How do I download Google Drive folders?
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Google Drive allows you to store all sorts of files in one accessible place. Show
A basic, free account lets you store 15 GB in your Google Drive, while you can also get 100 GB of storage from Google for just $1.99 a month, and an astonishing 2 TB (terabytes) for $9.99 per month. But there may be times when you want to get files out of Drive and onto your computer or mobile device — such as when you know you will lack internet access for a while. You can download files and folders stored on Google Drive onto your computer or mobile device, and if you're planning to download lots of files from Drive, dropping them into a folder first can make the process faster. Here's how to do it. How to download a folder from Google Drive to your PC or MacDownloading a folder is the same process whether you're using a PC or Mac computer. 1. Open up Google Drive on your computer and sign into your Google account. 2. Scroll to the Folders section and find the folder you want to download. Right-click on the folder, then select Download towards the bottom. Right click on the folder you wish to download and click Download. Kyle Wilson/InsiderThe download will begin immediately after you click Download — there is no confirmation step — so be sure you really want the folder on your computer before right clicking on it. The folder will also remain in Google Drive after you download it. How to download a file from Google Drive to your PC or Mac1. Open Google Drive on your computer. 2. Find the file that you wish to download. Tap on the three horizontal dots next to the file name. Kyle Wilson/Insider3. Right-click on the file, then select Download. How to download a file from Google Drive to your Android device1. Open the Google Drive app. 2. Find the file that you wish to download and tap the three vertical dots to the right of its name. In the menu that appears, select Download.
Steven John Freelance Writer Steven John is a freelance writer living near New York City by way of 12 years in Los Angeles, four in Boston, and the first 18 near DC. When not writing or spending time with his wife and kids, he can occasionally be found climbing mountains. His writing is spread across the web, and his books can be found at www.stevenjohnbooks.com. Read more Read less
Kyle Wilson is an editor for the Reference team, based in British Columbia, Canada. Outside of Insider, his work has also appeared in publications like The Verge, VICE, Kotaku, and more. He periodically guest co-hosts the Saturday tech show "Tech Talk" on the iHeartRadio station C-FAX 1070. Feel free to reach out to him on Twitter, where he can be found most of the time, @KWilsonMG. Read more Read less Google Drive allows you to download a single, multiple, or all your files from your account to your desktop or mobile phone. You can even download your Docs, Sheets, and Slides in compatible formats on your machine. Here’s how to do that. Before you start to download your files, make sure your device has enough free space to accommodate those files. RELATED: How to Free Up Space in Windows 11 Download a Single File or Folder From Google DriveTo download an individual file or folder, first, launch Google Drive on your desktop. Then find the file or folder you’d like to download. If you choose to download a folder, Drive will compress it to a ZIP file. Once you find the item to download, right-click it and choose “Download.” If your folder is too large in size, Drive will take a while to make a ZIP file.  When your file or folder is ready to download, your computer’s standard “save” window will open. Here, select where you want to save your downloaded content, then click “Save.” Your downloaded file or folder will be available in your specified directory, and you’re all set. RELATED: How to Zip and Unzip Files on Windows 11 To download more than one file or folder, first, locate those items on Google Drive. Select the items you’d like to download. You can choose multiple files by holding down Ctrl (Windows) or Command (Mac) while clicking on files. When your items are selected, right-click any one item and choose “Download.” Google Drive will ZIP your files and allow you to save this ZIP to your computer. You’re all set. Download All Files or Folders From Google DriveIf you’re looking to download everything from your Drive at once, use Google’s Takeout service to do that. Start by launching your web browser and opening the Google Takeout site. There, log in to your Google account. After logging in, from the top of your item list, choose “Deselect All.” Scroll down and enable the “Drive” option. This ensures only your Drive contents are exported. Scroll the page all the way down and click “Next Step.” From the “Delivery Method” drop-down menu, choose “Send Download Link via Email.” This way you’ll get a link to download all the contents of your Drive via email. From the “Frequency” drop-down menu, select “Export Once.” Click the “File Type & Size” drop-down menu and choose “ZIP” or “TGZ,” depending on which format you prefer. (If you’re using Windows, you probably want ZIP.) Then, click the size drop-down menu and choose the maximum size for each archive. You may leave this to the default value if you wish. Lastly, at the bottom, click “Create Export.” Google will start creating a dump of your Drive content. When this is done, you will receive a link at your email address to download that dump. Download Docs, Sheets, and Slides From Google DriveJust like your files, your Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides can also easily be downloaded for offline use on your computer. You can download these files in various offline-supported formats, including the Microsoft Office format. To do that, check out our dedicated pieces for Docs, Sheets, and Slides. They will show you, step-by-step, how to download your online office files in various formats. Save Files From Google Drive to Your Smartphone or TabletFor mobile phones and tablets, Google Drive offers two download options: you can make a file available offline or you can download a file to your phone. In the first option, your file is made available for offline use, but you must use the Google Drive app to access it. In the second option, you get the actual independent file to work with in your file manager. Keep in mind that, as of this writing, you can’t download folders from Google Drive to your phone. To start the download process, launch the Google Drive app on your phone and sign in to your account. In Drive, find the file you’d like to download. Then, next to that file, tap the three dots. In the menu that opens, to make your file available offline, tap “Make Available Offline.” To download the file to your file manager, select “Download.” Google Drive will save the file to your phone accordingly. Enjoy! If you’re looking to upload files to Google Drive, it’s equally easy to do that. Check out our guide for step-by-step instructions. RELATED: How to Upload Files and Folders to Google Drive
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Why can't I download Google Drive folder?Clear browser cookies and cache
Quite frequently the Google Drive not downloading can be attributed to your browser's settings, specifically to it saving something incorrectly in its cache files and cookies. So clearing them both could help. When it comes to getting rid of cookies and cache, every browser is different.
Why can't I download folders from Google Drive on my phone?Since the Google Drive mobile app doesn't support folder downloads, you'll need to access your Drive on the web as though you were doing it on a computer.
How do I copy a folder from Google Drive to my desktop?Right-click on the folder, click Copy, then go wherever you want to copy the folder, right-click again, and click Paste. And that's how to duplicate a folder in Google Drive.
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