Android file transfer on Mac: what to use now Google's app has gone

Google quietly removed the Android File Transfer download page in 2024, yet search results still point to mirrors and clones that hand you the last build from years ago — a build that many people report will not launch or connect on recent versions of macOS. This page sets out what actually moves files between an Android phone and a Mac in 2026: the free command-line route, the paid apps, and the honest trade-offs of each. You can follow every bit of it without downloading our app.

What happened to Android File Transfer

Android File Transfer was Google's small MTP client for macOS. Its official page disappeared in 2024 with no announcement and no replacement. Google never shipped an update for the Apple Silicon era, and Apple has never built MTP support into macOS, so today there is no first-party tool from either company.

The links that still rank for this search are mirrors (MacUpdate), a clone of Google's removed page, and an affiliate site that redirects to a paid product. They all serve the same abandoned build. Even at its best it had a 4 GB per-file limit, threw "Could not connect to device" or "Can't access device storage" with some regularity, and refused to run alongside any other MTP app. On macOS Sonoma and later, most reports describe an app that opens and then simply never sees the phone.

So the practical question is no longer how to fix it. It is which pipe you want to use instead.

Two ways a Mac can talk to an Android phone

MTP is what your phone speaks when you plug it in and choose "File transfer" from the USB notification. It needs no developer settings, and it is what Kindles, cameras and MP3 players use as well. The catch: macOS cannot mount MTP devices at all, so you always need third-party software.

ADB (Android Debug Bridge) is Google's official developer protocol. It asks you to turn on Developer options and USB debugging once, and in return you get reliable transfers with no file-size limit, wireless connections over Wi-Fi, APK installs, log access and screen mirroring. Almost everything technical you read about Android on a Mac assumes ADB.

If all you ever do is copy photos off a phone, MTP is enough. If you also install apps, debug, or move multi-gigabyte files, ADB is the better pipe.

The free route: adb from the terminal

This costs nothing and needs no app from anyone. Google publishes the SDK Platform Tools as a plain zip on developer.android.com; Homebrew's brew install --cask android-platform-tools installs exactly the same thing if you already have Homebrew.

The honest limits: you have to know the exact paths on the device, there are no thumbnails and no drag and drop, macOS may quarantine the unzipped binaries until you approve them in System Settings, and you retype the commands every session. It works — it just isn't comfortable for everyday file moving.

1. On the phone: Settings > About phone, tap Build number seven times, then Settings > System > Developer options > turn on USB debugging.
2. Unzip platform-tools, open Terminal and cd into that folder.
3. Run ./adb devices and tap Allow on the phone's authorisation prompt (the screen must be unlocked).
4. Copy from phone to Mac: ./adb pull /sdcard/DCIM/Camera ~/Desktop/Camera
5. Copy from Mac to phone: ./adb push ~/Desktop/report.pdf /sdcard/Download/
6. List a folder first if you are not sure: ./adb shell ls /sdcard

The apps, compared honestly

Most "best Android File Transfer alternative" lists are written by companies selling one of the entries. Here is the same field with the parts those lists leave out.

Choose by the row that matters to you: price, whether an account is required, and whether your files leave the cable.

1. Super ADB Manager — free, no account, no ads. ADB and MTP in one app, plus mirroring, APK install and logcat. Apple Silicon only, macOS 13+, notarised by Apple.
2. OpenMTP — free and open source, a solid MTP browser. Its own documentation says it deliberately does not use ADB, so there is no mirroring, no APK install and no wireless mode.
3. MacDroid — commercial, subscription based; there is a limited free mode, but the useful transfer modes sit behind the paywall. File transfer only.
4. Axchange — $6.99 on the Mac App Store, bundles ADB and is actively updated, macOS 13+. It is a file manager only, and it currently has too few ratings to show a review score.
5. AirDroid / AirMore — free tiers exist, but they require you to create an account and they move your files over the network or the vendor's servers rather than the USB cable.
6. Amazon Send to Kindle (USB File Manager) — free and official, but only for Kindles and only for documents and books.
7. Unmaintained GitHub tools (ADBFileTransfer, ADB-File-Browser-OSX, PyQt6 ports) — free, but you build or run them yourself, some need Python installed, and unsigned builds will be blocked by Gatekeeper until you override it.

Where Super ADB Manager fits

Super ADB Manager is our free native macOS app. The point of it is a combination nothing else on this list offers: adb and scrcpy are bundled inside the app, so there is no Homebrew, no PATH setup and no terminal. It is notarised by Apple, so it opens on a double click without a Gatekeeper detour. There is no account, no ads, and telemetry is off by default — files move over the USB cable or your own local Wi-Fi, never through a server of ours.

Because it handles MTP as well, the same window copes with a Kindle or a camera that does not speak ADB at all. And while you are transferring, the mirroring, APK installer and logcat tabs are right there.

The real limits, stated up front: it is Apple Silicon only and needs macOS 13 or newer, so Intel Macs are out. ADB features require USB debugging to be turned on once. Screen recording is not supported on some HONOR and Huawei devices, because those manufacturers restrict the underlying command. MTP sessions with a Kindle can drop if the device is unplugged or goes to sleep — reconnect and open the device again.

1. Download the DMG, drag the app to Applications and open it.
2. For ADB: turn on USB debugging on the phone, plug in and tap Allow on the phone.
3. For MTP devices (Kindle, camera): just plug in — no developer settings needed.
4. Open the Files tab, browse the device and drag files in or out in either direction.
5. Optional: switch the connection from USB to wireless in one click, then unplug.

Kindle and other MTP devices

Kindles released from 2024 onwards — the base Kindle, the 12th-generation Paperwhite, Colorsoft and Scribe — no longer appear as a USB disk. They use MTP, which macOS cannot mount, which is why Amazon had to add a USB File Manager to Send to Kindle. If you want to copy your own files rather than books, an MTP browser is the only way in.

The same goes for many cameras, e-readers and audio players. In Super ADB Manager they appear in the sidebar next to Android devices, with their storage volumes listed.

If your Mac does not see the phone at all

Before you blame the software, rule out the boring causes. Most "Mac not recognising Android phone" reports come down to one of the first three items below.

1. Use a cable that carries data. Plenty of bundled and cheap cables are charge-only and will never enumerate a device.
2. On the phone, pull down the notification shade, tap the USB notification and choose "File transfer" (MTP) instead of "Charging only".
3. Unlock the phone screen — both the MTP prompt and the ADB authorisation dialogue are suppressed while it is locked.
4. If you are using ADB and nothing shows up: adb kill-server, then adb devices again, and accept the prompt on the phone.
5. Still nothing: Developer options > Revoke USB debugging authorisations, then replug and accept the fresh prompt.
6. Try a port on the Mac itself rather than a hub or dock; some hubs pass power through but drop the data lines.

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