Whether you’re delivering important documents or just sharing photos from a family vacation, sending attachments should be a piece of cake. however, gmail’s attachment size limit can make this process a bit difficult.
Fortunately, there is a way around this hurdle. By understanding the limitations of your email and attachment options, you should be able to send large files with ease.
In this article, we’ll take a closer look at email file size limits. We’ll also go over attachment restrictions for major email providers and clients. then we’ll show you four easy ways to send large files via email.
let’s get right to it!
watch our video guide to sending large files via email
why emails have file size limits
Attachment size limits may restrict your communication. Whether you’re trying to send a video or a pdf, these size limits can get in your way.
This problem can be especially frustrating if you use email for business purposes. Recent studies highlight the remarkable benefits of email marketing for businesses. however, you cannot earn these rewards if limitations prevent you from pressing “submit”.
However, email companies have these size limits for a reason. a server can only process so many requests. therefore, you will not be able to handle thousands of giant emails sent at the same time. that would likely result in a total system crash.
size limits for major email providers
Each email service provider has its own attachment restrictions. Let’s take a look at the current file size limits of some of the most popular providers:
- gmail: 25mb. However, Gmail’s attachment size limit can be misleading because Google encodes your email into a particular format before sending it. this process can double the size of your attachment; therefore, the actual gmail attachment size limit is closer to 12.5mb.
- outlook: 20mb (in all versions).
- hotmail: 10 mg.
- mail.com: 50 mb. however, each file can only be 10mb.
- yahoo: 25mb.
- zoho: 12mb. each file can only be 10mb.
- aol: 25mb.
- protonmail: 25mb. you can send up to 100 individual files.
As you can see, the range is relatively wide. however, different companies offer different benefits in addition to email attachment limits. therefore, we encourage you to consider all aspects when choosing an email provider.
size limits for major email clients
It’s important to remember that an email provider is different from an email client. while the provider processes your email data, the client is more like a courier. users can access their email clients to view their messages.
Email clients often take the form of an application. however, you may have an application that is both a client and a provider, such as Microsoft Outlook.
These are the size limits of the most popular email applications:
- mozilla thunderbird: unlimited.
- windows live mail: 10 gb per message. also, each file cannot be >50 mb.
- the bat!: 25 mb.
Remember that if you are using a different client and provider, you will need to be aware of both limitations. Therefore, we recommend that you carefully weigh the pros and cons of each service and choose the one that best suits your needs.
how to send large files via email (4 easy ways)
Now that you know the size limits of attachments, it’s time to learn how to overcome them! Fortunately, you have some powerful options to choose from. let’s take a closer look at each.
1. use cloud storage
Cloud storage is a way of saving your files off-site on a server that you can access from anywhere, as long as you have an internet connection. it also means you can use cloud storage to give people access to your files. all you have to do is upload the document to the cloud and send a link to your recipients.
there are many programs that offer this service. At Kinsta, we’re huge fans of Google Drive. Let’s take a quick look at how you can use this tool to share large files like videos.
first, go to google drive. in the upper left corner, click the new button. now you will see some options:
You can either create the document here or upload your own.
then go to the document you want to share. in the upper right corner, click the share button:
Here, you can add people to the document. They’ll receive an invitation and be able to access your file.
Alternatively, you can copy the url and email them the link.
2. compress your files
Another way to get around the attachment size limit is through compression. most computers allow you to convert a document to a .zip file.
zipped files are compressed versions of your documents. these are usually smaller than normal files. your recipients can easily unzip the file when they receive it to retrieve the original file.
Creating a compressed file is a simple process. start by locating the file you want to compress. then, right-click and select send to > compressed (zipped) folder:
Once you’ve done that, you’ll get the compressed file in a zipped folder.
However, keep in mind that compression can’t do much. it typically reduces the size by 30-40%, but depending on the size of the original file, it may not be enough. If you still can’t meet the size limit for email attachments, you might want to try the next method.
3. use online file sharing tools
Fortunately, many free tools can help you get around file size limits when sending email. some of these may even further compress your files or allow you to use their servers to send separate email.
However, these free services may have some drawbacks. for example, you may need to navigate through some ads to use a tool. additionally, some tools may have their own size limits.
Also, some services are less secure than others. therefore, we recommend that you do not use this method if you are submitting sensitive information. however, encryption can help reduce the risk of your data being stolen.
When it comes to a reliable online file sharing tool, we recommend jumpshare:
Jumpshare enables you to upload large files and send them directly to other people. It also generates links to these files.
the free version of jumpshare has a file upload limit of 250mb, which is much more generous than gmail’s attachment size limit. In addition, the program uses Secure Socket Layers (SSL) to protect your data during transfers.
4. split large files into smaller chunks
splitting your files can be tedious. as such, we only recommend using this method if you need to send a document.
In a nutshell, you’ll need to split a multi-page document into multiple individual documents and send multiple emails, possibly one for each attachment.
There are some significant drawbacks to this approach. the most obvious is that your information will be segmented and the recipient will have to reassemble it at the other end.
Fortunately, you can use a tool like gsplit to simplify this process:
GSplit is a free program that automatically divides your work into manageable chunks. Even better, it helps you put it back together. Your recipients can use its companion tool GUnite to reassemble your files.
However, this method can make you look unprofessional. therefore, we suggest that you only use it for personal purposes.
summary
an email attachment size limit can give you a big headache. Fortunately, there are ways to overcome it. By choosing the best method for your needs, you can easily send large files to other people. With the right gmail plugin, you can also track and protect email attachments.
We recommend using a cloud storage service. however, if you can’t use it for some reason, now you’ve learned three other ways to bypass email attachment size limits.
Have more questions about how to bypass gmail’s attachment size limit? let us know in the comments below!