Getting Started
ZipDrop lives in your macOS menu bar and processes files instantly. Here’s how to upload your first file.Click the ZipDrop menu bar icon
The ZipDrop window will appear directly below the menu bar icon, positioned for easy access.
Drag and drop your file
Drag any supported file from Finder onto the drop zone. You’ll see visual feedback:
- Drag over: The drop zone highlights with “Drop to upload”
- Processing: A spinner appears with the filename
- Success: A checkmark with confirmation message
What Happens During Processing
ZipDrop intelligently processes files based on type and quantity:Single Image Files
When you upload a single image (JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP, or TIFF), ZipDrop:- Converts to WebP format at 80% quality
- Optimizes file size while maintaining visual quality
- Generates a unique filename (e.g.,
photo_a1b2c3d4.webp) - Uploads to R2 (or saves locally in demo mode)
Multiple Files
When you drop multiple files (up to 50), ZipDrop:- Creates a ZIP archive with all files
- Compresses with Deflate method
- Preserves original filenames inside the archive
- Names it
archive_a1b2c3d4.zip - Uploads the single ZIP file
Other File Types
For non-image files (PDFs, videos, documents, etc.), ZipDrop:- Copies the file with a unique suffix
- Preserves the original extension (e.g.,
document_a1b2c3d4.pdf) - Uploads without modification
File Validation
Before processing, ZipDrop validates your files:- Maximum 50 files per upload
- Maximum 500 MB per individual file
- Maximum 1 GB total size
- Supported extensions only (see supported file types)
- No directories - ZIP folders first
Clipboard Behavior
Automatic Clipboard Copy
After successful upload, the URL (or local path in demo mode) is automatically copied to your clipboard. No need to click anything - just drop and paste!
What Gets Copied
- Production mode: Public R2 URL (e.g.,
https://zipdrop.co/u/a1b2c3d4_photo.webp) - Demo mode: Local file path (e.g.,
/Users/you/Downloads/photo_a1b2c3d4.webp)
Timing
The URL is copied after:- File processing completes
- Upload to R2 succeeds (production mode)
- Success state is displayed
Window Auto-Hide
After a successful upload, ZipDrop:- Shows success message for 2 seconds
- Resets to idle state
- Auto-hides after 10 seconds to keep your workspace clean
Demo vs Production Mode
ZipDrop has two modes:Demo Mode (Default)
- Files are saved to Downloads folder (
~/Downloadsby default) - No upload to Cloudflare R2
- Local file path copied to clipboard
- Perfect for testing or offline use
- Shows “Demo” badge in the UI
Production Mode
- Files are uploaded to Cloudflare R2
- Public URL copied to clipboard
- Requires R2 configuration (see Configuration)
- Toggle off demo mode in Settings
The status text changes based on mode:
- Demo: “Saved to Downloads!”
- Production: “Copied to clipboard!”
Supported File Types
ZipDrop supports a wide range of file types:- Images: JPG, PNG, GIF, BMP, TIFF, WebP, HEIC, SVG, ICO, RAW formats
- Documents: PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, TXT, RTF, CSV, Markdown
- Archives: ZIP, TAR, GZ, 7Z, RAR, BZ2, XZ
- Video: MOV, MP4, AVI, MKV, WebM, M4V, WMV
- Audio: MP3, WAV, AAC, FLAC, M4A, OGG, AIFF
- Code: JSON, HTML, CSS, JS, TS, Python, Rust, Go, Swift, Java, etc.
- macOS: DMG, PKG, APP, IPA
- Fonts: TTF, OTF, WOFF, WOFF2
App.tsx:14-33.
Next Steps
Managing Uploads
View history, copy URLs, and delete files
Keyboard Shortcuts
Master ZipDrop’s keyboard controls