How to Transfer Files Between Computers on Any Operating System

Updated October 2026 · 6 min read

There are dozens of ways to transfer files between computers, and the right one depends on a few questions. Are both computers yours? Are they in the same building? Do they run the same operating system? Are you moving one project folder or an entire user profile? A USB stick is fine for a presentation, a network share is fine inside a managed office, and a migration tool is the sensible way to set up a new laptop. But for the everyday case of "this folder needs to be on that machine now," a browser on each computer is often the least effort.

This page lays out the main methods honestly, then explains how to use Sendryo for fast, direct transfers between Windows, macOS, Linux and ChromeOS without installing anything.

Choosing a way to transfer files between computers

No single row wins everywhere. If you are copying a terabyte of photos to a new desktop in the same room, a fast external SSD is hard to beat. If you need a folder on a colleague's Mac across town in the next five minutes, a direct browser transfer is.

Step by step: send a folder from one computer to another

1. On the sending computer, open sendryo.com.
2. Drag a folder, several folders, or individual files onto the page. Folder structure is preserved.
3. Optionally set a password, or turn on approval so you confirm the receiver before data flows.
4. Click Get share code.
5. On the receiving computer, open the receive page and type the 6-digit code, or open the share link you sent by chat or email.
6. Watch the transfer. When it is complete, save files individually or click Download all (ZIP), which keeps the folder layout inside the archive.

Both computers can send back and forth once connected, so a reviewer can return edited files in the same session. Our guide on how to send a folder has extra tips on very deep directory trees.

Transfer files from Windows to Mac (and back)

Windows and macOS can technically share folders over SMB, but setting it up means enabling sharing, matching user accounts, and sometimes adjusting firewall rules. Formatting differences make external drives fiddly too: NTFS drives are read-only on a Mac by default, and Mac-formatted APFS drives are not readable on Windows without extra software. exFAT works on both and is the safest choice for a shared drive.

A browser transfer sidesteps file system formats altogether. The Mac and the PC each open a web page, and the bytes arrive exactly as they left. See Windows to Mac for the specific flow, including where downloads land in Safari versus Chrome.

Transfer files from Mac to Linux or Linux to Windows

Linux users often reach for scp, rsync or a Samba share, and those are excellent tools when you are comfortable on the command line and both machines are reachable over SSH. When the other machine belongs to a less technical person, or a firewall stands in the way, a browser transfer is friendlier. It runs in Firefox or Chromium on Linux exactly as it does elsewhere. The Mac to Linux page covers the details.

Transfer files between laptops on the same network

When two laptops share a Wi-Fi or Ethernet network, a peer-to-peer connection can usually take the local route. Data flows from one laptop to the router to the other, rather than leaving your building. On a modern router this can be far quicker than uploading to a cloud drive and downloading again. For the fastest result, plug at least one computer into Ethernet, since wired connections avoid Wi-Fi interference. Our guide to sharing files on the same Wi-Fi explains what affects local speed.

And when they are not on the same network

The same steps work across the internet. Send the share link to a colleague at home, and their browser connects directly to yours. Speed then depends on your upload bandwidth and their download bandwidth, so a home connection with slow upload will set the pace. That is still often quicker than uploading to a cloud service and then waiting for the other side to download, because the two happen at once instead of one after the other.

Moving from an old computer to a new one

Getting a new computer is the most common reason people search for this topic, so it deserves a clear recommendation.

• Mac to Mac: Apple's Migration Assistant moves apps, settings and user accounts. Use it.
• Windows to Windows: Microsoft's backup and restore features and OneDrive can carry over many settings and files. For everything else, an external drive works well.
• Across operating systems: no tool moves apps between Windows and macOS. You are really moving documents, photos, music and project folders. That is where a direct transfer shines, since you can pick folders and send them without worrying about drive formats.

For a migration of hundreds of gigabytes, consider splitting it into several transfers by folder, keep both machines plugged in, and disable sleep. If you want to confirm that big archives arrived intact, compare hashes with the checksum tool on both computers.

Sending to someone else's computer

Transfers between your own machines are low risk. Sending a folder to a client, contractor or classmate raises a few extra questions: who else might receive it, and where does it sit afterward?

With a direct transfer, the files are encrypted in transit by WebRTC and are not stored on Sendryo servers, so there is no copy left in a third-party inbox or shared drive once you close the tab. To make sure only the intended person receives the folder, turn on approval so you see and confirm each receiver, or set a password and share it through a different channel than the code itself. For confidential documents you can add another layer by encrypting the archive with a password before sending; the recipient then needs both the transfer code and the file password. Afterward, the only copies are on the two computers involved.

Common reasons to send files between computers

• Handing a project folder from a design workstation to a laptop for a client meeting.
• Moving recorded footage from a capture PC to an editing Mac.
• Getting an installer or ISO onto an offline-ish machine that only has a browser.
• Sharing a dataset with a colleague without granting them access to your cloud account.
• Copying school work from a family desktop to a student's Chromebook.

Tips for big transfers

• Use desktop browsers such as Chrome, Edge or Firefox for files in the tens of gigabytes; they handle large streams well.
• Turn off sleep on both machines for the duration, especially laptops on battery.
• Pause VPNs, which can force traffic through a distant server and block local routes.
• Compress only if it helps. Video and photos are already compressed. Lots of tiny text files, on the other hand, can be bundled with the local ZIP tool first.
• Remember devices you use often. After a transfer, tap Remember on both. Next time, when both have the site open, they appear in Your devices and one click sends.

When not to transfer files between computers this way

• Both computers must be online at the same time with the page open until the transfer finishes. If the receiver will collect files later, a cloud share link fits better.
• An internet connection is needed for the handshake, even when both machines are on the same LAN. Fully air-gapped networks need a drive or a local share.
• Corporate networks sometimes block peer-to-peer traffic. If a connection will not start at work, try from a different network or ask IT about approved tools.
• It is not a sync tool. If you want a folder to stay identical on two machines indefinitely, use a sync app.
• Apps and settings do not move. For a complete system migration, use the operating system's own tools.

Within those limits, a browser transfer is one of the simplest ways to move files between any two computers you can open a web page on.

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