What is Photon used for?

Photon is a GPL-licensed, cross-platform Flutter app for sending files and folders between devices over HTTP on a local network or hotspot, with no internet needed. It is a good fit for moving files between phone and computer offline, and sending whole folders across platforms.

Is Photon open source?

Yes. Photon is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at abhi16180/photon and is written mainly in Dart.

Yes. Photon is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host Photon?

Yes. Photon can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.

What is Photon an alternative to?

Photon is an open-source alternative to Send Anywhere. Other open-source alternatives to Send Anywhere include LocalSend, AirDash and Airshare.

Is Photon actively maintained?

The most recent commit to Photon was on 31 May 2026, and the latest release is v3.0.0, published on 5 January 2025. The project has 608 stars on GitHub.

Photon: open-source alternative to Send Anywhere

About Photon

Photon is a file and folder transfer application built with Flutter. Devices running Photon exchange data over HTTP, so you can move files between, for example, an Android phone and a Windows computer. A Wi-Fi router is not required because a mobile hotspot works, and no internet connection is needed.

It preserves the complete folder structure, including subdirectories, on the receiving device, supports sending many files at once, and can share raw text that the receiver saves as a text file or copies to the clipboard. The interface follows Material You design, and the save location for received files can be changed. Speed depends on the bandwidth of the shared network.

Version 3.0.0 added HTTPS with token validation and a random URL path for each session, and the README advises using HTTPS where possible and keeping Photon within trusted networks. Builds are offered for Android, Windows, macOS and Linux, with iOS listed as coming soon. The license is GPL-3.0, changed from MIT.

Key features

Folder sharing that keeps directory structure
Multi-file transfers
Raw text sharing between devices
Works over hotspot or the same local network
HTTPS with token validation
Android, Windows, macOS and Linux apps

Good fit for

→Moving files between phone and computer offline
→Sending whole folders across platforms

Built with: Dart
Tags: file-transfer; file-sharing; flutter; cross-platform; local-network; hotspot; dart; offline

Photon: questions and answers

What is Photon used for?: Photon is a GPL-licensed, cross-platform Flutter app for sending files and folders between devices over HTTP on a local network or hotspot, with no internet needed. It is a good fit for moving files between phone and computer offline, and sending whole folders across platforms.
Is Photon open source?: Yes. Photon is open source under the GPL-3.0 licence. Its source code is on GitHub at abhi16180/photon and is written mainly in Dart.
Is Photon free?: Yes. Photon is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host Photon?: Yes. Photon can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure.
What is Photon an alternative to?: Photon is an open-source alternative to Send Anywhere. Other open-source alternatives to Send Anywhere include LocalSend, AirDash and Airshare.
Is Photon actively maintained?: The most recent commit to Photon was on 31 May 2026, and the latest release is v3.0.0, published on 5 January 2025. The project has 608 stars on GitHub.