WeTransfer vs. Smash

WeTransfer or Smash? Which is the best large file transfer solution in 2025? Compare their free plans, paid options, and the reviews of thousands of daily users below.

(Comparison updated on September 25, 2025)

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Based on 30.000+ reviews, Smash is rated 4.9/5 on Trustpilot and Google.

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SUMMARY

Introduction
Latest News
User Reviews
Free Plans
Paid Plans
Features
Security
Hosting
Conclusion

WeTransfer and Smash: two approaches to online file transfer

Before comparing their offers, let’s first look at what differentiates WeTransfer and Smash, two major players in the online file transfer market.

What is WeTransfer?

WeTransfer is one of the most well-known file transfer services worldwide, widely used by individuals, creative professionals, and companies to send large files online. Founded in Amsterdam in 2009, it has long dominated the market. In July 2024, WeTransfer was acquired by the Italian tech firm Bending Spoons, a change that resulted in significant layoffs, modifications to the free version, and adjustments to its pricing plans. Learn more on the official WeTransfer website or on its Wikipedia page.

What is Smash?

As the file transfer market has evolved, users are increasingly looking for alternatives that combine simplicity, reliability, and respect for privacy. Among these alternatives to WeTransfer, Smash has emerged as one of the most trusted options. Created in Lyon (France) in 2017, Smash is a French and ethical alternative to WeTransfer, developed by brothers Romaric and Rémi Gouedard-Comte together with a team of designers, artists, and developers. Designed to offer an ultra-secure, reliable, fast, and sustainable service, Smash stands out for its user-respectful approach: no commercial use of files or personal data, and no use for training artificial intelligence. Discover Smash on the official website or on its Wikipedia page.

Latest news from WeTransfer and Smash

The file transfer landscape is evolving fast, and both WeTransfer and Smash continue to make headlines. To help you stay informed, we’ve made it simple: instead of browsing multiple sources, you can access AI-generated summaries of the most recent media coverage. These overviews bring together the key articles and announcements, providing a clear and neutral view of what’s happening with each service.

Recent highlights:

WeTransfer – Media coverage has focused on the acquisition by Bending Spoons in July 2024 and the resulting restructuring, which included layoffs as well as changes to pricing and the free version. The press also covered the controversy surrounding the update of its terms of service, which raised concerns about the potential use of user data in AI-related contexts.
Smash – Articles highlight Smash’s growth as a European alternative, its strong focus on security and privacy, and its positioning as a sustainable transfer service offering unlimited file sizes even in the free version.

View the AI summary of the latest news about: WeTransfer | Smash

User reviews from people using WeTransfer and/or Smash

    
          Service
          Trustpilot Rating
          Number of Reviews (approx.)
        
          WeTransfer
          1.3 (“Bad”)
          ~549 reviews
        
          Smash
          4.9 (“Excellent”)
          ~20,062 reviews

Comparing services isn’t just about features. User reviews provide valuable insights into real-world experiences — from frustrations to strengths. To save time, you can check AI-generated summaries of WeTransfer and Smash’s Trustpilot pages, or explore the recurring trends below.

Highlights from user reviews:

WeTransfer – Many users report negative experiences, including unexpected charges, difficulty canceling subscriptions, and reduced benefits in the free version. Complaints also include reliability issues, slower transfer speeds, and a lack of flexibility compared to more modern alternatives. While some appreciate the platform’s familiarity, most express frustration with recent changes.
Smash – Feedback is overwhelmingly positive, highlighting its simplicity, speed, and intuitive interface. The unlimited transfer size, even in the free version, is often mentioned as a major advantage. Reviews also emphasize the absence of ads, strong data protection, and trust in a service that doesn’t exploit user files. Many describe Smash as a modern, user-focused, transparent, and reliable alternative.

View the AI summary of user reviews for: WeTransfer | Smash

WeTransfer vs Smash: free plan comparison

    
                Free plan features
                Smash
                WeTransfer
            
                Max size per transfer
                Unlimited*
                Up to 3 GB
            
                Number of transfers / month
                Unlimited
                10
            
                Transfer availability duration
                Up to 7 days
                Up to 3 days
            
                File preview before download
                Images, videos & audio
                Images, videos, audio & PDF
            
                Password-protected transfers
                ✔ (no account required)
                ✔ (with account)
            
                File upload time**
                1.20 min for 2 GB
                2.40 min for 2 GB
            
                Advertising
                No ads
                With ads

In July 2024, WeTransfer BV was fully acquired by the Italian company Bending Spoons. Since then, its free service has changed. The free version of WeTransfer now limits each transfer to 3 GB, restricts users to 10 transfers per month, reduces link validity to just 3 days, and sets a recipient limit (3 without an account, 10 with an account). Password protection is available, but only if the user creates an account.

Smash, created in Lyon in 2017, stands out as a French and ethical alternative. Its free plan imposes no file size limit (*), requires no registration, has no monthly transfer cap, no recipient restriction, and offers links valid for 7 days. Password protection is included for free without signup. Files remain the property of their users after sending and are never used or exploited to train artificial intelligence systems.

Each service has its own specific features. To see the differences in practice and decide which best fits your needs, the simplest way is to test the free plans yourself.

*Note: transfers over 2 GB are placed in a waiting queue.
**2-GB file sent over a 1 Gbit/s connection from Paris, France.

WeTransfer vs Smash: paid plan pricing comparison

    
                Pricing
                Smash Pro
                WeTransfer Ultimate
            
                1 month
                €10 /month
                €23 /month
            
                1 year
                €6 /month
                €19 /month
            
                2 years
                €4.80 /month
                ✘

Since December 2024, when WeTransfer announced a price increase of up to 58% for both new and existing users, Smash has become a much more affordable alternative. With equivalent features, Smash Pro costs half the price of WeTransfer Ultimate. WeTransfer also offers the Starter plan, cheaper than Ultimate (€8 /month), but it limits users to 10 transfers per month with a maximum link validity of 3 days.

WeTransfer vs Smash: compare customization features

    
                Customization features
                Smash
                WeTransfer
            
                Subdomain customization
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Background customization
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Logo customization
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Promotional pop-ins
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Transfer link customization
                ✔
                ✘

Smash and WeTransfer are two interesting solutions for showcasing your brand identity. With WeTransfer, you can customize the background, but changing the logo is not possible. Moreover, there is no additional visibility space offered during the upload or download process.

With Smash, transfers are 100% customizable: your own URL, logo, background, and promotional pop-ins to highlight your projects or updates during file upload and download. Customization can even extend to the transfer link name.

WeTransfer vs Smash: compare security

    
                Security
                Smash
                WeTransfer
            
                AES 256-bit and SSL/TLS encryption
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Two-factor authentication
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Encryption via HSM
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Antivirus scanning
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Security audits
                ✔
                ✔

WeTransfer, like Smash, encrypts files both during transfer (TLS) and at rest (AES-256), and offers two-factor authentication.

Both services include real-time antivirus scanning, ensuring uploaded and downloaded files are safe and secure. They also perform regular security audits, strengthening their defenses and protecting their applications against attacks.

Smash uses HSMs (Hardware Security Modules) to manage and protect encryption keys with a higher level of hardware security.

WeTransfer vs Smash: compare data hosting

    
                List of data centers
                Smash
                WeTransfer
            
                US West (Oregon)
                ✔
                ✔
            
                US West (Northern California)
                ✔
                ✔
            
                US East (Northern Virginia)
                ✔
                ✔
            
                US East (Ohio)
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Canada (Montreal)
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Europe (Ireland)
                ✔
                ✔
            
                Europe (Frankfurt)
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Europe (London)
                ✔
                ✘
            
                Europe (Paris)
                ✔
                ✘

Smash stores files as close as possible to users worldwide to ensure ultra-fast transfer speeds. The service relies on the nearest server among its 9 available locations. In contrast, WeTransfer sometimes stores files far from users and provides little information about where data is hosted.

Conclusion

Both WeTransfer and Smash offer effective solutions for sending large files online, though they reflect two different approaches. WeTransfer is a long-established player, widely recognized around the world. Recently, its updated terms of service have sparked discussion in the media and among users, raising questions about the potential use of data in connection with artificial intelligence. The exact scope of these changes remains open to interpretation, so we encourage readers to visit the “Latest News” section for an impartial overview of recent media coverage.

Smash, meanwhile, has positioned itself as a modern French alternative built around simplicity, speed, and respect for privacy. Smash states that it does not use users’ files or data for training artificial intelligence models.

Ultimately, the best choice depends on your priorities: whether you prefer to stay with a familiar service or explore a new option focused on security and user trust. What matters most is having a reliable transfer service that makes sharing large files simple and secure.

WeTransfer or Smash? Answers to Frequently Asked Questions

Smash is considered by many users as the best alternative to WeTransfer. With Smash, you can send large files for free, with no size limits, no registration required, and secure transfers — everything you loved about the old WeTrasnfer, and more.
Yes, Smash offers a similar simple and user-friendly experience to WeTransfer — but with key advantages: no file size limits on free transfers, no limits on the number of transfers per month, longer file availability (7 days), and no intrusive ads. At Smash, we transfer your files.
WeTransfer’s free service used to be simple and convenient. But after its acquisition by an Italian group in July 2024, things have shifted — and not in a good way.
Today, the free WeTransfer plan includes several new restrictions:
- 2 GB per transfer limit
- Only 10 transfers per month
- Links expire after just 3 days
- And since April 2025, uploads are cancelled if you leave the page, meaning you must stay on-screen (and watch ads) until the transfer is complete.
Smash, by contrast, stays true to the original spirit of file sharing:
- No size limits (*)
- No sign-up required
- Unlimited number of transfers
- 7-day link validity
- And yes — your uploads continue in the background, even if you close the tab or switch apps.
  All of that, with no ads, no interruptions, and no nonsense.
In short: if you're looking for a file transfer tool that just works — Smash is the better choice.
Absolutely. Smash provides a free plan that lets you send large files without restrictions. Unlike WeTrasfer, there are no file size limits even on the free version.
Smash gives you unlimited file transfers, no size restrictions, 7-day download links, local data hosting, and a fully ad-free experience — things that many users miss with the current WeTransfer.
Smash ensures secure transfers with encryption and local data storage near your location. Plus, Smash doesn't use advertising to monetize your transfers, preserving your privacy better than WeTransfer.