SFTP client for Mac, mounted in Finder.
Cyberduck and Transmit put the server in a transfer window; sshfs needs a kernel extension. ExpanDrive puts any SSH server in Finder as a drive, with no extension to approve. Password, OpenSSH key, or the macOS ssh-agent for authentication, custom ports, remote path scoping, MFA prompts forwarded at connect time, and files streamed on demand. Free for personal use, Apple Silicon native.
Any SSH server, as a volume in Finder.
Any OpenSSH-compatible server.
A Linux box, a NAS with SSH turned on, a cloud VM, a managed SFTP service, a jump host you already have keys for. If ssh can reach it, ExpanDrive mounts it.
Three ways to authenticate.
Password with an MFA prompt at connect time, an OpenSSH-format key with its passphrase, or the macOS ssh-agent so the keys ssh, scp, and rsync already use work without a second keychain.
Every Mac app opens the server directly.
VS Code, Xcode, Photoshop, the terminal: each one reads and writes files on the server in place. No download, edit, scp-it-back cycle.
Finder and ~/Library/CloudStorage.
The server appears in the sidebar and under CloudStorage through Apple's File Provider extension, the same model iCloud Drive uses. Spotlight, tags, and Quick Look work on it.
The SSH details, handled.
What separates a mount you forget about from one you babysit.
Custom ports and remote path scoping.
Port 22 by default, any port you run SSH on otherwise. Scope a connection to a single remote directory so the mount starts where the work is instead of at /.
MFA forwarded through the connection.
If the server uses keyboard-interactive authentication for TOTP, push, or a hardware token, ExpanDrive prompts for the second factor at connect time, the same way ssh does.
Flaky networks survive.
Files stream on demand and cache locally, and a dropped connection reconnects without unmounting the volume or losing the file you were editing.
Where the usual Mac SFTP options stop short.
Transfer windows, a kernel extension, and a Finder that never learned SFTP.
- Cyberduck and Transmit are transfer windows.Both are good at moving files; neither gives the rest of your software a drive. Cyberduck's external-editor feature hides one file's round trip at a time.
- sshfs needs macFUSE, and macFUSE needs a kernel extension. On Apple Silicon that means booting into Recovery to reduce security before the mount will load, and repeating the approval dance after updates.
- Finder does not speak SFTP. Connect to Server handles SMB, AFP, NFS, WebDAV, and read-only FTP. An sftp:// address is not on the list.
Other protocol mounts, same Mac app.
One install covers SSH servers, legacy FTP endpoints, WebDAV shares, and object storage.
FTP
Mount any FTP or FTPS server as a network drive on macOS, Windows, and Linux - full TLS support for legacy systems that haven't migrated to SFTP.
WebDAV
Connect to any WebDAV server directly from your desktop - mapped as a network drive with full file access on Mac, Windows, or Linux.
Amazon S3
Connect to Amazon S3 or any S3-compatible storage as a network drive — multi-threaded transfers and full bucket browsing on Mac, Windows, and Linux.
Questions about SFTP on a Mac.
Free clients, keys and agents, Finder, sshfs, and where the server side comes from.
Need a File Orchestration Platform, not just a drive?
The cloud connectors mounting your drive on macOS, Windows, and Linux are the same ones that run on Files.com's high-performance cloud File Orchestration Platform — used by 4,000+ businesses including Equifax, Rag & Bone, Cognizant, and Michelin. If you need automations, audit logs, SFTP / AS2 servers, or compliance reporting on top of your file estate, that lives there.
Try it free.
Mount everything.
Free for personal use. Runs on every Mac, PC, and Linux box built in the last decade.