Firefox Send was a popular file-sharing service that allowed users to send encrypted files while enjoying full privacy and security. You could send anything without worrying about your data being hacked or stolen – Firefox Send was very safe.
However, Firefox Send was discontinued by Mozilla in September 2020. Unfortunately, the very reason Firefox Send was so popular – the fact that it allowed users to send encrypted files with full privacy and security – led to some bad actors taking advantage of that.
Some people were using Firefox Send to send malware and other harmful files. At first, Firefox tried to address that problem by making it easier for people to report malware abuse.
However, eventually, they decided that the problem was too much to handle, and they decided to shut down Firefox Send entirely. As of now, you can no longer use Firefox Send – Firefox has moved on to other projects, so you will need to find a suitable alternative if you want to send files safely and privately.
Fortunately, there are quite a few great alternatives, so you are in luck. Today, I will show you the best alternatives to Firefox Send that you can use for sending encrypted files.
Let us get into it.
10 Best Firefox Send Alternatives
1. Swiss Transfer
There are many file-sharing services online, and many of them are really good, but not all of them live up to Firefox Send. With Firefox Send, you did not have to create an account, which was one of the reasons people loved it so much.
Since you did not have to create an account, the files you sent were not tied to you. You could share files really quickly and easily by just getting a file-sharing link.
Swiss Transfer is similar in that regard. You do NOT need to create an account or register your details to share files with Swiss Transfer.
You can send up to 50GB at once, which is really great, as many other file sharing services only let you upload files of up to 2GB or something like that. In addition, you can make up to 500 file transfers a day, which is also pretty cool.
The best part is that Swiss Transfer is entirely free to use. You don’t have to pay anything, and although you don’t need to create an account, you can still protect your uploads with a password.
All of your files will be hosted on a server in Switzerland, helping keep the files private from prying government eyes. Switzerland is a great country for its privacy laws, helping keep your data safe.
You can keep your transfers online for up to 30 days, but you can also set up a custom expiration date if you are worried about your files being kept online for so long. You can also protect your transfers with a password, so just because someone has the link to the files that does not mean they will automatically be able to access them.
Using Swiss Transfer is very easy and simple. Just upload your files to the big box in the center of the screen when you are ready to share them.
Then, you can have them sent to an email address or just get the link for the transfer. Under Advanced Parameters, you can set a download limit for how many times the files can be downloaded, an expiration date, and even a password that people will need to use to access the files.
2. BlackHole
BlackHole, or BlackHole.run, is a file transfer service you can use as an alternative to Firefox Send. Like Firefox Send, it focuses on keeping your files safe and private.
You need to create an account to use BlackHole, which is one of the reasons I do not think it is the #1 Firefox Send alternative. However, the person who is downloading the files only needs the link and does not need to create an account to download the files.
However, BlackHole does have some advantages that make it somewhat superior to other Firefox Send alternatives. For example, it uses blockchain technology to keep your files safe.
Here is how it works: Instead of storing all of your files in one place, it uses blockchain technology to store different parts of your files in different blocks. By doing that, it makes it incredibly difficult for people to get your files because they can not get all of the different parts and put them together.
In addition, BlackHole uses file compression to ensure that your files are shared quickly. You won’t lose out on anything but the files will take up less space and take less time to upload or download.
In fact, according to BlackHole, you can save up to 90 percent on bandwidth by using their file transfer service. Files are even available for download in real time while they are being uploaded, immediately, as the files are updated in real time even if the files are not completely uploaded.
Files are encrypted end to end, so unless someone has the link, there is no way for anyone to download your files. Also, you can protect your downloads with a password, so not everyone who has the link will automatically have access to your files.
There is also no storage limit and no expiration date, two other pluses of using BlackHole. On the other hand, if you have a free account, each file can not exceed 512 MB, and if you have a Plus account, each file can not exceed 8GB.
Right now, the Plus plan is not available, so you will be limited to the free version with a limit of 512MB per file. However, you can check back on the website for information about the Plus plan, or you can register on this page to be one of the first ones to get access.
3. WeTransfer
WeTransfer is another cool website you can use to transfer files without registering, making it an awesome alternative to Firefox Send. To get started, simply upload your files to the box on the homepage.
You can enter an email address to have the files sent to, or you can get the transfer link so you can share it with your friends.
However, you are capped at 2GB, which means you have less space than Swiss Transfer would give you.
Also, if you are using the free version, you can not set a custom expiration date, nor can you protect your transfer files with a password, making it somewhat inferior to Swiss Transfer in that regard.
Here are some of the benefits of going Pro, which will cost you $12/month:
- You can transfer folders or files that have up to 20GB, 10x more than the free limit of 2GB.
- You can have a total of 1TB of data stored online.
- You can track how many times your files have been downloaded using your link.
- You can protect your files with a password.
- You can set a custom expiration date after which the files will no longer be available and the link will no longer work.
Always check the WeTransfer Pro page for updated pricing information.
4. OnionShare
OnionShare is an open-source protocol that uses the Tor network to allow you to send and share encrypted files. You can download the software for Windows, Mac, or Linux.
After you download the software, click on Share Files to start sharing encrypted files. If you are only sharing the files with one person, the files will automatically be deleted once they were downloaded once, and nobody will be able to access them anymore.
If you want to share the files with multiple people, you can uncheck this feature.
You will get a special web address that anyone who has the software can use to download the files. The files will be downloaded using the Tor browser.
You can also get a QR code you can share so people can access your files.
You can stop sharing at any time. When you stop sharing, the web address will be taken down, and people will no longer be able to access your files.
There are some other things you can do using OnionShare, including hosting websites and chatting anonymously. All of these actions will be encrypted for maximum privacy and security.
5. MediaFire
MediaFire is a great alternative to Firefox Send that you can use to send and share videos, photos, documents, and other media files. To get started, sign up and create your account.
While it is free to sign up, the free account limits you to 10GB of storage. Also, the downloads are supported by ads.
Premium plans start at just $3.75/month, and they allow you to have more storage (the Pro plan lets you have 1TB of storage, while the Business plan, which costs $40/month, lets you have 100TB of storage).
Both of the premium plans still have a limit of 20GB per file. On the free plan, you are limited to 4GB per file.
However, there is no limit on your bandwidth or on how many downloads you can have. You can easily share your transfers via a link to a friend via email, on social media, on your website, or wherever you want.
MediaFire even has apps for Android, iOS, Windows, and Blackberry mobile devices. These apps make it super easy to share and receive files on the go.
With the premium plans, you can protect your shared links with passwords or set up one-time links, with a limit of 100 one-time links a day. If you have a Business plan, you can even set up customizable branding.
Also, if you have the premium plan, you can directly upload files from a website to MediaFire. In other words, you don’t have to download the files first and then upload them to MediaFire; MediaFire will pull them directly from the website.
Files can be downloaded all at once in a single zip file to make your life easier.
Always check the MediaFire upgrade page for updated pricing information, as pricing is subject to change based on available discounts.
6. Google Drive
Google Drive is actually a pretty safe and secure way to share files. You can share documents from Google Docs by sending a share link, and you can set permissions as to who can edit, comment, or read the document.
The same goes for documents in Google Sheets or Google Slides; you can share spreadsheets or slideshows easily.
However, you can also share access to other files from Google Drive. Simply upload any document you want to share to your Google Drive account.
Then, click on Share to decide who you want to share the document with. Enter the email address or contact of the person you want to share the file with, and they will get a notification with an invite to see the document you are sharing.
You can share PDF files, for example, or images.
Google Drive is pretty secure because only the people you share the document with will be able to view it. You can also protect certain files with a password, and you can also stop sharing whenever you do not want people to be able to access the files anymore.
Google One is where you can change how much storage you have access to. With a free plan, you have access to 15GB of free storage, which applies across your entire Gmail account, including everything associated with your email address, such as your Google Photos.
For just $1.99/month or $19.99/year, you can change that to 100GB of storage. For $2.99/month or $29.99/year, you can change that to 200GB of storage and also get 3 percent cash back on purchases made in the Google Store.
For $9.99/month or $99.99/year, you can get up to 2TB of storage. You will also get 10 percent cash back in the Google Store and a free VPN for your Android device.
You can use Google apps on your phone to store and share your files. For example, with the Google Drive app, which should come preinstalled on your Android phone, you can upload files, share files, and sync files across all your devices, desktop and mobile.
With the Google One app, you can have your files uploaded automatically to the cloud and backed up so you don’t lose them. Google Photos can do the same thing with photos you take with your phone’s camera, so you will never lose them.
Always check the Google One pricing page for updated pricing information.
7. Send Anywhere
Send Anywhere is a unique alternative to Firefox Send due to the quick and anonymous way it allows you to send files instantly.
To get started, simply upload the file you want to send on the website. Once you do that, you will get a nine-digit code and a QR code.
The receiver can then enter the nine-digit code on their device (by clicking on Receive on the website) to download the files. They can also scan the QR code.
The code will only be valid for 10 minutes, so if the receiver doesn’t enter the code within the next 10 minutes, they will lose their chance to download the files.
This method does not require any signup or registration. However, if you would like to create a download link or send the files directly to the recipient’s email address, you will have to create an account.
You can upgrade to a premium account for more storage and the ability to send file links via messenger, among other features. Check the upgrade page for updated pricing information and to see all features that are available on the paid plans.
The cool part about Send Anywhere is that it can be used on any device. Send Anywhere is available for Windows, Macs, Linux computers, Android devices, iOS devices, Amazon Kindle devices, and as an Outlook add-on.
In addition, it is available as a Google Chrome extension, a Whale extension, a WordPress plugin, and on Office 365.
This means that it can also be a great way to share files across your devices. If you are working on your computer and want to send a large file to your Android phone, for example, or if you want to send a file from your Android phone to your iOS phone, install Send Anywhere on both devices, upload the file, and enter the nine-digit code on the receiving device.
8. FileTransfer
FileTransfer (filetransfer.io) is a great alternative to Firefox Send that I love due to its simplicity and ease of use. It has some interesting features, like the ability to monetize your uploads.
To get started, upload your files on the website – you do not need to create an account for this. Once your files have been fully uploaded, you will get a link that people can use to download the files, or you can share the files directly to someone’s email.
You can add more files to the link after the original files have already been downloaded, and you can set a password so people can not access the files without a password.
You can even monetize your files so that people can not download the files without paying first.
You can send up to 6GB in each file, and each file can be downloaded up to 50 times. Also, files can be stored online for download for up to 21 days (three weeks).
The free version has some limitations, however. If you create a premium account, you can access more features.
For example, you can get 25GB or 100GB per file transfer, and you can get 1,000GB or 5,000GB of storage instead of 100GB of storage.
You can also have your files downloaded an unlimited number of times as opposed to only 50. Also, on the most expensive plan, you can request files.
Premium plans start at just $9/month but check the pricing page for updated pricing information.
9. Smash (FromSmash)
Smash, or FromSmash, is another Firefox Send alternative that is awesome for its simplicity. You don’t need to create an account to use the service.
When you land on the page, simply click the big button in the middle of the screen to upload your files. Then, you can choose to either get a download link or send the files directly via email.
You can set a password for your files to protect them, and you can also set how long you want the files to be available for download (the maximum is 14 days unless you create a premium account).
You can also choose to be notified when your file is downloaded. If you have a premium account, you can even set up custom advertising on the download page.
There are no limits on how much you can send per file, even if you are using the free version.
Premium plans start at $5/month. Check out the pricing page to see all plans and updated pricing information.
10. SendGB
The final Firefox Send alternative we will look at is SendGB. SendGB is always free for sending up to 5GB.
However, if you send more than 250MB, you can only store your files for up to 7 days as opposed to 90 days.
You can also sign up for the premium plan to expand your storage limit and to send up to 20GB at a time. It costs €49.90/year, but check the SendGB EXTRA page for updated pricing information.
Wrapping It Up: What Is The Best Firefox Send Alternative?
I would say that Swiss Transfer is the best alternative, considering factors such as privacy, not needing to create an account, and the rather large file transfer limit.
However, all of the other alternatives are pretty good too, and some have some interesting features that the others do not.
