Share an HTML file: attachment, cloud or link
Send a live link instead of the file itself so your HTML opens as a working web page on any phone or computer, and ship.page publishes it free forever with no signup, no account, and no credit card. Drop an .html file up to 10 MB, a folder, or a .zip up to 25 MB with 100 files, or paste HTML, and get an HTTPS link with a QR code in seconds.
A file. A folder. A fresh start.
Your static site, one link away.
Uploading publishes your file. The link is public but unlisted, not password-protected, so leave out secrets and confidential content.
- Opens in any browser instead of downloading as code
- Live link
- Max size for a single HTML file on every plan
- 10 MB
- Free ZIP limit (100 MB unpacked, up to 100 files)
- 25 MB ZIP
- Free plan with no account, no card, unlimited uploads
- $0 forever
How to turn your HTML file into a link you can send
Check if your HTML needs other files
If ChatGPT or Claude wrote a single self-contained .html file, you only need that one file. If your page uses separate CSS, JavaScript, or image files, keep them together in one folder or compress them into a .zip with the main page named index.html.
Drop it onto ship.page
Open ship.page in your browser. Drag in your .html file, folder, or .zip, pick it from your computer, or paste the raw HTML code directly into the box.
Copy the link or download the QR code
Your page goes live in seconds on its own HTTPS subdomain with no signup. Copy the URL to paste into a text, chat, or email, or download the PNG QR code shown on the success screen.
Claim or upgrade if you need updates later
You can publish without an account, or claim the page with a free account (Google or email link, no card) and it stays online as long as you keep it. On the $4 a month Pro plan, pages never expire, and you can update the file without changing the link.
Three ways to share an HTML file compared
| Way to share | Opens as a page | Keeps CSS and images | Account |
|---|---|---|---|
| ship.page link | Yes, in any browser on phone or desktop | Yes, when uploaded as a folder or ZIP | None required to publish |
| Email attachment | Only on desktop after downloading; often shows raw code on phones | No, unless the recipient downloads and unzips a full folder | Email account required |
| Google Drive or Dropbox link | No, shows source code preview or forces a file download | No, linked assets do not render in the browser | Google or Dropbox account required |
Why sending an HTML file as an attachment fails on phones
When you send an .html file over email, iMessage, WhatsApp, or Slack, the other person receives a file they have to download first. On a laptop, double-clicking the downloaded file usually opens it in Chrome or Safari, though security prompts can still get in the way.
On an iPhone or Android phone, tapping an HTML attachment often opens a plain text viewer showing raw HTML tags instead of the page you built. Even if a mobile viewer renders the HTML, any separate stylesheet, script, or image left behind on your computer will be missing, so the page looks broken.
Tip: To test what a phone user sees without sending the file first, turn your HTML into a link and scan the website QR code on the success screen.
Why Google Drive and Dropbox links show code instead of your page
Cloud storage links used to work for quick HTML sharing, so many older tutorials still recommend them. Both services shut down browser HTML rendering years ago, which is why your friend sees a wall of code or a download button instead of your page.
- Google Drive deprecated googledrive.com/host on August 31, 2015 and shut it down completely on August 31, 2016, so a shared HTML file no longer opens as a working page.
- Dropbox stopped rendering HTML in shared links for free accounts on October 3, 2016, causing shared .html files to download instead of opening.
- Dropbox Public folder links stopped working for Basic users on March 15, 2017 and were shut down for all users on September 1, 2017.
- Drive and Dropbox are still the better pick when you want a coworker to download the raw .html source file to edit on their own machine.
Sharing through a link: ship.page vs Netlify Drop
Publishing the file to a static host gives you a real HTTPS address that opens straight in any browser. When you want to share an HTML file with no friction for you or the viewer, ship.page is built for the job: there is no login wall for the sender and no password wall for the recipient.
Netlify Drop (app.netlify.com/drop) also accepts a folder, ZIP, or single HTML file in the browser without an account up front, and its docs note that deploys under 50 MB work best while single files over 10 MB may get stuck. However, a site dropped on Netlify without signing in stays behind a temporary password until you claim it with a Netlify account, and an unclaimed drop expires on its own.
- Free limits on ship.page: single HTML file up to 10 MB, ZIP up to 25 MB (100 MB unpacked), 100 files per upload, 10 deploys a minute, unlimited uploads, and no bandwidth limits.
- Folder uploads on ship.page go up as one request of at most 10 MB (roughly 7 MB of files), so zip larger folders first.
- Static files work out of the box: HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images, fonts, audio, video, WebAssembly, and JSON, with case-sensitive file paths.
- Every upload sends a noindex header so search engines leave it out, and ship.page never lists uploads publicly; only people with the link can open it.
When you need to update the link or add a password
If someone only needs to open an HTML file you just made in Claude or ChatGPT, the free plan has everything you need. A free page cannot be updated in place (uploading a new version gives you a new URL) and shows a small "Hosted on ship.page" badge that visitors can close.
For $4 a month (billed monthly, cancel anytime), Pro lets you re-upload or edit a page and keep the same link, removes the badge, and adds password protection. Pro pages never expire, or you can set an expiry starting from 60 seconds, and limits rise to 100 MB ZIPs (400 MB unpacked), 10,000 files, 120 deploys a minute, and up to 5 custom subdomains like yourname.ship.place.
Questions
How do I share an HTML file with a friend so it opens as a website?
Upload the .html file (or a folder or ZIP if it includes images and CSS) to ship.page. You get a live HTTPS link in seconds with no signup, and your friend can tap that link on any phone or computer to see the working page.
Why does my HTML file open as text or code when I send it?
Phones and cloud previews treat a downloaded .html attachment as a text document rather than a live website. Serving the file from a web host over HTTPS tells the browser to render the page instead of showing the source code.
Can I host and share an HTML file from Google Drive or Dropbox?
No. Google Drive shut down googledrive.com/host on August 31, 2016, and Dropbox stopped rendering HTML in free shared links on October 3, 2016 and turned off Public folder links for all users on September 1, 2017. Both services now show raw code or force a file download.
Claude or ChatGPT gave me HTML code. How do I send it to someone?
Copy the HTML code from the chat, paste it straight into ship.page, or save it as an .html file up to 10 MB and drag it in. You will get a shareable link and a downloadable PNG QR code immediately with no account required.
What if my HTML page has separate CSS, JavaScript, or image files?
Name your main file index.html, put it in a folder alongside your CSS, JavaScript, and image files, and drag the whole folder or a .zip onto ship.page. A single-folder ZIP is unwrapped automatically, and the free plan accepts ZIPs up to 25 MB (100 MB unpacked) with up to 100 files.
Can I update the shared HTML file without sending a new link?
On the free plan, a page cannot be updated in place, so a new upload creates a new link. On the $4 a month Pro plan, you can re-upload or edit the page while keeping the exact same URL, and you can also point up to 5 custom subdomains like yourname.ship.place at any of your pages.
Keep reading
- Share an HTML file online
- Turn HTML into a link
- Open an HTML file in a browser
- Get a QR code for your page
Turn your HTML file into a link now
Drop an HTML file, folder, or ZIP to get a shareable HTTPS link and QR code in seconds, free forever with no signup.