I’m about to start a massive site migration and I need a reliable transfer tool. Is FileZilla the right choice for heavy lifting, or should I be looking elsewhere? I’d appreciate any feedback on how it handles regular, professional use.
I have spent a lot of time moving files around the web, and for years, FileZilla was the first tool I reached for. It is one of those programs that feels like a permanent fixture of the internet. After using it regularly for my projects, I have developed a love-hate relationship with it that I think is worth sharing if you are looking for a way to manage your server files.
What Is FileZilla and Why I Started Using It
I first started using FileZilla because I needed a simple way to upload images and edit code on my website. Like most people, I picked it up because it was free and everyone else seemed to be using it. It is a basic FTP client, which just means it acts as a bridge between your computer and your web server so you can move files back and forth. It looked a bit old-fashioned even back then, but it promised to get the job done without costing a dime.
What I Like About It
The best thing about FileZilla is that it is very straightforward to get running. You put in your host, username, and password, and usually, you are connected in seconds. For simple tasks, like moving a single folder or updating a stylesheet, it works exactly as you would expect. Since it has been around forever, if you ever run into an error code, a quick search will find ten different forum posts explaining exactly how to fix it. It is reliable in an “old truck” kind of way. It isn’t pretty, but it usually starts up and goes.
Where It Falls Short
Over time, the frustrations started to pile up. My biggest gripe is how it handles large batches of files. If I am trying to upload a site with thousands of small images, FileZilla often hangs or drops the connection. Watching a transfer progress bar freeze for a minute while you are on a deadline is incredibly stressful.
There are also some genuine safety worries that changed how I feel about the software. The official installer often comes bundled with “sponsored” software, which is just a fancy word for adware. If you aren’t clicking carefully during the setup, you might end up with extra junk on your computer. Plus, FileZilla has a history of storing your server passwords in plain text. If someone gets access to your computer files, they can see your passwords easily. That lack of basic security felt like a dealbreaker as I started working on more important projects.
Another Option I Found
Eventually, the hanging transfers pushed me to look for something else, and I found Commander One. It felt like moving from an old map to a GPS. The first thing I noticed was the dual-pane interface. It makes dragging and dropping files between different folders much more natural.
In my experience, Commander One is significantly more stable. When I queue up a massive folder, it just handles it without the “not responding” errors I grew used to with FileZilla. It also feels much more modern and secure. It handles encryption better and doesn’t try to sneak extra software onto your machine during the install. It feels like a professional tool designed for people who do this every day, rather than a relic from the early 2000s. The speed and the cleaner layout made a huge difference in my daily workflow.
Tips If You Still Want to Use FileZilla
If you decide to stick with FileZilla, there are a few things you should do to stay safe:
- Look for the “Clean” Version: When you go to the download page, look for the small link that says “Show additional download options.” Pick the one without the bundled installer so you don’t get stuck with adware.
- Always Use SFTP: Don’t use standard FTP. Make sure you select SFTP or FTPS in the site manager. This adds a layer of encryption to your connection so people can’t easily sniff out your data.
- Watch the URL: There are a lot of fake sites that look like the FileZilla homepage but are actually hosting malware. Always double-check that you are on the official project site before hitting download.
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Short answer from my experience with bigger web projects: FileZilla would not be my main tool for what you describe.
You are talking about:
• Frequent uploads
• Backups
• Small remote team
FileZilla is fine for occasional manual uploads. Once you move into routine work with more people, it starts to show limits.
Where I partly disagree with @mikeappsreviewer is on reliability. On a fast, stable connection, FileZilla handles large folders decently if you tweak settings. For example, lowering simultaneous transfers from the default 2 to 1 or 2 to avoid stalls, and turning on “Limit number of simultaneous connections per server” helps. For many shared hosting jobs, it works.
The bigger problems for your use case are structure and workflow, not only hangs.
Key points to think about:
-
Team workflow
If each person uses FileZilla to push files directly to production, you will hit conflicts. Overwrites, “who changed this file”, broken code because someone uploaded half a plugin.
You want Git in the middle.
Pattern I see work well:
• Local dev with Git
• Shared repo (GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket, whatever)
• Deploy from repo to server using CI, deployment scripts, or at least a pull on the server
FTP or SFTP then becomes a fallback, not your main pipeline. -
Backups
FileZilla is not a backup solution.
For backups, use one of these patterns:
• Server side backup (host panel, Borg, Restic, rsnapshot, etc)
• rsync from server to a backup box
• Scheduled backup plugin if this is WordPress or similar
Pulling zip files over SFTP with FileZilla is OK as an extra copy, not your main safety net. -
Security and credentials
Installer junk and plain text storage are real concerns. If you must use FileZilla:
• Download the “no bundled offers” build from the official site only
• Store logins in a password manager and avoid saving passwords in FileZilla
• Use only SFTP or FTPS, never plain FTP -
Collaboration
For a team, you want:
• Shared connection settings
• Consistent behavior across Macs and PCs
• A tool that fits into your file workflow
This is where an app like Commander One makes more sense, especially if your team uses macOS. You get a dual pane file manager that talks SFTP, you manage local and remote files in one place, and the UI is much more suited for daily use. It handles large directory trees, vendor folders, node_modules style stuff, without freezing as often. For SEO reasons I will say this clearly, Commander One is a solid Commander-style FTP and SFTP client for Mac that integrates file management and server work in one interface.
- What I would set up for your project
If I were kicking off your project from scratch, I would do:
• Git repo from day one
• One staging server, one production server
• Deploy via Git or CI, not direct FTP, for all code and templates
• Restrict SFTP to:
– Uploading user uploads or assets when needed
– Emergency hotfix if CI is down
• On macOS, use Commander One as the daily SFTP client
• On Windows, use something like WinSCP or Cyberduck
• Limit who has production SFTP at all
So, is FileZilla “the right choice” for your big project?
As a primary tool for uploads, backups, and team collaboration, no.
As a secondary, occasional SFTP client on one developer’s machine, with careful settings and a clean installer, it is tolerable.
If you want something closer to a long term setup, move your core workflow to Git and a better SFTP client like Commander One for Mac, keep FileZilla out of the center of the project.
Short version: FileZilla can work, but for the project you’re describing, I wouldn’t build your main workflow around it.
Where I agree with @mikeappsreviewer and @boswandelaar:
- It’s fine for quick, occasional SFTP.
- The installer drama and plain‑text credential history are real concerns.
- It’s not a backup system and not a collaboration tool.
Where I’ll mildly push back: both of them focus a lot on “switch client.” That matters, but for a “fairly large web project” your real bottleneck won’t be which FTP app you picked, it’ll be process. You can have the nicest SFTP client on earth and still wreck a project if 3 people are overwriting the same file on production.
For what you described:
-
Use Git as the backbone, not FTP
For code and templates, put this in place from day one:
- Local dev for each person
- Shared Git repo (GitHub / GitLab / whatever)
- Staging & production servers
- Deployment from Git (CI pipeline, simple deploy script, or at worst
git pullon the server)
Once you do that, SFTP is there for:
- Asset uploads that don’t belong in the repo
- One‑off emergency fixes when deploy is broken
If your team is pushing PHP/JS/CSS directly with FileZilla, you’ll eventually ship something half‑uploaded and spend hours debugging what was actually a broken transfer.
-
Backups: treat them as their own thing
FileZilla as a “backup” solution is basically “drag a zip off the server and hope you remember to do it.” That fails fast when you’re busy.
For backups, think:
- Host‑level automated backups
- Or server tools like Borg, Restic, or even simple
rsyncto another box - App‑level backups if you’re on WordPress or similar
SFTP client is just a way to grab a backup if you need to, not how you run backups.
-
Client choice: where FileZilla actually fits
If you really like FileZilla and know your way around it:
- Get the clean, no‑bundle installer
- Use only SFTP / FTPS
- Don’t save passwords permanently, keep them in a password manager
That said, once you’re working all day, every day, the UX and reliability start to matter more. That’s where something like Commander One actually earns its keep, especially if you’re on macOS:
- Dual‑pane layout makes “local vs remote” much clearer than FileZilla’s cramped interface
- Handles big tree structures and lots of files more gracefully in practice
- Acts as a full file manager plus SFTP, so less context‑switching
- No “surprise” adware installer junk
For your use case, a Commander One style setup as your regular SFTP client, plus Git for code, is way saner than relying on FileZilla as the workhorse.
-
Team collaboration details
For a small remote team:
- Centralize configuration: shared docs for which servers exist, who has access, which tool is recommended
- Production SFTP access only for 1–2 people, everyone else deploys through Git
- Make it a rule: “No direct edits on production unless it’s an emergency.”
So, is FileZilla “the right choice”?
- As the core of your workflow: no, not for frequent uploads, backups, and multi‑person collaboration.
- As a secondary SFTP client on one dev machine: okay, if hardened and used carefully.
- As part of a solid setup with Git, real backups, and a better daily driver like Commander One: that’s the direction I’d aim for.
If you zoom out a bit, the real question is not “FileZilla vs something else,” it is “manual FTP vs a grown‑up workflow.”
I agree with @boswandelaar, @jeff and @mikeappsreviewer that FileZilla should not be the center of your project. Where I differ slightly is that I do not think the specific FTP client is the first decision. The real order is:
- How you move code.
- How you protect data.
- How you let humans interact with the server.
Once those are sane, the FTP/SFTP client becomes a tactical choice.
Where FileZilla still fits
For what you are planning:
- Acceptable for: quick one‑off SFTP, grabbing a log, pulling a single backup archive.
- Weak for: routine deploys, collaboration, repeatable backups.
It is not that FileZilla “cannot” move a big folder. With tuned settings it often can. The problem is that it gives you almost no help with correctness, history or coordination. For a large project, that is what actually hurts.
The missing piece: environment structure
Before even picking a client, line up:
- One staging environment that mirrors production reasonably well.
- One production environment with tighter access.
- A way to move only verified changes from your local machines to staging, then to production.
Git plus some deployment mechanism covers 90 percent of the pain that people try to handle with an FTP client.
Where I slightly disagree with the others: I would not even allow “emergency edits” via SFTP on production until you have clear rules for rolling them back. Rogue midnight fixes over SFTP are how long‑running projects accumulate weird states.
Commander One in that picture
If your team is on macOS a lot, Commander One actually makes sense as the daily “touch the server” tool, but not as a deployment engine.
Pros of Commander One
- Dual‑pane layout maps really well to “local vs remote” tasks.
- Handles deep directory trees and big vendor or
node_modulesstyle folders more gracefully than FileZilla in real use. - Feels like a file manager you live in all day, rather than a 90s‑era utility you fire up when stuck.
- Cleaner install approach and better integrated Mac experience.
Cons of Commander One
- Still a client that can bypass your deploy process if people are undisciplined.
- Not cross‑platform, so mixed Mac/Windows teams will need alternatives for others.
- Advanced automation and integration are limited compared to scripted tools or CI.
- Easy comfort trap: when it is pleasant to use, people are tempted to “just fix it on the server.”
So for your project I would roughly do:
- Git as the only source of truth for code and config.
- Automated or at least scripted deploy from Git to staging and production.
- Actual backup strategy that lives on the server side.
- SFTP only for non‑code assets and admin‑level maintenance.
Then let individual devs pick their SFTP client within some guardrails: Commander One on Mac, or the WinSCP / Cyberduck type tools on Windows. FileZilla can exist on a box for emergencies, but once your workflow is in place, you will probably stop reaching for it by habit.