TransferFiles.net vs Google Drive: storage service or hand-off?

Use Google Drive when the file should keep living somewhere: a folder you will add to, a document people will edit, or a link the recipient can open next week. Use a direct transfer like TransferFiles.net when you only need to move a file from one device to another while the other person is around, especially if your Google storage is nearly full or the recipient doesn't use Google. Drive can do the one-off job, but it was built for storage and collaboration, and three things make it awkward as a courier: a shared quota, sharing permissions, and the fact that every sent file is also a stored file.

Problem one: the 15 GB isn't really for Drive

Every Google Account includes 15 GB free, but Drive does not get its own 15 GB. According to Google's storage help page, the same pool covers:

• Files in Google Drive, including PDFs, images and videos
• Gmail messages and attachments, including Spam and Trash
• Google Photos backups in Original quality, and Storage saver backups made after 1 June 2021
• Docs, Sheets and Slides files created or edited after 1 June 2021
• Google Meet recordings
• Android backups, including WhatsApp backups, SMS and app data

For many people with a phone that backs up photos, the free allowance is mostly used before they upload anything to share. To send a 6 GB video through Drive, you need 6 GB of free space at that moment, and the file keeps using it until you delete it.

When you go over quota, the effects reach beyond Drive. Google says you can't upload new files to Drive, Photos backups stop, Gmail sending and receiving may be affected, and you can't create or edit files in Docs, Sheets and Slides until usage goes down. Accounts that stay over quota for two years or more risk having content deleted, with at least three months' notice.

Problem two: sharing settings that strand the recipient

The most common Drive support complaint is the recipient who clicks your link and sees "You need access" with a Request access button. It happens because new files default to Restricted general access, meaning only people you have added by email can open them. If you paste the link into a chat without changing that setting, the recipient has to request access and then wait for you to approve it.

To share a file so anyone with the link can download it without a Google sign-in:

1. In Drive, select the file and click Share.
2. Under General access, click the down arrow and choose Anyone with the link.
3. Set the role to Viewer, which allows viewing and downloading by default.
4. Click Copy link, then Done.

A few related pitfalls:

• Your identity is visible. Google notes that when you share a link, your name and email appear as the file's owner. That may not suit every recipient.
• Anyone with the link really means anyone. If the link is forwarded, the new person can open it too. Switch back to Restricted when the recipient has the file.
• Editor is rarely what you want. Editors can re-share the file and change it. For a hand-off, Viewer is enough.
• Work and school accounts may block link sharing. Google Workspace admins can stop users from sharing outside the organisation, so the option may be greyed out on a company account.

Problem three: a send is also a stored copy

Drive has no "send and forget" mode. The file sits in your Drive until you delete it, using quota and still reachable through any link you made. That is ideal for archives and terrible for one-off transfers you forget about. Six months later, your storage holds a pile of exported videos you sent once.

A peer-to-peer transfer works the other way. TransferFiles.net does not upload the file anywhere. The two browsers connect through WebRTC and the data moves between them, encrypted with DTLS. If a firewall prevents a direct path, encrypted traffic goes through a relay that cannot read it. When the transfer ends, the only copies are on the two devices. There is nothing to clean up, but there is also no link to send later. The peer-to-peer file sharing guide explains the model in more depth.

Upload limits and paid storage

Size is rarely the problem with Drive. Google's Drive help lists a maximum of 5 TB for ordinary files (Google Docs, Sheets and Slides formats have their own lower limits). Google's Workspace documentation adds a per-user cap of 750 GB uploaded or copied within 24 hours. Your real ceiling is free space: with an empty 15 GB account, the largest file you can upload is a little under 15 GB.

More space means a paid Google One or Google AI plan. At the time of writing (October 2026), Google's plans page lists these storage tiers:

Prices vary by country and Google often runs introductory offers, so check the plans page for your region. A paid plan is worth it if you also want the backups and storage. Buying one only to send the occasional large file is usually overkill.

Two scenarios, two answers

A 4 GB video for a friend on a call with you

With Drive: check that you have 4 GB free, upload all 4 GB, change General access, copy the link, send it, and wait while your friend downloads 4 GB. Then remember to delete the file. That is two full transfers of the data and a cleanup step.

With TransferFiles.net: open the site, choose the file, and send your friend the link or the short code. They click Connect and the video streams across in a single pass, at the speed of the slower connection. The transfer time calculator gives a realistic estimate. Keep both tabs open and both devices awake until it finishes. If your friend is on desktop Chrome or Edge, a file this size streams straight to disk. On a phone it is assembled in memory first, which can fail for very large files on low-RAM devices.

Project files a client will review over the week

Drive wins clearly. The client can open the folder whenever they like, you can add revisions to the same folder, comments and version history live alongside the files, and access can be limited to named email addresses. A live transfer cannot do any of that. For more on client delivery, see sending large files to clients.

When Google Drive is the better choice

• The recipient will open the file later, or more than once.
• Several people need the same files, or you want to keep adding to a shared folder.
• You are collaborating in Docs, Sheets or Slides rather than sending a finished file.
• You want a backup copy anyway, and the space is available.
• You need access limited to specific Google accounts, with the ability to revoke it.
• The recipient is on a phone and the file is several gigabytes. Downloading from Drive avoids the in-browser memory limit that live transfers face on mobile browsers.

When a direct transfer is the better choice

• Your Google storage is full or nearly full, and you don't want to delete things or pay to send one file.
• The recipient doesn't have, or doesn't want to use, a Google account, and you would rather not fiddle with link-sharing settings.
• You don't want a copy left on a cloud account, or your name attached to a shared link.
• Both of you are available now, so one direct pass is faster than an upload followed by a download.
• You are moving files between your own devices, such as a phone and a PC. See transferring files from PC to phone without USB.

Sources

• Google One Help: How storage works across Google services
• Google Drive Help: Files you can store in Google Drive (size limits)
• Google Workspace: Storage and upload limits
• Google Drive Help: Share files from Google Drive
• Google One: Plans