AirDrop
It works Apple to Apple, and you both need to be in the same room.
Send files with a code phrase
Send files, folders and text to another device with a short code phrase. Free, open source and end-to-end encrypted.
- iPhone, iPad and Mac
- End-to-end encrypted
- No account
- Open source, MIT
- Works across networks
Why CrocApp
Three common ways to move a file between devices each stop working in a different situation.
LAN tools
It works on the same Wi-Fi only. Guest networks and client isolation break it silently.
Cloud drops
You upload your file to a company first, then send a link. They have the file.
CrocApp
Use a code phrase, in the same room or on different continents. The relay only ever sees ciphertext.
| Method | Works across networks | No account needed |
|---|---|---|
| AirDrop | No | Yes |
| LAN transfer tools | No | Yes |
| Cloud drop services | Yes | Usually not |
| CrocApp | Yes | Yes |
How it works
Three steps. Nothing to sign up for.
-
Choose what to send
Files, a whole folder, or a snippet of text.
-
Read out the code phrase
CrocApp shows something like
cape-junky-widow. Say it, message it, or show the QR code. -
Enter it on the other device
They see what is coming and accept it. The transfer starts.
What happens underneath
The code phrase authenticates both devices through PAKE, a password-authenticated key exchange.
Transfers are end-to-end encrypted.
The relay only ever sees ciphertext.
When the two devices connect over the local network, the data stays on that network.
Features
Most of croc's options, in a native app.
Send
- Files, several at once
- Whole folders
- Text and clipboard snippets
- Send from any app with the share sheet on iPhone and iPad
- Show a QR code, or share a link, instead of reading the code out
- Send as Link: upload encrypted files so the receiver can download later
- Zip a folder before sending
- Exclude patterns, or respect .gitignore
Receive
- Receive with a code phrase
- Set your own code phrase, six characters or more
- Scan a QR code on iPhone and iPad
- Open a CrocApp link to fill in the code
- See the file list before you accept
- Resume interrupted transfers, confirm overwrites
- Choose where files land
Trust and control
- Encryption badge and a plain-language explanation
- Your own relay, with password and IPv6
- Local Network Only setting
- Auto-accept off by default, and marked when on
- Ask both devices to confirm
- Turn compression off
Native
- Progress, speed and cancel, with a Live Activity on iPhone
- Quick send from the Mac menu bar
- Shortcuts and Siri actions
- Transfer history that stays on your device
- Tries the local network and the relay at once
- Files app integration
- Drag and drop on Mac
- Dynamic Type
Download
Free. No account, no tiers. The Mac disk image is available now; the App Store versions are coming.
Mac disk image
Available now. Notarized, for Apple silicon, with built-in updates.
Download Disk Image (opens in a new tab)iPhone and iPad
Coming soon to the App Store.
Mac App Store
Coming soon to the Mac App Store.
Needs iOS 26 or later, or macOS 26 or later on Apple silicon.
Release notes (opens in a new tab)
and
how to verify a download.
Receive in a browser:
croc's own web client (opens in a new tab), run by the croc project, not by CrocApp. See the privacy page
for what it can see.
Powered by croc
CrocApp is the interface. croc is the engine, by Zack Scholl, MIT licensed. CrocApp embeds croc's Go library. It is unofficial and unaffiliated; nothing here implies endorsement by croc's author.
Questions
What does it cost?
Nothing. No purchase, no subscription, no advertising, and no analytics.
What does the encryption cover?
Transfers are end-to-end encrypted, the code phrase authenticates both devices, and the relay only ever sees ciphertext. That is croc's design rather than anything CrocApp adds.
CrocApp has not had a formal third-party security audit. The code is open if you want to look.
Do I need an account?
No. There is nothing to sign up for.
Does my file go through a relay?
Usually yes. A relay forwards traffic between two devices that cannot reach each
other directly, and it only ever sees ciphertext. Send as Link is
the exception: files are encrypted on your device before they reach the link server
(getcroc.com, or the one you choose), and the key travels in the link's
# fragment, which browsers never send to a server. The
link server holds the encrypted file until the link expires. You can point CrocApp
at your own relay instead.
What if we are on the same Wi-Fi?
When the two devices connect over the local network, the data stays on that network. CrocApp tries both paths at once and uses whichever connects first.
Does it work with the croc command line tool?
Yes, in both directions. CrocApp embeds croc's own library, so a phrase from the CLI works in the app and a phrase from the app works in the CLI.
Windows, Linux, Android?
Not from CrocApp, which is an Apple-platform app. Use the croc CLI, which runs everywhere, or one of the other croc clients, listed under Inspirations in the docs. They all speak the same protocol.
Can I run my own relay?
Yes. Point CrocApp at any croc relay, with a password and IPv6 if you want them.
Running croc relay on a machine you control is enough.
Contribute
It is MIT licensed and the whole thing is in the open. Bug reports are as useful as patches.
Most useful right now: try it on a network that breaks other tools, and say what happened. Guest Wi-Fi, captive portals, corporate VPNs and client isolation are exactly the conditions this app exists for, and exactly the ones hardest to test alone.
After that: accessibility testing with VoiceOver and larger text, translations once the copy settles, and anything in the issue tracker marked help wanted.
Read how it was made and what inspired it.
Sponsor CrocApp
CrocApp is free and stays free. There is no paid tier and nothing is held back. Sponsorship covers the Apple Developer Program fee and test devices. Bug reports help more.