Dropbox Transfer is a simple way to send files you don’t need to collaborate on. For example, you might use Dropbox Transfer to deliver a finished product or contract to a client.
Dropbox Transfer gives transfer owners more control than sharing a folder because:
- Transfer owners can see the number of times a transfer was viewed or downloaded
- Files shared via a transfer won’t appear in the recipient’s Dropbox folder
- Transfers automatically expire after 7 days
- Recipients can’t edit files within a transfer
When you send a transfer, the recipient will receive a link with your name, the name of your transfer, a list of file names and sizes, and the expiration date of the transfer. Recipients can share the transfer link. A Dropbox account is not required to access or download a transfer.
The size limit of your transfer depends on the plan you have.
- Basic (free): 100MB
- Plus: 2GB
- Family: 2GB
- Professional: 100GB
- Business Standard: 2GB
- Business Advanced, Enterprise, or Education: 100GB
Note: Members of Dropbox Business teams that have purchased the Creative Tools Add-On can send transfers up to 250 GB in size.
Customers on a Dropbox Professional, Business Advanced, Enterprise, or Education plan have the option to customize transfers with expiration dates, passwords, and a logo or background, and to see who has viewed or downloaded a transfer.
How to create a transfer
To create a transfer on dropbox.com:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click Create transfer.
- You can add files to your transfer in one of three ways:
- Click the plus icon
- Drag and drop files from your computer
- Click Add from Dropbox
- Click the edit icon (pencil) to enter a name for your transfer, if you’d like.
- Click the gear icon to set an expiration date or password.
- Transfers are automatically set to expire after 7 days, but Professional, Business Advanced, Enterprise, and Education users have the option to add a password and increase the expiration, up to a year.
- Click Create transfer.
- Click Copy link or Send with email.
To create a transfer from your computer:
- Finder (Mac), File Explorer (Windows), or the Dropbox folder on your computer.
- Right-click the file or folder you’d like to add to the transfer.
- Click Send with Transfer…
- Click the gear icon to set an expiration date or password.
- Transfers are automatically set to expire after 7 days, but Professional, Business Advanced, Enterprise, and Education users have the option to add a password and increase the expiration, up to a year.
- Click Create transfer.
- Click Copy link or Send with email to share your transfer link.
Note: The Dropbox desktop app must be installed to send transfers from your computer.
Dropbox Basic, Plus, Family, and Professional users can create a transfer using an iOS device. To do so:
- Open the Dropbox app on your iPhone/iPad.
- Tap Create (plus icon).
- Tap Transfer Files.
- Tap Add from Dropbox or Add from Camera Roll and select files to add to your transfer.
- Note: You can’t add folders to a transfer on iOS at this time
- Tap Continue.
- Tap Set expiration to choose an expiration date.
- Transfers are automatically set to expire after 7 days. Any user can decrease the number of days, but Professional users have the option to increase the expiration, up to a year.
- Tap Add password to add a password for your transfer (available only to Dropbox Professional users).
- Tap Continue.
- Tap Email or Get link to share your transfer link.
How to change the name of a transfer
To edit the name of a transfer on dropbox.com:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click the transfer you want to change.
- Click the edit icon (pencil) next to the name of the transfer.
- Type a new name.
- Click Save.
How to customize a transfer
If you are on a Dropbox Professional, Business Advanced, Enterprise, or Education plan, you can change the background of your transfer or add a custom logo. The background and logo you choose will appear on all your transfers, unless you change them again.
To customize your transfers:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click Customize design.
- Click the dropdown menu next to Choose background or Choose logo to add a background color, background image, or logo.
- Click Save.
How to delete a transfer
Deleting a transfer removes that transfer from your account and anyone with the link will be unable to view the files. To delete a transfer:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click "..." (ellipsis) next to the transfer you want to delete.
- Click Delete.
Note: Deleted transfers cannot be recovered.
How to see the number of times a transfer was viewed or downloaded
Transfer owners will receive an email notifying them when someone has downloaded their transfer. To see the number of times a transfer was viewed or downloaded:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- See Views and Downloads next to each transfer.
If you send a transfer via email, you can see the identity of people who have viewed or downloaded it. To see who has viewed or downloaded a transfer:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click the transfer you want to view.
- Under Emailed to [x] people, check the status next to each name.
How to change the expiration date of a transfer
Expired transfers are no longer accessible to anyone with the link and can’t be resent. To change the expiration date after a transfer has been sent:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click the transfer you want to change.
- Under Settings, click the arrow below Expiration and choose an expiration date.
- Click Save.
Note: Professional, Business Advanced, Enterprise, and Education users can set an expiration date for up to a year.
How to view expired transfers
If you are the transfer owner and would like to view an expired transfer:
- Sign in to dropbox.com.
- Click the grid icon in the top-right corner.
- Click Transfer from the menu that appears.
- Click the Expired tab.
Note: Basic users can't view expired transfers.
How to download files from a transfer
To download files from a transfer to your computer:
- Open the Dropbox Transfer link.
- Click the Download button.
The files will be downloaded to your browser’s default download location. If the transfer includes multiple files, they will be combined in a .zip file named Transfer.
To save files from a transfer to your Dropbox account:
- Open the Dropbox Transfer link.
- Click the Save to Dropbox.
The files will be saved to a new folder inside your Dropbox Transfer files folder.
How to manage transfers for your Dropbox Business team
To disable your team's ability to create file transfers:
- Sign in to dropbox.com with your admin credentials.
- Click Admin console in the left sidebar.
- Click Settings.
- Click Sharing.
- Next to Sharing files using Dropbox Transfer, toggle to Off. Existing transfer links will no longer be accessible.
Note: Only team admins can manage this setting—user management and support admins can’t disable transfers.
To view your team’s transfer activity:
- Sign in to dropbox.com with your admin credentials.
- Click Admin console in the left sidebar.
- Click Activity.
- Filter by the activity you’d like to view.
Note: When a team member is removed from a team, the transfers they created while on the team will be deleted and no longer accessible.