Updated Oct 21, 2026

## Netlify Drop or Link in Seconds: which one should you pick?

Pick Netlify if the site will grow into a real project: builds, serverless functions, forms, deploy previews and Git all live there. Pick Link in Seconds if you want to publish a finished site or a single HTML page and share it like a file, with a QR code and view counts, no build pipeline and no monthly usage credits to watch. Single HTML pages work on any plan, and multi-file ZIP sites are a Pro feature.

### Public the moment you publish

Netlify's no-account drop protects the URL with a temporary password until you claim it with an account, so it is a preview rather than a place to leave a site. Here you sign in with Google first, one tap, and the link is live and public straight away.

### A flat plan, not credits

Netlify's plans are credit-based, and when a team uses up its monthly credits its projects pause until the next cycle or an upgrade. Link in Seconds is a flat price with no bandwidth meter and no visit cap, so a link that gets popular keeps serving.

[See the flat pricing](https://linkinseconds.com/pricing)

### Password, expiry and view counts

Every plan lets you add a password or an expiry date to a site, a single HTML page or any file, and every link has a view counter and a QR code. That matters for a client preview, a landing page mock-up, a prototype exported from an AI tool, or a coding assignment.

### Sites and files in one place

Most people who reach for Drop have a thing to show someone. Here the same account handles the site, the PDF brief that goes with it, the demo video and the ZIP of source files, each as its own link with a proper preview. You can also bundle several files into one album.

[HTML hosting here](https://linkinseconds.com/html-hosting)

### What this does not do

No build step. Upload the built output, not the source. We serve files exactly as they are in the ZIP.

No functions, forms or server code. Sites are static. Anything that needs a backend, an API route or form handling belongs on a platform like Netlify.

ZIP sites need Pro. Single HTML files work on any plan, but multi-file ZIP sites are a Pro feature.

No Git or deploy previews. Updating means uploading a new ZIP. There is no branch preview, rollback history or team review flow.

## Link in Seconds vs Netlify Drop at a glance

Link in Seconds compared with Netlify Drop

| Feature | Link in Seconds | Netlify Drop |

| What you upload | One HTML file on any plan, a ZIP site on Pro | A site folder or ZIP |

| Upload size | 250 MB free, 500 MB on Pro | Drops under 50 MB work best, bigger via CLI |

| Without an account | No, you sign in with Google first | Yes, behind a temporary password until claimed |

| Link lifetime | Never expires on its own | Unclaimed sites are suspended, then deleted |

| Password protection | Link in Seconds, Password protection: yes | Pro plan only |

| Custom domain | Link in Seconds, Custom domain: yes | Yes, with SSL, on the free plan |

| Cheapest paid plan | Pro, $9/month or $49/year | Personal, $9/month |

| QR code for the link | Link in Seconds, QR code for the link: yes | Netlify Drop, QR code for the link: no |

| Framework builds, redirects & functions | Link in Seconds, Framework builds, redirects & functions: no | Builds when logged in |

Competitor facts checked on 6 Oct 2026 on netlify.com/pricing and docs.netlify.com. Our numbers come from our plan page. Plans change, so confirm current pricing before you decide.

## How it works

- 1 ### Build it first, then zip the output We serve files as they are and do not run a build. Run your build locally and zip the output folder (dist/, build/ or out/), or zip the plain folder with index.html in it. A single self-contained .html file does not need a ZIP at all.

- 2 ### Upload the ZIP Drop it on the upload card. We find index.html at the root or in a common build folder, and relative links between pages and assets just work. Single HTML pages work on any plan, and multi-file ZIP sites are a Pro feature.

- 3 ### Share it, or put it on your domain The site goes live on its own address with SSL. Share the link or its QR code, connect your own domain on Pro, and re-upload a new ZIP whenever you change something: the address stays the same.

## What Netlify does better

Netlify is a developer platform, and Drop is just its quickest entrance. According to Netlify's docs, if you are logged in you can drop a project that still needs a build step and Netlify detects the framework and builds it for you. Around that sit serverless functions, forms, deploy previews, Git-based deploys, team features and a CLI. The free plan already includes custom domains with SSL. Link in Seconds has no build step, no functions and no forms. If your site needs any server-side logic, Netlify is the better home.

## Dropping without an account

Netlify's docs say that if you drop without signing in, your project URL is protected with a temporary password until you claim it with an account, and anonymous deploys from the CLI can be claimed within one hour. That is a sensible guard against abuse, and it means the no-account path is a preview rather than a place to leave a site. Here you sign in with Google before publishing, one tap, and the link is live and public straight away.

## Credits versus a flat plan

Netlify's current plans are credit-based: Free includes 300 credits a month, Personal is $9/month for 1,000 and Pro is $20/month for 3,000. Its pricing page lists production deploys at 15 credits and bandwidth at 20 credits per GB. Netlify's docs explain that when a team uses up its monthly credits, its projects are paused until the next cycle or an upgrade, and the free plan cannot buy extra credits. Link in Seconds is a flat monthly price with no bandwidth meter and no visit cap, so a link that gets popular keeps serving.

## Password, expiry and view counts

On Netlify's credit-based plans, password protection for a whole site is a Pro plan feature. On Link in Seconds, every plan lets you add a password or an expiry date to a site, a single HTML page or any file, and every link has a view counter and a QR code. That matters for the things people most often drop: a client preview, a landing page mock-up, a prototype exported from an AI tool, a coding assignment.

## Sites and files in the same place

Most people who reach for Drop are not running a web project; they have a thing to show someone. Here the same account handles the site, the PDF brief that goes with it, the demo video and the ZIP of source files, each as its own link with a proper preview. You can also bundle several files into one album. That is the part Netlify does not try to do, because it is not a file-sharing tool.

## Which one should you pick?

Pick Netlify when you need a build, functions, forms, previews per branch or a team workflow; its free plan is generous for that and the platform scales with you. Pick Link in Seconds when the site is finished, you want it online on a stable link with a QR code and a view count, and you would rather not think about credits. Plenty of developers use both: Netlify for the product, Link in Seconds for the one-off things they send to people.

index.htmlHTML

site-build.zipZIP

landing-page.htmlHTML

portfolio.zipZIP

prototype.htmlHTML

index.htmlHTML

site-build.zipZIP

landing-page.htmlHTML

portfolio.zipZIP

prototype.htmlHTML

index.htmlHTML

site-build.zipZIP

landing-page.htmlHTML

portfolio.zipZIP

prototype.htmlHTML

index.htmlHTML

site-build.zipZIP

landing-page.htmlHTML

portfolio.zipZIP

prototype.htmlHTML

dist-build.zipZIP

mockup.htmlHTML

static-site.zipZIP

resume.htmlHTML

assignment.zipZIP

dist-build.zipZIP

mockup.htmlHTML

static-site.zipZIP

resume.htmlHTML

assignment.zipZIP

dist-build.zipZIP

mockup.htmlHTML

static-site.zipZIP

resume.htmlHTML

assignment.zipZIP

dist-build.zipZIP

mockup.htmlHTML

static-site.zipZIP

resume.htmlHTML

assignment.zipZIP

2,600+

people sharing files

5,000+

links shared

17,100+

times opened

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Source: https://linkinseconds.com/netlify-drop-alternative