Send Photoshop and design files with every layer intact

Why design files are too big for email

Layered files store every pixel of every layer. An A3 poster at 300 dpi is 3,508 × 4,961 pixels; a single 8-bit RGB layer with transparency at that size is about 70 MB of raw data, and a 16-bit layer twice that. Photoshop compresses what it saves, but a poster with a few dozen layers, smart objects and masks easily runs to hundreds of megabytes. Email stops at 20 to 35 MB per message as of October 2026.

If a client says your PSB will not open, it is usually because their software (or an older Photoshop) does not support files over 2 GB. Send a flattened TIFF or PDF alongside it. The same logic applies to every layered format: the working file is for whoever edits, the flat export is for whoever looks.

How to send design files with Transfr

1. 1

   Step 1

   Package the project

   In InDesign, use File › Package to gather the document, linked images and fonts in one folder. In Illustrator, use File › Package too, or embed links. For Photoshop, keep linked smart objects next to the PSD.

2. 2

   Step 2

   Add review exports

   Export PNG or PDF proofs. Browsers cannot display PSD, AI or INDD files, so the exports are what your client will look at online.

3. 3

   Step 3

   Drop the folder on Transfr

   Open Transfr and add the folder, up to 100 GB per transfer. The folder tree, and therefore the links between files, is kept.

4. 4

   Step 4

   Turn on comments and send

   Share the link or email up to 10 people. Reviewers can pin comments to a point or an area of a PNG, or to a page of a PDF.

Review designs without a proofing tool

The usual review loop (export, email a JPEG, receive a list of changes referencing “the logo top left”) wastes time. On the Transfr download page, your client opens the PNG or PDF proofs in the browser and clicks exactly where the change is needed, or draws a box around an area. Each comment is attached to that spot, and you get an email when one arrives.

Once the design is approved, send the production files in a new transfer, or include them from the start so the client has everything in one place. With Transfr Pro, the download page carries your studio’s logo and background and can live on your own domain. See branded file transfer.

What to send, by tool

Name versions so nobody opens the wrong one

Final, final-2 and final-REAL is a classic for a reason. Put the date and a version number in file names (2026-10-23_Poster_v04.psd), keep older versions out of the delivery folder, and say in the transfer message which file is the master. If you send several rounds, each transfer is its own snapshot with its own link, so the client can always tell which batch they are looking at, and expired rounds clean themselves up.

Do you need to zip design files?

No. Transfr keeps the folder structure, so links between an InDesign document and its Links folder stay valid, and “download all” gives the recipient one ZIP with the same tree. PSD and PSB files compress very little in a ZIP anyway. Zip yourself only if a printer or a platform asks for a single archive. More in sending a folder without zipping and sending a large ZIP.

Collecting assets from clients

Projects start the other way round: you need logos, photos and brand guidelines from the client. Send them a file request link and they upload everything, up to 100 GB, without an account. For print-ready output, see sending a large PDF. Agencies handling many clients will find more in file sharing for agencies.

Keeping unreleased work confidential

Campaigns under embargo, packaging for an unannounced product, a rebrand: add a password, a short expiry and a download limit. For the most sensitive projects, turn on end-to-end encryption so the files, and even their names, are encrypted before they leave your computer. See secure file transfer.