Mount Google Drive as a Drive on Mac, Windows, and Linux

Looking for the best way to access Google Drive on your desktop?

ExpanDrive is the fastest and most powerful solution to mount Google Drive as a drive on Mac, Windows, and Linux — with no syncing delays, no browser uploads, and no complicated setup.

Connect your Google Drive account and instantly browse and edit cloud files from Finder, Explorer, Terminal, or any desktop app — just like a local disk.

Getting started with Google Drive

Google Drive is one of the most widely used cloud storage services in the world. It is the storage platform for all Google Workspace, Google for Education and regular Google Accounts.

Your first 15GB comes free for a regular consumer account but you can easily bump it up to 100G for $20/year or 1TB for $99/year. Managing and migrating data using the default web-based interface works well, but isn’t a good solution for regular day-to-day work. Especially if you’re editing content with apps on your computer like Office, Photoshop, etc.

To get started, head over to https://www.google.com/drive and log in using your Google Account. Your Google Drive storage will be ready to go when you log in.

The Best Google Drive Client for Mac

ExpanDrive is a Google Drive client for Mac that works like a native drive. You can open, edit, and save files directly from Google Drive using any app on your computer – Microsoft Office, Photoshop, Final Cut Pro, and more.

Key Features:

  • Mount Google Drive in Finder as a native drive
  • Full support for macOS 14+ and Apple Silicon (M1/M2)
  • On-demand sync — files are downloaded only when needed
  • Background uploads and offline access
  • Secure, encrypted access to your Google Drive files

Unlike traditional sync tools, ExpanDrive doesn’t take up local disk space or clutter your computer with unnecessary files. It’s fast, lightweight, and perfect for professionals and teams who depend on Google Drive.

Map Google Drive in Windows as a Drive Letter

Want to map Google Drive as a network drive in Windows? ExpanDrive makes it easy to assign Google Drive to a drive letter in Windows Explorer. No need to sync everything – your files are always available on-demand, directly inside native Windows apps.

Benefits for Windows users:

  • Mount Google Drive as a persistent drive letter
  • Access files directly from Explorer, Word, Excel, Adobe, and more
  • On-demand loading saves local disk space
  • Secure connection with optional offline caching

ExpanDrive is the most seamless way to integrate Google Drive with your Windows workflow.

Cross-Platform Access to Google Drive

With ExpanDrive, you get consistent, high-performance access to Google Drive across all major operating systems:

  • macOS (including support for macOS Sonoma and Apple Silicon)
  • Windows 10 and 11
  • Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Red Hat, and more)

Use the same tool, interface, and configuration no matter where you work.

Google Drive Without the Sync Headaches

Unlike Google’s Backup and Sync or Drive for Desktop tools, ExpanDrive doesn’t force you to sync entire folders. You get instant, on-demand access to everything in your Google Drive, with optional offline caching for the files you use most.

This means:

  • No wasted disk space
  • Faster access to large files
  • More control over bandwidth and storage usage

Alternatives and Open Source Options

If you're comparing other Google Drive desktop clients, here’s what to know:

  • RClone – Great for command-line transfers, but no GUI or native drive mounting
  • ODrive – A basic multi-cloud client, with limited features and performance
  • google-drive-ocamlfuse – Works on Linux, but not fully supported on macOS

For full-featured, cross-platform integration with Google Drive, ExpanDrive is the best alternative.

One App for All Your Cloud Storage

ExpanDrive supports much more than just Google Drive. With one tool, you can connect to:

Access all your cloud storage in one place – from any desktop, on any OS.

Google Drive on Linux – Finally Done Right

Looking for a way to use Google Drive on Linux without resorting to clunky workarounds or unreliable open-source scripts? ExpanDrive is the best Google Drive client for Linux, offering full-featured, native access to your cloud files right from your Linux desktop or server environment.

Why Linux users love ExpanDrive:

  • Mount Google Drive as a filesystem on Ubuntu, Debian, Red Hat, and more
  • No need to sync entire folders — on-demand access means faster performance
  • Works with your existing file manager, terminal, and apps
  • Automatic background transfers and offline caching
  • Secure OAuth-based authentication — no manual token hacks required

Whether you’re running a Linux workstation or managing a server, ExpanDrive gives you seamless, stable, and secure access to Google Drive — without the hassle.

Start your free trial today and see why ExpanDrive is the best Google Drive client for Mac, Windows, and Linux. Install in minutes and instantly turn Google Drive into a fast, reliable, native drive on your desktop.