Use AirDrop on your Mac to send files to devices near you
AirDrop lets you wirelessly send documents, photos, map locations, webpages, and more to a nearby Mac, iPhone, or iPad.
Send items using AirDrop
With AirDrop on your Mac, you can send items from the Finder, the desktop, or from within apps such as Safari or Maps.
From the desktop or a Finder window: Control-click the item you want to send, choose Share > AirDrop from the shortcut menu, then select the device you want to send the item to.
From the Finder: Click AirDrop in the Finder sidebar, then drag the item to the device you want to send it to.
From an app: Click the Share button in the app’s toolbar, choose AirDrop, then select the device you want to send the item to.
Receive items using AirDrop
When someone uses AirDrop to send an item to you on your Mac, you can choose whether to accept and save it.
If you send an item from one device to another (for example, from your iPhone to your Mac), and you’re signed in to iCloud using the same Apple ID on both devices, the item is automatically accepted and saved.
In the AirDrop notification on your Mac, click the Accept pop-up menu, then choose an option.
Look for the item in your Downloads folder or the app you saved the item to.
If someone who wants to send you a file can’t see your Mac, make sure you’ve set it up to allow others to send items to you using AirDrop.
Allow others to send items to your Mac using AirDrop
On your Mac, click the Finder icon in the Dock to open a Finder window.
In the Finder sidebar, click AirDrop.
In the AirDrop window, click the “Allow me to be discovered by” pop-up menu, then choose an option.
Use Control Center to manage AirDrop
You can use Control Center to quickly turn AirDrop on or off and choose who can send items to you using AirDrop.
On your Mac, click Control Center in the menu bar, then do any of the following:
Turn AirDrop on or off: Click the AirDrop icon .
Choose who can send items to you: Click the arrow next to AirDrop, then click Contacts Only or Everyone.
Note: The Contacts Only option is available on devices with iOS 10, iPadOS, macOS 10.12, or later. If AirDrop is set to Contacts Only on your device with an earlier software version, select the Everyone option in Control Center to receive items by AirDrop. You can choose the Everyone option when using AirDrop and disable it when not in use.
AirDrop uses Bluetooth and Wi-Fi to transfer items between devices. Most likely, you’ve already got Bluetooth and Wi-Fi enabled on your Mac. If you don’t, you’re asked to turn them on when you try to send an item.
To see if your Mac and the device you’re sending files to support AirDrop, see the Apple Support article Use AirDrop on your Mac.