Share files between Windows and Mac with LocalSend

If a file only needs to travel from the Windows computer on your desk to a nearby Mac, uploading it to cloud storage is not always necessary. LocalSend provides another option: a direct transfer across your local network.

This walkthrough follows the project’s documentation. Interface details can change between releases. We have not measured transfer speeds or performed a device-to-device test for this article.

Before you start

Install LocalSend on both devices. For Mac, use the Mac App Store link in our app profile. For Windows, use the developer’s download page; the former Microsoft Store link was unavailable when checked. Connect both devices to a trusted local network that permits communication between them.

You do not need a cloud account for the transfer. You do need the devices to reach each other. A guest network or a network with device isolation may prevent that, even when both devices show the same Wi-Fi name.

Send your first file

1. Open LocalSend on the Windows computer and the Mac.
2. On the sending device, choose the file you want to transfer in the send area.
3. Select the receiving device from the nearby-device list. Confirm its displayed name on the receiving computer if you are unsure.
4. Review and accept the incoming transfer on the receiving device.
5. Open the received file and confirm it is the one you intended to send before deleting any original copy.

Start with a small, non-sensitive file while learning the workflow. For a large transfer, keep both devices awake and connected until it has finished.

If the other device does not appear

First confirm that LocalSend is running on both devices. Then check that the network permits local device communication. Guest Wi-Fi and managed workplace networks may intentionally prevent it.

Review local-network permission prompts and your firewall’s rules for LocalSend. The project README documents network requirements, including the default port. Prefer allowing the specific application on a trusted network over disabling the firewall entirely.

VPN routing can also affect whether the devices can reach each other. Follow your organization’s network policy rather than changing a managed device’s security configuration to make a transfer work.

What this workflow does not replace

LocalSend is a transfer tool. It does not by itself give you an always-synchronized folder, an off-site backup, or a cloud link that someone across the world can open.

For occasional nearby transfers, that focused behavior is the point. For ongoing synchronization or remote delivery, choose a tool designed for those requirements and check its privacy and recovery options separately.