Filemail vs TransferFiles.net

Filemail's free plan is a solid choice for files up to 5 GB that the recipient will download later: no account, a 7-day link, antivirus scanning and decent apps. It gets restrictive quickly, though. You can make only two free transfers per 24 hours, each with a 5 GB ceiling, three recipients and ten downloads. Above that, Filemail becomes a paid professional tool with features we do not offer, such as accelerated UDP transfers and FTP access. TransferFiles.net sits at the other end: a free, live, browser-to-browser transfer with no size cap and no stored copy, which only works while both people are online.

The free plan, rule by rule

Filemail's free tier (which it calls Basic) has more rules than its "5 GB free" headline suggests. As listed on Filemail's site and help centre at the time of writing (October 2026):

1. 5 GB per transfer. This applies on the website and in the apps.
2. Two transfers per 24 hours. Filemail's help centre puts it as "up to 2 transfers within a 24-hour period"; the plan page also lists 60 per calendar month. A third batch the same afternoon has to wait or go elsewhere.
3. Up to 3 recipients per transfer when you send by email.
4. Up to 10 downloads per transfer. Useful to know if you planned to post one link to a group.
5. 7 days of availability, after which the files are deleted.
6. No registration needed to send, and recipients do not need an account or an app to download.
7. Not available everywhere. Filemail's help article notes that the free service is unavailable in certain regions.

Filemail says free transfers are encrypted in transit with TLS 1.2 (AES-256) and that files are scanned for viruses and malware. Commercial use of the free plan is allowed, which is not true of every competitor.

What you are paying for on the paid plans

Filemail's paid plans are aimed at different kinds of users. Prices are shown on its pricing page by region and billing period (annual billing is advertised as "2 months free", and each plan has a 7-day free trial), so we describe the features rather than quote figures we could not confirm.

Paid plans also remove the two-a-day limit. Two things stand out. First, Personal keeps the same 5 GB ceiling as the free plan; you are mainly paying for volume, retention and storage, not bigger files. Second, the jump to "any size" and UDP acceleration only comes with Business, so a freelancer who regularly sends 300 GB camera originals is in Business territory.

The desktop app, UDP acceleration and FTP, explained

Desktop app

Filemail has desktop apps for Windows, macOS and Linux, plus mobile apps, an Outlook add-in and an API. Its help centre recommends the desktop app even on the free plan, for a steadier connection and faster speeds than a browser. The Windows app can resume interrupted transfers rather than starting again, which is a real advantage over any browser tab, ours included. On Pro and above, it can also download incoming files automatically in the background.

UDP Transfer Acceleration

Normal web uploads run over TCP, which slows down sharply on long, high-latency routes such as Europe to Australia, because it waits for acknowledgements before sending more. Filemail's UDP protocol handles lost packets and acknowledgements itself, so it can keep a fast line full over long distances. Filemail says it matters most when latency exceeds about 50 ms, and reports cases up to 200 times faster than TCP-based methods in its own benchmarks. It is built into the desktop app and enabled only on Business and Enterprise. If you move large files between continents every week, this is the feature that justifies the plan; for a one-off transfer across town it makes little difference.

FTP access

Filemail's FTP support is narrower than "FTP upload" suggests. According to its help centre, FTP cannot create a transfer. Instead, you open an existing transfer's download page, choose FTP under "Other options", and use the credentials shown there in any FTP client to add, remove or rearrange files in that transfer. That is handy for scripted workflows or for replacing one file in a delivery without resending everything.

How TransferFiles.net differs

TransferFiles.net has no plans, no daily cap and no size cap. The sender picks files and shares a link or a code like ABCD-1234; the receiver opens it and taps Connect, and the file streams between the two browsers over an encrypted WebRTC connection. Files are never uploaded to or stored on a server. If a network blocks a direct connection, the encrypted stream passes through a TURN relay that cannot read it. Our how it works page has the full picture.

That design comes with limits Filemail does not have:

• Both people must be online at the same time, with tabs open and devices awake for the whole transfer.
• No resume. A dropped connection means starting again, whereas Filemail's desktop app can pick up where it left off.
• No acceleration. Speed is the slower of the sender's upload and receiver's download, and there is no special optimisation for long intercontinental routes like Filemail's UDP protocol.
• Large files are best received on desktop Chrome or Edge, which write files over 200 MB straight to disk. Safari, Firefox and most mobile browsers hold the file in memory first, so multi-gigabyte files on phones may fail.
• One recipient per session, and no link that works after you close the tab.

Three people, three answers

Someone sending a few videos to family

If each batch is under 5 GB and you send at most twice a day, Filemail's free plan works well, and the family can download whenever they like. If the batch is larger and you can arrange a time when both of you are at a computer, TransferFiles.net avoids splitting it up. For phones, see our guide to sending large files from a phone.

A freelancer delivering to clients

Clients rarely want to coordinate a live session, and a branded download page with a 30-day or permanent link looks professional. Filemail Pro (250 GB, branding, 1 TB storage) is a sensible purchase here. A live transfer is still useful for the occasional huge source file sent while you are on a call with the client.

A team moving footage between offices abroad

This is Filemail Business's home ground: any file size, multiple users, SSO, and UDP acceleration over long routes. Free tools, ours included, are the wrong choice for a daily production pipeline. Our MASV comparison covers another service aimed at the same users.

Staying inside the free limits

If you want to stay on Filemail's free plan, a little preparation avoids most of the friction:

• Combine files into one transfer. Each send counts towards the two-per-day limit, however small it is, so gather everything first.
• Split, do not squeeze. Video and photos barely shrink when zipped. If a project is 9 GB, a split archive in two parts under 5 GB each uses both of your daily transfers but gets it there today.
• Count the downloads. Ten downloads per transfer sounds generous until three colleagues each retry a failed download. For wider distribution, a paid plan or a different service is the better tool.
• Use the desktop app on a shaky connection. Filemail itself recommends it over the browser for stability, and on Windows its resume support means a dropped Wi-Fi signal does not cost you the whole upload.

Side by side

Sources

• Filemail: home page and FAQ
• Filemail: Basic (free) plan
• Filemail: Pro plan
• Filemail: Price plans comparison
• Filemail Help: Free file sharing service
• Filemail Help: What is Filemail?
• Filemail Help: Can I send files through FTP?
• Filemail: UDP Transfer Acceleration
• Filemail: Desktop app for Windows