Which of the following is the fastest way to transfer a good file to the computer?

Although the top Android phones come with a minimum of 128GB storage as standard, it may not be sufficient for everyone. Perhaps you'd like to back up photos to free up storage space or move music to your desktop that you downloaded on your phone. Because of Android's open and transparent nature, there are many ways to do it. You can use a USB cable, Bluetooth, a third-party app, or a local wireless connection.

With so many options, it's not always immediately clear which one you should go for, so we're here to show you the eleven easiest ways to transfer your files from an Android phone to a Windows PC or a Mac.

1. USB cable

Using the USB cable that came with your smartphone is probably the easiest way to connect and transfer files to your computer. You may need a different one if your phone has the newer USB Type-C-to-Type-C cable and your desktop or laptop doesn't have a USB-C port. However, if this isn't an issue, the bundled charging cable should be all you need to move files between the two devices.

The transfer speed depends on the type of cable and storage you have on both devices. For example, the transfer speed is slower if your phone uses eMMC storage but faster if it comes with UFS. Similarly, transferring files to a SATA drive on a PC takes longer than an SSD.

Windows

If you're transferring to a Windows PC, it couldn't be easier.

1. Connect your phone and PC using the USB cable.
2. You'll see a notification or pop-up on your phone where you can choose a USB preference. Select the radio button beside File transfer / Android Auto.
3. A file transfer window opens on your PC, or you may need to navigate to This PC via File Explorer and find the folder named after your phone.

4. From here, you can browse the contents of your phone and drag files across to a folder on your PC. Photos are usually in the Camera > DCIM folder, while downloaded files will be in the Downloads folder.
5. You can also select and copy one or more files, then paste them into the desired folder on your PC.

Mac

Using a USB cable to transfer files to a Mac is not as straightforward. For this, you need to first install the official Android File Transfer app on your Mac. Once you've done that, the steps are fairly simple.

1. Connect your phone and Mac with the USB cable.
2. Select File transfer / Android Auto from the USB preferences notification or pop-up.
3. Open the Android File Transfer app (if it doesn't open automatically).
4. You can now browse your phone's contents and drag files to a Finder window to transfer.

2. Bluetooth

You can also use Bluetooth to transfer files if you don't have a USB cable handy. But fair warning, the transfer speeds are super slow, so it's best to use this method when transferring smaller sizes. A single attachment or a photo from your gallery should be fine, but we wouldn't recommend using Bluetooth for a long video or a large album full of photos.

1. EnableBluetooth on your phone and PC or Mac. On Android, enable it from the Quick Settings by pulling down the Notification Shade. Look for the Bluetooth icon on the status bar or control center on Mac and Windows.
2. On your PC or Mac, search for available devices. Select your phone to pair with it.

3. The system asks you to accept the connection by checking a pin that matches on both devices.

4. If you're on a Mac, there's an additional step. Go to System Preferences > Sharing and check Bluetooth Sharing to turn it on.

5. Locate the file or photo on your phone that you want to transfer. Tap the Share icon, then select Bluetooth.

6. On a PC, right-click the Bluetooth icon on your Taskbar and click Receive a File. Then select the device you're sharing from, and the file is sent to your Documents folder. On a Mac, the file is sent to the Downloads folder, where you can access it immediately.

3. Microsoft Phone Link

If you want to transfer a bunch of photos from your phone to your Windows PC, Microsoft's Phone Link app (formerly known as Your Phone) is a fantastic tool. While Your Phone was limited to Samsung Galaxy phones, the rebranded app is compatible with all phones running Android OS 7.0 or later.

1. Install the Link to Windows app on your phone. Newer versions of Windows have the Phone Link app preinstalled on the PC, but you can grab it here if it's not there.
2. Open the Phone Link app on Windows and connect your Android phone via the QR code. Allow the necessary permissions to the Link to Windows Android app.
3. Once you've paired your phone to your PC using the app, transferring images is as easy as dragging and dropping the files from your phone to your PC or vice versa. To do this, select the Photos tab at the top.

4. Either drag and drop photos from the Phone Link app to the desktop or right-click on an image and select Save as from the context menu.

5. Select the folder on your PC to export the image.

Microsoft's Phone Link can do more than transfer files. You can also use it to mirror your notifications, make calls, and more. Check out our full guide to the powerful Phone Link app.

4. Pushbullet

Microsoft's Link to Windows is well-designed, but it has many restrictions, especially for power users who frequently need to transfer files between their phones and PCs. Here, a third-party app called Pushbullet comes in handy. It's an all-in-one mirroring app that can transfer almost anything between your phone and PC or Mac, as long as you have an internet connection. Here's how to use it:

1. Install Pushbullet on your Android device and desktop. It's available as a Chrome extension, a Firefox add-on, and a standalone Windows app.
2. Log in on both machines via a Google account.
3. Select the Pushing tab in the lower-left corner.
4. Choose which device or browser you want to share with. It defaults to All Devices, making any file you share available on any device connected to Pushbullet.
5. Tap the Attachment icon to select the file or photo.
6. Once done, tap the Send icon to transfer the file.
7. The file appears in the device window, where you can download it. It goes to the Downloads folder of your PC by default. Remember, the larger the file size, the longer it takes to download.

Alternatively, you can use the Remote Files feature to view your phone's files and transfer them from there.

5. Google Drive

Another easy option for sharing files is via the cloud. The Google account you used to set up your Android phone comes with 15GB of Google Drive storage by default, and it's easily accessible on a PC or Mac, allowing you to send multiple files at once. Google Drive is readily available to every Android user. Follow the steps below to use it.

1. Open the Google Drive app on your Android device.
2. Click on the + buttonin the lower-right corner, and tap Upload.
3. Select the files you want to share from the list, and wait while they're uploaded. This could take some time for large files.
4. Head to drive.google.com in your desktop browser and make sure you're logged in with the same Google account as your phone.

5. Your uploaded files are ready to download.

If you frequently use Google Drive to transfer files from Android to Windows or Mac, download and set up Drive for desktop and integrate Google Drive with the File Manager (Windows) or the Finder (Mac) menu. You can also upgrade to one of the Google One plans to enjoy more storage space and premium customer support.

6. OneDrive

All Microsoft 365 subscribers get 1TB of OneDrive storage. The cloud storage service is built into Windows. If you are an existing Microsoft 365 subscriber, you might prefer OneDrive over Google Drive to transfer files from your Android phone to Windows or Mac.

1. Download the OneDrive app on your Android phone.
2. Open OneDrive and sign in with your Microsoft account credentials.
3. Select + icon at the top, tap Upload, and upload files to OneDrive from the following menu.
5. Open File Explorer (press Windows+E) on Windows and select your OneDrive account from the left sidebar.
6. Your uploaded files are ready to use on the desktop.

Mac users can download OneDrive for macOS or access the same via the OneDrive web.

7. Snapdrop

Snapdrop is an easy-to-use local file-sharing solution to transfer files from Android to Windows or Mac.

1. Download Snapdrop on your Android phone.
2. Visit Snapdrop.net on your desktop.

3. Connect your Android phone and desktop to the same Wi-Fi connection. Open the Snapdrop app, and your desktop appears.
4. Tap the Desktop icon and select the files you want to transfer.
5. Snapdrop transfers selected media files and documents from your Android phone to the desktop.

8. Use an FTP server

You can set up an FTP (File Transfer Protocol) server and easily move files from Android to Windows or Mac. We're using the Solid Explorer app on Android as an example.

Windows

1. Download the Solid Explorer app on Android.
2. Tap the hamburger menu in the upper-left corner.
3. Select FTP Server.
4. Make sure the server status is active. Make a note of the server address.

5. Launch File Explorer on Windows.
6. Type the server address in the address bar at the top. It should look like ftp://192.168.xx.xx:xxxx/. Then press Enter.

7. You can check all your phone folders on the desktop.
8. Copy or move files from Android folders to a relevant destination on Windows.

Mac

1. Open Finder on Mac.
2. Select Go in the menu bar.
3. Select Connect to Server.

4. Type the server address (find it from the Solid Explorer app, as shown in the steps above) and click the Connect button.

5. Check your Android folders in the Finder menu. You can now move or copy them to your Mac.

9. OpenMTP for Mac

OpenMTP is an advanced Android File Transfer App for macOS. Follow the steps below to use OpenMTP to transfer files from Android to Mac.

1. Download OpenMTP on your Mac from the official website.
2. Launch OpenMTP on your Mac.
3. Connect your Android phone to your Mac using a data cable.
4. Open USB Preferences from the Notification Center. Select the radio button beside File transfer / Android Auto.
5. You can check your Android phone storage with all the folders that appear in the OpenMTP app.

6. Drag and drop files from the phone folder to the Mac storage and complete the transfer process.

10. Google Photos

Google Photos is ideal for transferring images and videos from your Android phone to a PC or Mac. You must enable Google Photos backup on your phone and download the same using Google Photos web on the desktop.

1. Open Google Photos on your Android phone.
2. Tap your circular account picture in the upper-right corner.
3. Select Turn on backup (you must have sufficient Google Drive storage to upload media).
4. Once you upload media from your phone, head to Google Photos web on your desktop.
5. Select the photos and videos you want to download on your computer and press the Shift+D keys.

6. Google Photos downloads a zip file that you can extract from the Finder (Mac) or File Explorer (Windows) app.

Once you get the hang of Google Photos, read our top tips and tricks to use it like a pro.

11. Sharik

Sharik is one of the fastest ways to transfer files from your Android phone to a Windows PC or Mac. It's an open source, cross-platform solution for sharing files via Wi-Fi or a mobile hotspot. Your phone and the desktop must be connected to the same Wi-Fi network to complete the transfer process.

1. Download Sharik on your Android phone.
2. Open the app and tap Send on the main page.
3. Select Files from the dialog box.
4. A file picker menu opens. Select multiple files.
5. Sharik asks you to open an IP address on your desktop browser.
6. Enter the IP address in the address bar of your web browser.

7. The browser automatically starts the download process if it's a single file. If you transfer multiple files, you can check the list and download them on your PC or Mac.

We transferred a 100MB video using the trick, and Sharik completed the job without breaking a sweat. The app is free to download and use.

Transfer your files in no time

These eleven methods are the quickest and easiest to transfer files from an Android phone to your Windows or Mac computer. You can also clear the cache on Android if you want to free up more space on your phone.