Swipe down from the top-right corner of your screen (the corner opposite the front camera). On older iPhones with a Home button, swipe up from the bottom edge instead.
Press and hold on the square card in the top-left of Control Center — the one showing WiFi and Bluetooth icons. Hold for about a second until the card expands with more options.
You'll see an AirDrop button in the expanded card. Tap it to open the AirDrop visibility options.
Select Everyone for 10 Minutes to be discoverable by any nearby Apple device, or Contacts Only if you only want people in your contacts to be able to send you files.
AirDrop requires both WiFi and Bluetooth to be active — it won't work with either one turned off. Check that both icons are lit up in Control Center (not grayed out).
Click the Finder icon in your Dock — it's the blue and white smiley face icon at the far left of the Dock. A Finder window will open.
In the left sidebar of the Finder window, click AirDrop. If you don't see it, go to Go → AirDrop from the menu bar.
At the bottom of the AirDrop window, click "Allow me to be discovered by" and choose Everyone or Contacts Only. Choose Everyone if you're having trouble being found by another device.
Check the menu bar icons in the top-right corner of your screen. Both the WiFi icon and Bluetooth icon should be present and active. Turn them on via System Settings → Network and System Settings → Bluetooth if needed.
Navigate to the photo, file, webpage, or link you want to send. Open it so it's displayed on your screen.
Tap the Share button — it looks like a box with an arrow pointing upward. You'll find it at the bottom of photos, in Safari's toolbar, or in most apps' menus.
In the Share sheet that appears, tap AirDrop. Your iPhone will start scanning for nearby Apple devices.
Nearby Apple devices that have AirDrop turned on will appear as icons with their owner's name. Tap the one you want to send to. If no devices appear, ask the recipient to check their AirDrop settings.
A popup will appear on the recipient's device showing your name and what you're sending. They tap Accept to receive it, or Decline to reject it.
Once accepted, the file transfers wirelessly and opens in the right app. Photos go to the Photos app, files go to the Files app, links open in Safari, and so on.
AirDrop needs both. Even if you're not connected to a WiFi network, the WiFi radio must be on. Check Control Center or Settings to make sure neither is disabled.
Make sure AirDrop is set to Everyone or Contacts Only — not Receiving Off. If it's off, no one can see your device and you won't appear as a recipient.
AirDrop works best within about 30 feet (9 meters). If you're further away or there are walls between devices, move them closer together and try again.
On both devices, turn WiFi off, wait 5 seconds, then turn it back on. Do the same for Bluetooth. This refreshes the wireless connections and often fixes detection issues.
On older iPhones that don't have the expanded Control Center card, go to Settings → General → AirDrop to find and change the setting.
If none of the above works, restart both devices fully — hold the power button, slide to power off, wait 10 seconds, then turn them back on. This clears most wireless glitches.
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