Skip to content
Day 69: new resources are added every day. See what's new

Desktop App

Magic Wormhole

Send files between computers using a short, one-time code.

Visit Magic Wormhole4.6
  • Rating

    4.6 / 5

  • Pricing

    Free

  • Difficulty

    Intermediate

  • Works on

    Cross-Platform

Built with love by Shushant Lakhyani. Building bestproductivityresources.com

What is Magic Wormhole?

Magic Wormhole is a free command-line tool that sends files, folders or short pieces of text from one computer to another. The sender gets a short, easy-to-say code, the receiver types it in and the transfer starts. Codes work only once and do not need to be remembered, and tab-completion helps with typing.

Third-party open-source projects. We are not affiliated with their authors; repositories are provided as-is by their maintainers. Review each project's license, code and security before installing. See our Disclaimer.

Pros: what Magic Wormhole does well

  • No account or setup on either side
  • Short single-use codes are easy to share
  • Handles whole folders as well as files

Cons: where it falls short

  • Both people need the tool installed
  • Runs in the terminal only

Who Magic Wormhole is for

People who often move files between their own machines or to a colleague.

Who can skip it

Anyone who prefers a drag-and-drop sharing app.

Magic Wormhole alternatives

Not sold on Magic Wormhole? These do a similar job, and each card says what it has in common.

OnionShare

Focus: file sharing, privacy and tor. Shares open source and github with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.5 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

fzf

Focus: fuzzy finder and shell. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.8 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

ripgrep

Focus: search tool and developer tool. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.8 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

bat

Focus: file viewer and developer tool. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.7 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

fd

Focus: file search and developer tool. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.7 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

restic

Focus: backup, encryption and snapshots. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.7 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

Free alternatives to Magic Wormhole

Want to spend nothing? These free picks cover similar ground.

zoxide

Focus: terminal, navigation and shell. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Linux and Windows. Rated 4.7 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Linux

BorgBackup

Focus: backup, encryption and deduplication. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Same 4.6 rating.

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

dua-cli

Focus: disk usage, storage cleanup and terminal. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Same 4.6 rating.

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

eza

Focus: file listing, terminal and ls alternative. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Same 4.6 rating.

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

Broot

Focus: file manager, terminal and navigation. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.5 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows

duf

Focus: disk usage, terminal and storage. Shares command line and open source with Magic Wormhole. Adds macOS, Windows and Linux. Rated 4.5 (Magic Wormhole: 4.6).

Desktop AppFreemacOS, Windows
Are you the maker of Magic Wormhole?Get a free Featured badge for your site, a share image and ready-to-paste posts. No sign-up.

Free Notion database

1,100+ ways people are making money online

Real online businesses, creators and projects, broken down by how they make money: apps, online stores, AI tools and more. Free on Gumroad.

Get the free database

Free Notion database

399+ ways to make money online

Hundreds of online income methods in one place, so you can compare options and pick one to try. Free on Gumroad.

Get the free list

For research and ideas only. Results vary and nothing here is a promise of income. See our Disclaimer.

Weekly newsletter

Everything new, every Monday.

One short email every Monday with everything shipped that week: new free tools and websites, new guides, new free browser tools and what's new in my free Gumroad libraries, plus how the site is growing. Free, and you can unsubscribe anytime.

Join the newsletter

You sign up on Gumroad, which stores your email to send the newsletter. See our Privacy Policy.