The Relay vs NearDrop: what does each do for an Android phone and a Mac?

NearDrop does one thing and does it for free: it lets your Mac send and receive files with an Android phone over Quick Share, on the same Wi-Fi network. The Relay does a lot more, with one subscription through Google Play after a 7-day free trial: clipboard sync, browsing the phone's storage, login codes, notifications, incoming calls, links, and the phone as a webcam. If you only want to throw a photo or a PDF between the two now and then, use NearDrop. Check first whether your phone can already send to the Mac's AirDrop, because that needs no app.

Publisher note: The Relay publishes this guide and is one of the products discussed. Details about other products come from each maker's own pages, checked on 2 October 2026. Prices and features change, so confirm before you buy.

How do NearDrop and The Relay compare side by side?

A cell says "Yes" only where the maker's own page lists the feature. "Not stated" means the pages we read do not mention it. It does not mean we tested the product and found it missing.

The NearDrop cells come from its README.

What is NearDrop?

NearDrop is an unofficial Mac app that speaks Google's Quick Share, the file-sharing feature built into Android. For Google's own position on Quick Share for Mac, see Quick Share on a Mac. The README says the app "lives in your menu bar and saves files to your downloads folder". It lists limitations in plain words: Wi-Fi LAN only, and "Visible to everyone on your network at all times while the app is running". It also says macOS apps cannot send the Bluetooth broadcast Android listens for, so on Android you scan a QR code that NearDrop shows. Setup steps are in how to use NearDrop.

When NearDrop is the better choice

• Files and links are the whole job. NearDrop handles both and costs nothing.
• You want a tiny app. It sits in the menu bar. The Relay is a fuller app on both devices.
• You want open-source code, which NearDrop publishes and The Relay does not.
• You want to try it for nothing, so you can see whether Quick Share on your phone and your Mac get along.
• You are on an older Mac. NearDrop's README names no macOS version in the part we read, so check its releases page. The Relay needs macOS 13 Ventura or later.

When The Relay is the better choice

• You want more than a share sheet. If the problem is codes, pasted text, notifications, or calls, a file-sharing tool does not touch it.
• You want to browse the phone's storage from the Mac instead of picking files on the phone to send.
• You do not want to be visible on the network. NearDrop's README says it is visible to everyone on the network while it runs. The Relay pairs two devices by scanning a QR code on the Mac, and the connection between them is encrypted. We have not measured either, so this is a difference in design, not a safety claim.
• You want the webcam. See using an Android phone as a webcam for a Mac.

Does your phone need either?

Maybe not. Google's Quick Share help page says you can send to an iPhone, iPad, or macOS device from a Pixel 8a or later, and from certain Samsung, Oppo, OnePlus, Vivo, Xiaomi, Honor, Transsion, and Motorola devices. The Mac user has to set AirDrop to "Everyone for 10 minutes". Google's device list has the models. That is the lightest route of all, and it is in AirDrop from Android to a Mac. NearDrop is for phones that are not on that list, or for people who prefer it. See also NearDrop alternatives.

What The Relay will not do

• It has no AirDrop compatibility and does not replace the Quick Share share sheet.
• It does not mirror the screen or send texts, and it does not place calls.
• It is not remote. Both devices must be on the same network or in Bluetooth range.
• It is wireless only, with no USB mode.
• It does not back up your photo library.
• It needs Android 8.0 or later and macOS 13 Ventura or later.
• It is not free: after the 7-day trial it is a subscription through Google Play unless you cancel in Google Play before the trial ends. Refunds go through Google Play; see the terms.

Questions people ask

Is NearDrop free?

Yes. It is a free, open-source app, per its repository.

Does NearDrop work with every Android phone?

Its README describes Android's Quick Share and gives QR-code steps that work "on all Android devices". Whether your own phone behaves, we have not tested, so try it on your network.

Is The Relay better than NearDrop?

For file sharing alone, they do similar things and NearDrop is free. The Relay is better only if you want the other jobs in the table. See NearDrop vs LocalSend for the free options.

Can I use both?

There is nothing on NearDrop's page that says they conflict, but we have not tried them together.