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File Transfer Protocol (FTP) and Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) are the two most widely used protocols for transferring files between a local device and a remote server. They are often used by web developers to make changes to their servers, and that is why so much FTP software for Mac are available. If you have never used Mac tools for FTP before, you will find them incredibly simple and pretty familiar, as the connection and server browsing utilities are a lot like navigating a regular Mac desktop. However, let’s start from the very beginning.
Commander One is a very convenient file navigator and client for working with protocols such as FTP/SFTP/FTPS and WebDAV, as well as cloud services. After connecting to the FTP server, you can perform the same file operations like copying, deleting, moving, editing of the content there as with the one on the local disk. Besides that, great additions to the file manager are the archiver and task manager. in addition, the dual-pane interface of this Mac FTP client makes the work with the files as easy as pie.
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CloudMounter is rather convenient FTP Mac client that has a seamless integration into Finder and allows you to mount cloud storages and remote servers as network drives. The range of supported cloud storages is huge and what is worth to be mentioned is that you can mount as many accounts of one cloud as you wish. All data transferred between the storage and CloudMounter is encrypted, and the program runs on official service protocols. Thanks to CloudMounter you can effortlessly create, view, edit delete, as well as upload files to and download files from remote servers and cloud storages with just a couple of clicks.
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The free FTP Mac client Cyberduck freely interacts with Windows and macOS platforms and is characterized by the support for FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Cloud Files, Google Drive, Google Storage, Amazon S3 protocols. Many Mac communities have recognized it as one of the best FTP clients available for Mac. Cyberduck is also available as a dashboard widget and comes with one of the most consistent interfaces, making it very easy to view and transfer files.
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FireFTP used to be a popular extension to the popular Mozilla Firefox browser. The use of it was very simple and straightforward and allowed you to enjoy FTP access directly from your Internet browser. Despite being a lightweight browser extension, it didn’t lag behind the features and performance of desktop Mac FTP clients. Among its advantages and disadvantages, users could find the following.
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CrossFTP, developed by CrossFTP Software, is designed to implement features such as Amazon S3, FTP Client, and FTPS. The free version of CrossFTP works with archives, encryption, bookmarks, can perform group operations and has a good search for files. This is an excellent FTP client for Mac, Windows and Linux operating systems.
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The name FileZilla probably needs no introduction. Compatible with all major platforms - Windows, Mac, and Linux - this fully open-source software is one of the most popular FTP clients of all. Launched in 2001, FileZilla FTP client for Mac has held held this position for most of 18 years and it is a pretty big achievement. Besides that, you can download it without spending a dime.
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ForkLift is another premium FTP client available only for Mac users. This one is highly regarded for its speed and these other features. This FTP Mac client can be characterized by fairly quick file encryption, high-quality zip archiving, good synchronization with external services and much more.
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Transmit is another number one FTP client Mac users give preference to. The latest version, Transmit 5 promises up to 25x speed and it can make the app the fastest FTP client of all. In addition to pure speed, Transmit can also be trusted for reliable file transfers, and it comes with many other interesting features.
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However, with all these features it can worth your while.
Viper FTP is a convenient and powerful file manager for macOS with a huge user interface that makes it effortless to use. Viper FTP helps with local and remote file management (FTP, FTPS, SFTP, WebDav, Amazon S3, Google Drive and YouTube - download). This Mac FTP solution has many unique features you can't find in other applications.
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One more FTP client for Mac that filed as a history. The big plus of which was considered its multi-tab interface. Flow allowed working with multiple servers at once. By the way, the program supported five protocols for connecting to remote servers - FTP, SFTP, MobileMe iDisk, Amazon S3, and WebDAV. Rather intuitive and with a good set of features it was a cup of tea for a lot of users.
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Classic FTP is free and also quite easy to use client. The program is considered as the best FTP client that has a wide range of functions, which consists of viewing, editing, uploading to the server, downloading and deleting various files from a remote website and from the network. This application is a standard FTP client. It can become an indispensable tool for both experienced site admins and novice users. A simple program interface system greatly facilitates the loading processes of files from sites, as well as their editing. Downloading and uploading are very quick, with one click.
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Top features
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Commander One
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CloudMounter
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Cyberduck
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CrossFTP
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FileZilla
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ForkLift
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Transmit
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Viper FTP
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Classic FTP
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Easy-to-use interface
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Easy-to-use interface
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Support for SFTP
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Support for SFTP
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Files Encryption
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Files Encryption
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Doesn't work correctly
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Only on the local disk, not on the server
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Drag and Drop files
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Drag and Drop files
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Ability to change/rename files directly on the server
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Ability to change/rename files directly on the server
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Queuing file operations
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Queuing file operations
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Ability to synchronize folders
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Ability to synchronize folders
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Archive files without manual downloading
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Archive files without manual downloading
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Doesn't work with SFTP
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Automatic reconnection to the server
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Automatic reconnection to the server
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Support for 3rd-party file editing software
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Support for 3rd-party file editing software
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Hotkey support
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Hotkey support
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Support for WebDAV
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Support for WebDAV
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PRO version
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Support for cloud connections
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true Support for cloud connections
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Several connections
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PRO version
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Price
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Price
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$29.99
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$44.99
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Free/$10
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Free/$24.99/$39.99
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Free / PRO $20
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$29.95
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$45
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$18.95/$26.95/$89
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$60
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FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol and while using FTP Mac clients can connect to the server and download files of various formats. To do this, the user needs to know the FTP server address, as well as the data for authorization (login and password). Although, the FTP server can provide anonymous access, i.e. provide access to everyone who connects to the server.
The protocol is built on a client-server architecture and uses different network connections to transfer commands and data between the client and the server. You can use the SSH protocol for secure transmission, hiding (encrypting) your username and password, as well as encrypting the contents.
The FTP protocol appeared in 1971, even before the appearance of such protocols as HTTP and even TCP / IP. Initially, it was used for messaging, with a specific header, between the server and the client. Since that time, it has changed almost beyond recognition - a lot of new commands have been introduced, a separate connection has been allocated to transmit information.
The first client applications using FTP ports were interactive command-line devices that implement syntax and standard commands. Graphical user interfaces have since been developed for the many operating systems that are in use today. Nowadays, its use is actively distributed for the transfer of various software, as well as gaining access to remote resources.
As we already know, it is not necessary to install any special FTP for Mac utility on the Mac computer to be able to connect to the remote server. The Mac has a built-in client that is very easy to use.
If you want to connect to a secure FTPS server, all you need to do is add the domain prefix to ftps: // instead of ftp: //. This depends on whether the remote server supports SSL and whether FTPS connections are accepted, which is what most servers do. Also, keep in mind that FTPS and SFTP are two different protocols; FTPS is FTP with a secure SSL level, while SFTP uses SSH. FTPS connections are supported directly in the built-in FTP OS X function, while SFTP via SSH is not available through the same “Connect to the server” menu. However, OS X also includes its own SFTP client Mac users can access from the Terminal by typing “sftp username @ host” at the command line.
After connecting to the FTP server, you can view the remote server, like any other local folder on your Mac, because the server is processed in the same way as a regular file system window in Finder. Copying files to a remote server or downloading them to a Mac is easy with simple and familiar drag and drop. Go to the file or folder that you want to copy, then simply drag it as if you were copying or moving any other file, and the items will be transferred from the FTP server to the Mac computer or vice versa.
By default, the window will be displayed as a minimized Finder window, but you can expand the window to your usual Mac OS X Finder style by pulling the View menu down and selecting Show Toolbar. The main advantage of expanding the window is that you get navigation buttons with forward and backward arrows, as well as sorting options for viewing the FTP server by icon, name, date, lists and search functions.
FTP features on Mac OS X have been known since the very first days of OS X. Although these features are incredibly useful, they are obviously not as advanced as in any third-party Mac FTP client, but if you are in a difficult situation and you just need quickly to be able to connect to remote FTP to transfer some files back or forward, it is more than enough and what is more it does not require downloading anything extra.
Since the Finder FTP function does not support some functions that users may wish to have on their Mac, there are many third-party Mac FTP client applications that can perform this work instead, with full support for FTP, SFTP, FTPS, downloads, uploads, queues, the ability to change permissions, read/write support and so on and so forth. If you need more advanced features here is a list of a few free FTP Mac applications as well as paid ones. But first, let’s try to figure out what does an app should have to be called the best FTP client for Mac?
All FTP clients are very similar in some ways, but sometimes in one of them, you find a small function that is missing in another one that makes it much more useful and convenient for you. So let’s consider:
Besides that, you should pay attention to general characteristics, namely:
As to functional characteristics, you should pay attention to:
The rest features of the apps are rather individual and are needed by a relatively smaller number of users. We cannot say that nobody needs them, just not everyone needs them.
The FTP protocol itself is reliable and guarantees the delivery of the necessary files to the user however, if everything is in order with the connection. The problem in FTP security is the following. Initially, the protocol was unprotected, and it was assumed that the data channel was always reliable. That is why, every information that is transmitted in FTP is in an open form: files, passwords, usernames, and any data.
Nowadays, by default, it is assumed that each channel is unreliable and that the data must be additionally encrypted. Unfortunately, the FTP protocol itself does not support this. If someone intercepts your Wi-Fi traffic or connects to your local network, they will be able to intercept all this data and download it to themselves, in parallel with you.
There is still a security issue: by default, the FTP protocol has no protection against password guessing and login attempts, so someone can simply try the available passwords to gain access to the folders. If you saw in movies about hackers how they try out passwords at the entrance there - this is a very likely situation for FTP. From the point of view of modern security, the correct solution is to use one of the encrypted FTP implementations (FTPS, SFTP) or use FTP through VPN.
FTP is a very useful protocol and with its help, you can transfer files over the Internet. Definitely, you can connect to the server on a Mac using both built-in solutions and third-party programs. In general, these FTP clients for Mac are all alike and offer a wide range of settings that allow you to fully control FTP. However, you can see in one of them the function that will make a certain tool your “best friend”. You will understand that it is better than others because it is more beneficial for you. So choose the one that you like and have a perfect file handling.
Here is the list of the best FTP Mac clients: