LocalSend from Mac to Android: how to set it up and send files

To send files with LocalSend from a Mac to an Android phone, install the app on both devices, connect both to the same Wi-Fi network, and open the app on each. On the Mac, choose the files and click the phone when it appears in the list of nearby devices. Sending from the phone to the Mac is the same routine in reverse. It is free, it needs no account, and it does not use the internet.

The details below come from LocalSend's site and its GitHub README. We have not tested it ourselves.

What do I need?

The README describes LocalSend as "a free, open-source app that allows you to securely share files and messages with nearby devices over your local network without needing an internet connection". The current release when we checked was v1.18.2, published on 21 August 2026.

Where do I install LocalSend from?

The README says: "It is recommended to download the app either from an app store or from a package manager because the app does not have an auto-update." So pick a source that updates for you.

On the Mac, in the README's order:

1. Mac App Store. Search for LocalSend, by the developer Tien Do Nam. The App Store listing shows it as free with in-app purchases, while LocalSend's site says the app is "100% free and open source" with "no hidden costs". You do not need to buy anything to transfer files.
2. Homebrew. The Homebrew page gives the command brew install --cask localsend.
3. DMG installer from the project's GitHub releases. This one you update by hand.

On the phone:

1. Google Play, or
2. F-Droid, or
3. the APK from GitHub releases, if you know why you want that.

How do I send a file from the Mac to the phone?

The site describes the whole thing in three steps: "Install & Open", "Select Files", "Tap to Send". Spelled out for this pair of devices:

1. Connect the Mac and the phone to the same Wi-Fi network.
2. Open LocalSend on both, and keep the phone unlocked with the app in front while you send.
3. If macOS asks whether LocalSend may find devices on your local network, allow it. The README names this permission as a reason a device stays invisible.
4. On the Mac, go to the sending side of the app and select what you want to send. The site says you can choose "photos, videos, documents, or text" and that "any file type is supported".
5. The phone should appear as a nearby device. Click it.
6. Accept the transfer on the phone if it asks.

The site's FAQ says received files "are saved to your device's Downloads folder by default, but you can change this in the settings".

Neither the site nor the README walks through the app's screens label by label, so the exact button names may differ slightly from our wording.

How do I send from the phone to the Mac?

Do the same from the other end. Open LocalSend on both, choose the files on the phone, and tap the Mac in the list of nearby devices. On the Mac, the file goes to the Downloads folder unless you have changed that in settings.

This is the practical difference between LocalSend and NearDrop. NearDrop needs a QR code scan when sending from the Mac. LocalSend behaves the same in both directions because its own app runs on both ends. The two are compared in NearDrop or LocalSend.

The phone does not appear on the Mac. What should I check?

The README has a troubleshooting table. These are its rows that apply to a Mac and an Android phone.

For the macOS permission, Apple's Mac User Guide gives the path: Apple menu, System Settings, Privacy & Security, Local Network, then turn access on for the app.

On the README's suggestion to disable encryption for speed: the same README says transfers are sent "securely over HTTPS". Turning that off trades privacy for speed, so do it only on a network you trust, if at all.

The longer checklist, including what "the same network" really means on a mesh or guest network, is in LocalSend device not showing.

Is LocalSend private?

The README says devices communicate "using a REST API and HTTPS encryption", with the certificate "generated on the fly on each device", and that the app "doesn't require an internet connection or third-party servers". The site's FAQ adds that you "can also enable PIN verification for extra security" and that your data "never leaves your local network". Those are the project's statements. We look at them more closely in Is LocalSend safe?.

When is LocalSend the wrong tool?

When the devices are not on the same network. The site's FAQ answers "Does it work over the internet?" with "No." For a phone that is somewhere else, use a cloud route such as Google Drive.

When your phone can already AirDrop. Recent Pixel and Galaxy models can send to a Mac's AirDrop through Quick Share with nothing installed. Check AirDrop from Android to a Mac first.

When you want to browse, not send. LocalSend moves the files you pick. It does not show you the phone's folders from the Mac. If you want to open the phone's storage in a Mac window and drag things out without picking up the phone, that is what The Relay's file transfer and browsing does, over your local network, with no file-size limit set by the app. The Relay also syncs the clipboard and shows texts, login codes, notifications, and calls on the Mac. It costs $19.99 once and works only between your own Android phone and your own Mac, on the same network. LocalSend is free and also talks to Windows, Linux, and iPhones, so for sending the odd file between any two devices it is the better pick.

Questions people ask

Do both devices need the LocalSend app?

Yes. The site's first step is to "download LocalSend on all your devices". There is no built-in Android or macOS feature it can talk to.

Does LocalSend work without Wi-Fi?

It needs a local network that both devices are on, not an internet connection. The README says it works "without needing an internet connection". A router with no internet still counts.

Is there a file size limit in LocalSend?

Neither the README nor the site states one. The site says there are "no bandwidth limits" and that any file type is supported.