Each email provider has different rules for attachment size limitations, meaning that if a file exceeds the limit, you won’t be able to send it. For example, him Gmail The file size limit is just 25 MB. This can be problematic when you have a file that needs to be sent and the recipient does not use a service like Dropbox.
I often have to send files that exceed that limit. Unfortunately, Gmail cannot be configured to allow you to bypass that limitation. However, all is not lost.
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Thanks to Google Drive, you can still send files larger than 25MB via Gmail (or any email client, for that matter). But don’t think you have to switch between Gmail and Drive for this to work, as Google has integrated the feature directly into Gmail and it’s very simple to use. With this convenient solution, you can send files up to 10 GB in size.
Yes, you read that correctly: 10 GB.
If you need to send something larger than 10 GB, you’re out of luck. You will have to send a postal mail pen drive.
So how is this done? Let me teach you.
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How to send large files in Gmail
What you will need: All you’ll need is a valid Google account and a web browser or the mobile app. (I’ll show you how to do this from both.) That’s all. You don’t even need to upload the file to Google Drive first: Google will do it for you.
That’s all. Let’s send some massive attachments.
The first thing you should do is go to http://gmail.com in your default web browser. Once there, click Compose to create a new email.
Gmail’s compose window includes several features that you may not have noticed.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
At the bottom of the Compose window, you’ll see a Google Drive icon. Click that icon, and then in the resulting pop-up window, click the My Drive tab, navigate to the folder containing the large file you uploaded to Drive, and then click Insert. If you haven’t uploaded the file to Google Drive yet, simply click on the paper clip icon and then, in the resulting file picker, locate the file on your local drive that needs to be uploaded. Google will automatically upload the file to your Google Drive space and create a link for the recipient.
Gmail’s compose window includes several features that you may not have noticed.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
How to bypass the 25 MB limit in the Gmail mobile app
This method is just as easy. All you have to do is launch the Gmail app and start composing a new email. In the Compose window, tap the paper clip icon, and from the drop-down menu, select Insert from Drive.
Attach a file from Drive in the Gmail mobile app.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
From the new page, tap My Drive, navigate to the large file you want to send, select the file, and tap Select. The link will be automatically generated and added to the email. Finish composing, tap the Send button and you’re done.
You can select files from anywhere in your Google Drive account.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET
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And that, my friends, is all it takes to bypass the 25 MB file limit in the web and mobile versions of Gmail. Enjoy sending those big files!