WeTransfer alternative for receiving confidential documents

If your business needs to receive confidential documents such as ID copies, payslips or bank statements, look for a WeTransfer alternative with a receive-only link, a deletion date on every file and a way to review files without downloading them. If you simply want to send large files, a transfer service such as WeTransfer, Smash or SwissTransfer is the right category, and this article is not the one you need.

Most people who search for a WeTransfer alternative want to send a video or a large archive. Receiving a client's passport scan is a different job, with different risks: the file is small, the content is sensitive, and the problem is usually what happens to it after it arrives.

Sending large files and receiving sensitive files are different jobs

A transfer service moves a file to someone else. It is judged by speed and size limits.

A document intake tool works in the opposite direction. Your client, candidate or tenant sends something to you. It is judged by questions such as these:

• Can the sender upload without seeing anyone else's files?
• Does every file get a deletion date automatically, or does someone have to remember?
• Can your team review the document without saving a copy to a laptop?
• Who on your team can open it, and is that recorded?

Checklist before you choose

Use these six questions on any tool, including the ones in this article.

1. Receive-only link. The sender gets a link or address that accepts uploads and shows nothing else.
2. No account for the sender. Clients rarely sign up to send one document.
3. Expiry by default. Deletion is set when the file arrives, not left to a later clean-up.
4. Review without download. Staff can read the document in the browser so copies do not pile up in download folders.
5. Stated data location. The vendor says where files are stored, in its own documentation.
6. Size limits that fit. A 5 TB limit means nothing for a payslip; a 20 MB limit matters if you receive scanned contracts.

Under the GDPR, personal data should be kept no longer than necessary (Article 5(1)(e)), and a vendor that stores files for you acts as a processor under Article 28. No tool makes you compliant on its own, but question 3 makes storage limitation much easier to apply in practice.

Comparison table

Facts come from each vendor's own pages, checked on 10 October 2026. "Not listed" means the vendor pages we checked did not state it.

Each service, and where it is better

WeTransfer

WeTransfer offers file requests: you create a link with a title and instructions, and everyone who uploads must verify their email address first. Received files follow your plan's expiry, which is 3 days on Free or Starter and up to 30 days on Ultimate or Teams. Its Previews feature shows PDFs, Office files and images before download.

WeTransfer says it stores files in the EU or the US depending on where the upload comes from, and deletes them within 48 hours after expiry, or within a year if Recoverable is switched on. The plan limits page caps Free at 10 transfers or 3 GB in any 30 days.

Better for: large creative files and occasional requests from people who already know WeTransfer.

Smash

Smash stores each transfer in one region close to the sender, such as Paris for uploads from France. Paid plans include drop-off links that are valid for 7 days by default, up to 365 days, and senders only type their email address. According to its pricing page, transfers stay available for up to 30 days on paid plans. Recipients can preview files before downloading.

Better for: very large files, and teams that want transfers to expire without thinking about it.

SwissTransfer

SwissTransfer by Infomaniak is free, needs no account, accepts up to 50 GB per transfer and stores data only in Switzerland. Files stay available for up to 30 days. Its site describes sending only, with no way to ask a client for files.

Better for: sending large files for free with Swiss storage.

Tresorit Send

Tresorit Send is a free sending tool with a 5 GB limit. Tresorit's support article says files are encrypted on the device, links stay live for 7 days and each file can be downloaded up to 10 times. Receiving is a separate feature: file requests are part of paid Tresorit plans.

Better for: end-to-end encrypted sending. Sunset Docs is not end-to-end encrypted, because it must read each file to check it and draw the previews.

Dropbox file requests

Dropbox file requests are available on every plan and senders need no account. Files land in a private folder of your Dropbox and count toward your storage. Nothing is deleted automatically, which suits ongoing projects and works against short-lived sensitive files. Basic, Plus and Family accept files up to 2 GB, and the free Basic plan includes 2 GB of storage. We compare the two in more detail on our Dropbox file request alternative page.

Better for: teams that already work in Dropbox and want received files to stay there.

Proton Drive

Proton says all Drive data is stored in Switzerland and the EU and that files never expire unless you delete them. A public link with Editor access lets people without an account upload to a folder, and you can set an expiry date on the link. Editors can also open and download the files already in that folder, so use one folder per sender. The web app previews PDFs and common image formats.

Better for: end-to-end encrypted storage that you keep long term.

Zivver

Zivver is a Dutch platform for secure email and file transfer. Its file transfer page lists files up to 5 TB, expiry dates, revocable access and processing within the EU. Outside parties can send files through a secure link on your website or by replying to a Zivver email. On the pricing page, receiving from people without an account is part of the Ultimate plan, priced per user per month and billed yearly.

Better for: organisations that need secure two-way email, not only intake.

Sunset Docs

Sunset Docs is built only for temporary intake. Each workspace has an upload link, a printable QR code and a dedicated email address. Every document gets a deletion date: 1, 8 or 24 hours, or 7, 30 or 90 days on every plan, with 365 days and exact dates on Team and Business. Your team sees watermarked page images, not the original file, unless the owner allows an audited download. You can read how automatic deletion works, including the limits on backups.

Its limits are real. It accepts PDF and image formats only, not Word or Excel files. Files are capped at 20 MB each and 25 MB per submission. It is not an archive, it does not delete copies the sender kept, and a watermark discourages reuse but does not prevent screenshots. Health data, criminal records and children's data are not supported by default.

Better for: IDs, payslips, contracts and statements that you need to check once and then delete.

A quick decision guide

• You send files larger than a few hundred MB: use a transfer service. SwissTransfer, Smash or WeTransfer fit.
• You need end-to-end encryption above all: look at Tresorit or Proton Drive.
• Received files must join a shared project folder: Dropbox file requests or Proton Drive.
• You need secure email in both directions: Zivver.
• You receive small, sensitive documents and must delete them on schedule: a dedicated intake tool such as Sunset Docs. Check the plans and our full list of alternatives.

Whichever you pick, run it against the 15 questions for evaluating an upload portal before you send the link to clients.

Questions

Is WeTransfer safe for sending a copy of my ID?

WeTransfer encrypts files in transit and at rest, according to its own help centre. The weak point is usually afterwards: the recipient downloads the file and the copy stays on their device. Ask the business how it stores and deletes your ID before you send it.

Can I use a free transfer service to receive client documents?

Only some free plans can receive at all. SwissTransfer and Tresorit Send are send-only, and Smash limits drop-off links to paid plans. WeTransfer and Dropbox offer requests on free plans, with short expiry on WeTransfer and no automatic deletion on Dropbox.

Does EU hosting make a tool GDPR compliant?

No. Location is one factor. You still need a processing agreement with the vendor, a retention period you can justify and access limited to the people who need it.

What if a client sends a 200 MB scanned file?

Sunset Docs would reject it, since its limit is 20 MB per file. Ask the client to scan at a lower resolution, split the document or send each page as an image. If large files are normal for you, a transfer service with a request feature fits better.

Does deleting a file in the tool remove every copy?

No tool can delete what lives outside it. The sender may still have the original, and anyone who downloaded it has another copy. A tool can delete what it stores and limit downloads in the first place.