Reviews

DropCanvas is A Free and Easy Way to Share Files

By Austin Krause

Updated June 1, 2021

What if sharing files was as easy as dropping them onto a blank page and sending it off to a friend? That’s the idea behind DropCanvas, let’s take a look.

Ever since Drop.io went away, I’ve been looking for a good file-sharing alternative. DropCanvas might be able to partially fill those shoes. DropCanvas is a free file sharing service that aims to keep the sharing process as simple as possible. It boasts 5GB of cloud storage space per box or “canvas” as they call it, and there is no limit to the number of canvas’ you can create. No registration is required, but being registered does make it easier to manage your boxes.

DropCanvas for File Sharing

Like with any service that is hosting your data, be sure to read the Terms and Conditions first. DropCanvas T&C seem pretty standard, but watch out for this line:

You retain all of your ownership rights of your content. However, by uploading data to DropCanvas, you hereby grant DropCanvas a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicenseable and transferable license to use, reproduce, distribute, and display the uploaded data.

I’m not a lawyer that can translate all of the legal jargon, so if anything in the Terms & Conditions bothers you be sure to read up on it before uploading your family photos to the service.

Using DropCanvas

What I like about DropCanvas is how easy it is to use. Literally, drag and drop a file onto the page, and it will start uploading. You can also use the file browser to upload by pressing the Add files button.

The uploaded file will show up on the page as an icon within a folder on your computer. During upload, there will be a status bar below an item to let you know how far along it is.

To share files you’ve uploaded, all you have to do is give people the unique URL to your canvas. Be very careful who you give this URL to, as there doesn’t appear to be any way to change it or block people. If it lands in the wrong hands, your only line of defense is to completely erase the canvas.

The edit button will give the option to nuke the canvas or just remove items on an individual basis. If you don’t have an account, you can use the unique URL here to administrate the canvas –which means — make sure you don’t lose this URL if you don’t have a DropCanvas account.

Overall DropCanvas is a clean and simple file-sharing platform. The 5 GB space storage is roomy, and the lack of file size limits makes it even better. Transfer speed isn’t the fastest. It averaged about 200 KB/s down and similar up, but that isn’t bad considering the service is free. DropCanvas is still considered in “beta” so more features are expected to roll out as it moves forward in development.