The following tables compare general and technical information for a number of File Transfer Protocol (FTP) clients. Unless otherwise specified in footnotes, comparisons are based on the stable versions without any add-ons, extensions, or external programs.
Client | Developer | Initial release | Latest release | License | Copy files over 2 GB limit [1] | Interface | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Version | Date | ||||||
cURL | Daniel Stenberg | 1998 | 8.10.1 [2] | 2024-09-18 | curl | Yes | CLI |
Cyberduck | David V. Kocher | 2001 | 9.0.3 [3] | 2024-09-18 | GPL-3.0-or-later | Yes | GUI and CLI |
Far Manager | Eugene Roshal / FAR Group | 1996 | 3.0.6226 | 2023-12-14 | BSD-3-Clause | Yes | TUI |
FileZilla | Community | 2001 (January) | 3.67.1 [4] | 2024-07-10 | GPL-2.0-or-later | Yes | GUI |
FireFTP | Mime Čuvalo | 2004 (September) | 2.0.32 [5] | 2019-02-01 | MPL-1.1, Charityware | Yes (since version 2.0.5) | Waterfox, Firefox pre-version 57 addon |
Fugu | University of Michigan Research Systems Unix Group | 2003 | 1.2.0 [6] | 2005-05-02 | Fugu [7] | ? | GUI |
gFTP | Brian Masney | 1998 | 2.0.19 [8] | 2008-11-30 | GPL-2.0-or-later | Yes | GTK+ |
lftp | Alexander V. Lukyanov | 1996 (August) | 4.9.1 [9] | 2020-01-15 | GPL-3.0-or-later | Yes | CLI |
Macfusion | Michael Gorbach | ? | 2.0.4 [10] | 2010-12-03 | Apache-2.0 | ? | GUI |
NcFTP | NcFTP Software Inc. | 1991 | ClArtistic | Yes | CLI | ||
net2ftp | David C. Gartner | 2003 (January) | 1.3 [11] | 2019-07-15 | GPL-2.0-or-later | ? | Web application |
Rclone | Nick Craig-Wood | 2014 (July) | 1.68.1 [12] | 2024-09-24 | MIT | Yes | CLI |
tnftp | Luke Mewburn | 1999 | 20230507 [13] | 2023-05-07 | BSD-4-Clause | Yes | CLI |
WinSCP | Martin Přikryl | 2000 | 6.3.5 [14] | 2024-09-10 | GPL-3.0-only | Yes | GUI and CLI |
Client | Developer | Initial release | Latest release | License | Copy files over 2 GB [1] | Interface | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Version | Date | ||||||
CrossFTP | CrossFTP Software | 2006 | 1.99.2 | 2020-05-23 | Proprietary | Yes | GUI |
LeechFTP | Jan Debis | 1998 | 1.3 (Discontinued) | Proprietary | No | GUI | |
FTP Voyager | Rhino Software, Inc | 1997 (January) | 16.1.0.0 | 2013-08-20 | Proprietary | Yes | GUI |
Client | Developer | Initial release | Latest release | License | Copy files over 2 GB [1] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Version | Date | |||||
Core FTP | CoreFTP.com | 2003 | 2.2 (build 1751) | 2012-06-27 | Freeware | Yes |
Fetch | Fetch Softworks | 1989 | 5.7.7 | 2017-12-02 | Proprietary | Yes |
Secure FTP | Glub Tech | 1999 | 2.6.2 | 2013-07-27 | Apache | Yes |
Sysax FTP Automation | Codeorigin, LLC | 2005 | 5.31 | 2012-04-12 | Proprietary | Yes |
Client | Developer | Initial release | Latest release | License | Copy files over 2 GB [1] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Version | Date | |||||
AbsoluteTelnet | Celestial Software | 1996 | 9.49 | 2012-07-02 | Proprietary | Yes |
Beyond Compare | Scooter Software | 1996 | 5.0.3 | 2024-10-24 | Proprietary | Yes |
Commander One | Eltima Software | 2015 | 3.7.3831 [15] | 2023-08-25 | Proprietary | Yes |
CrossFTP Pro | CrossFTP Software | 2006 | 1.98.7 | 2020-05-23 | Proprietary | Yes |
CuteFTP | Alex Kunadze/Globalscape | 1994 | macOS: 3.1.3 Windows: 9.3.0 | 2014-05-02 2018-07-11 | Proprietary | Yes |
Directory Opus | GPSoftware | 1990 | 12.28 | 2022-06-03 | Proprietary | Yes |
FlashFXP | OpenSight Software, LLC | 1999 | 5.4.0.3970 | 2017-04-01 | Proprietary | Yes |
SmartFTP | SmartSoft Ltd | 1998 | 10.0.3185.0 | 2023-11-15 | Proprietary | Yes |
Total Commander | Christian Ghisler | 1993 | Android:3.50 [16] Windows:11.03 [17] | 2024-03-27 2024-02-21 | Proprietary | Yes |
WebDrive | South River Technologies, Inc. | 1998 | 2017 | 2017-06-16 | Proprietary | Yes |
WS_FTP | Ipswitch, Inc. | 1996 | 12.7 | 2018-11-27 | Proprietary | Yes |
Yummy FTP | Yummy Software | 2004 | 1.9.0 | 2018-05-10 | Proprietary, Setapp | ? |
Client | Developer | Initial release | Latest release | License | Copy files over 2 GB [1] | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Version | Date | |||||
ALFTP | ESTsoft | 2000 | 5.31 | 2012-02-01 | Proprietary | ? |
ExpanDrive (formerly SFTPDrive) | ExpanDrive, Inc | 2005 | Linux: macOS: Windows: | Proprietary | Yes | |
ForkLift | BinaryNights, LLC | 2007 | 4.0.7 [18] | 2024-01-30 | Proprietary | Yes |
FTP Explorer | FTPx Corp. | October, 1996 | 1.0.1.53 | 2012-01 | Proprietary | ? |
FTP Files | Anders Borum ApS | 2024 | 2024.47 | 2024-10-07 | Proprietary | Yes |
Interarchy | Nolobe Software Pty Ltd | 1993 (as Anarchie) | 10.0.6 | 2014-08-18 | Proprietary | Yes |
Steed | French Fry, SAS | 2012 | 1.2.1.1169 | 2017-06-27 | Proprietary | Yes |
Transmit | Panic, Inc. | 1998 | 5.6.4 | 2020-04-20 | Proprietary | Yes |
WISE-FTP | AceBIT | 1998 | 7.0 (Build 7.0.4) | 2012-03-16 | Proprietary | ? |
edtFTPj | Bruce P. Blackshaw | 2000 | 2.5.0 [19] | 2016-07-06 | Proprietary | Yes |
edtFTPnet | Bruce P. Blackshaw | 2003 | 2.2.1 | 2011-08-26 | Proprietary | Yes |
The operating systems the clients can run on:
Client | Windows | macOS | Linux | BSD | Unix | AmigaOS | ChromeOS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AbsoluteTelnet | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
ALFTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Beyond Compare | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Classic FTP | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Codeanywhere (webbased) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Commander One | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Core FTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
CrossFTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
cURL (CL) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
CuteFTP | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Cyberduck | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Directory Opus | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | No |
ExpanDrive | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Far Manager | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Fetch | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
FileZilla | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
FireFTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
FlashFXP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Fling FTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
ForkLift | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
FTP Client | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
FTP Explorer | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
FTP Files | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
FTP Voyager | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Fugu | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
gFTP | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Interarchy | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
LeechFTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
lftp (CL) | Yes (cygwin) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Macfusion | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Mosaic | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | No |
NcFTP (CL) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
net2ftp (web-based) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
PSFTP (PuTTY) (CL) | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Rclone | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Secure FTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
SmartFTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Steed | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Sysax FTP Automation | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Total Commander | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
tnftp (CL) | Yes (cygwin) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Transmit | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
WebDrive | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
WinSCP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
WISE-FTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
WS_FTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No |
Yummy FTP | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No |
Client | Windows | Mac OS X | Linux | BSD | Unix | AmigaOS | ChromeOS |
(CL) Command-Line interface only – no GUI (Graphical user interface)
Information about what internet protocols the clients support. External links lead to information about support in future versions of the clients or extensions that provide such functionality.
Client | FTP | FTP over SSH | SFTP | FTPS (FTP over SSL) | FXP (Site2site transfer) | DAV / HTTP(S) | Compression | Mode Z / Remote Compression | API / Commandline available | Resume Download | Passive mode | Parallel Transfer [20] | Segmented Downloads [20] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
AbsoluteTelnet | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ALFTP | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Beyond Compare | Yes | No | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | No | Yes (Pro only) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Classic FTP | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | ? | ? | ? | Yes | ? | ? |
Codeanywhere | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Commander One | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | ? | ? |
Core FTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | ? | ? | ? | Yes [21] |
CrossFTP | Yes | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
cURL | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes (Only) | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
CuteFTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (HTTP(S)) | Yes | No | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes |
Cyberduck | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes (SFTP only) | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Directory Opus | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
ExpanDrive (Mac) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ExpanDrive (Windows) | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | ? | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Far Manager | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes | No | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Fetch | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
FileZilla | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes (basic) | Yes | Yes | ? | No |
FireFTP | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
FlashFXP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Fling FTP | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? |
ForkLift | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
FTP Client | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes | ? | ? | ? |
FTP Explorer | Yes | No | No | No | ? | ? | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
FTP Voyager | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Fugu | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
gFTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (control connection only) | Yes | ? | No | ? | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Interarchy | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | ? | ? | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
LeechFTP | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
lftp | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (Partial) | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | Yes |
Macfusion | Yes | ? | Yes | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Macfusion | Yes | ? | Yes | No | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
NcFTP | Yes | No | No | ? | ? | ? | No | ? | Yes | ? | Yes | ? | ? |
PSFTP (PuTTY) | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? |
Rclone | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Secure FTP | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? |
SmartFTP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | Yes |
Steed | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | ? | Yes | ? | ? |
Sysax FTP Automation | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No | Yes (script and command line) | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Total Commander | Yes | Yes | Yes (plugin) | Yes | Yes | Yes (plugin) | Yes | ? | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Transmit | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | ? | Yes (AppleScript) | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
WebDrive | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (SFTP) | Yes | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Windows 7 (ftp.exe) | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | No | ? | No | ? | ? |
WinSCP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes (SFTP only) | Yes (SCP command) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
WISE-FTP | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
WS_FTP | Yes | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes | Yes (Pro only) | Yes | Yes (Pro only) | No | Yes (Pro only) | Yes (Pro only) | Yes | ? | ? |
Yummy FTP | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes (AppleScript) | Yes | Yes | ? | ? |
Client | FTP | FTP over SSH | SFTP | FTPS (FTP over SSL) | FXP (Site2site transfer) | DAV / HTTP(S) | Compression | Mode Z / Remote Compression | API / Commandline available | Resume Download | Passive mode | Parallel Transfer | Segmented Downloads |
Konqueror is a free and open-source web browser and file manager that provides web access and file-viewer functionality for file systems. It forms a core part of the KDE Software Compilation. Developed by volunteers, Konqueror can run on most Unix-like operating systems. The KDE community licenses and distributes Konqueror under GNU GPL-2.0-or-later.
The File Transfer Protocol (FTP) is a standard communication protocol used for the transfer of computer files from a server to a client on a computer network. FTP is built on a client–server model architecture using separate control and data connections between the client and the server. FTP users may authenticate themselves with a plain-text sign-in protocol, normally in the form of a username and password, but can connect anonymously if the server is configured to allow it. For secure transmission that protects the username and password, and encrypts the content, FTP is often secured with SSL/TLS (FTPS) or replaced with SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP).
In computing, the SSH File Transfer Protocol is a network protocol that provides file access, file transfer, and file management over any reliable data stream. It was designed by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) as an extension of the Secure Shell protocol (SSH) version 2.0 to provide secure file transfer capabilities, and is seen as a replacement of File Transfer Protocol (FTP) due to superior security. The IETF Internet Draft states that, even though this protocol is described in the context of the SSH-2 protocol, it could be used in a number of different applications, such as secure file transfer over Transport Layer Security (TLS) and transfer of management information in VPN applications.
cURL is a computer software project providing a library (libcurl) and command-line tool (curl) for transferring data using various network protocols. The name stands for "Client for URL".
Secure copy protocol (SCP) is a means of securely transferring computer files between a local host and a remote host or between two remote hosts. It is based on the Secure Shell (SSH) protocol. "SCP" commonly refers to both the Secure Copy Protocol and the program itself.
File eXchange Protocol is a method of data transfer which uses FTP to transfer data from one remote server to another (inter-server) without routing this data through the client's connection. Conventional FTP involves a single server and a single client; all data transmission is done between these two. In the FXP session, a client maintains a standard FTP connection to two servers, and can direct either server to connect to the other to initiate a data transfer. The advantage of using FXP over FTP is evident when a high-bandwidth server demands resources from another high-bandwidth server, but only a low-bandwidth client, such as a network administrator working away from location, has the authority to access the resources on both servers.
Cyberduck is an open-source client for FTP and SFTP, WebDAV, and cloud storage, available for macOS and Windows licensed under the GPL. Cyberduck is written in Java and C# using the Cocoa user interface framework on macOS and Windows Forms on Windows. It supports FTP/TLS, using AUTH TLS as well as directory synchronization. The user interacts with the user interface (GUI), including file transfer by drag and drop and notifications via Growl. It is also able to open some files in external text editors.
sftp is a command-line interface client program to transfer files using the SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), which runs inside the encrypted Secure Shell connection.
FileZilla is a free and open-source, cross-platform FTP application, consisting of FileZilla Client and FileZilla Server. Clients are available for Windows, Linux, and macOS. Both server and client support FTP and FTPS, while the client can in addition connect to SFTP servers. FileZilla's source code is hosted on SourceForge.
gFTP is a free and open-source multithreaded File Transfer Protocol client program. It is most used on Unix-like systems such as Linux, macOS, and Sony PlayStation 3. It includes both a graphical user interface (GUI), which utilizes the GTK+ graphical toolkit, and a command-line interface. gFTP is released under the terms of the GPL and has been translated into 45 languages.
FTPS is an extension to the commonly used File Transfer Protocol (FTP) that adds support for the Transport Layer Security (TLS) and, formerly, the Secure Sockets Layer cryptographic protocols.
WinSCP is a file manager, SSH File Transfer Protocol (SFTP), File Transfer Protocol (FTP), WebDAV, Amazon S3, and secure copy protocol (SCP) client for Microsoft Windows. The WinSCP project has released its source code on GitHub under an open source license, while the program itself is distributed as proprietary freeware.
Transmit is a file transfer client program for macOS developed by Panic Inc. Transmit is trialware; after a seven-day trial period, the product can only be used for seven-minute sessions until it is purchased. Transmit was originally built as an FTP client and now supports a number of protocols including SFTP and WebDAV and cloud services including Google Drive and Dropbox.
SmartFTP is a network file transfer program for Microsoft Windows that supports file transfer via FTP, FTPS, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive, Box, Google Cloud Storage and Backblaze B2 protocols. It supports SSL/TLS, IPv6 and FXP, and features a transfer queue, proxy and firewall support, multiple connections, chmod features and drag-and-drop. The software uses the Windows API for its interface. It is available for both IA-32 and x64 editions of Windows.
CrushFTP is a proprietary multi-protocol, multi-platform file transfer server originally developed in 1999. CrushFTP is shareware with a tiered pricing model. It is targeted at home users on up to enterprise users.
Managed file transfer (MFT) is a technology that provides the secure transfer of data in an efficient and reliable manner. MFT software is marketed to companies as a more secure alternative to using insecure protocols like FTP and HTTP to transfer files. By using an MFT solution, companies can avoid custom scripting and meet compliance requirements.
ExpanDrive is a network filesystem client for MacOS, Microsoft Windows and Linux that facilitates mapping of local volume to many different types of cloud storage. When a server is mounted with ExpanDrive any program can read, write, and manage remote files as if they were stored locally. This is different from most File Transfer Clients because it is integrated into all applications on the operating system. It also does not require a file to be downloaded to access portions of the content. ExpanDrive is commercial software, at a cost of $49.95 per license. A 7-day, unrestricted demo is available for evaluation.
FTP Voyager is an FTP/FTPS/SFTP client for Microsoft Windows with support for the following features:
Commander One is a dual-pane file manager designed for macOS. Developed by Electronic Team, Inc., the software is created entirely in Swift and aims to provide users with a tool to navigate, manage, and manipulate files and folders on their Mac computers. The application offers a wide range of features for both casual and professional users.
Bitvise is a proprietary secure remote access software developed for Windows and available as a client and server. The software is based on the Secure Shell (SSH) protocol, which provides a secure channel over an insecure network in a client-server architecture.
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