free account that you can sign up for, or you can use the web upload with out a user account. It even offers apps for windows, Linux, and Mac, where you can upload from your desktop. It includes a ssl encryption for pro users, but free uses the normal protecall.
Very nice. I have non-techy friends and family. Now I don’t have to spend “hours” walking them thru, step-by-step … oh, you get the picture.
Quite agree – very user friendly options for non-techy contacts
Justbeamit.com is great too!
Just like @Ashay I used to use the crap out of Drop.Io. That void has been filled for me by the awesomeness that is Dropmark:
http://dropmark.com
Really dig how it blurs the line between online and off by being able to share downloads alongside online content.
Dropmark looks awesome, thanks Darcy!
can’t believe I hadn’t heard of most of these, thanking for all the great links for sharing files