What macOS gives you

  • Finder: Go → Connect to Server connects to SMB, NFS and WebDAV shares, and to FTP servers read-only. SFTP isn't on the list. Apple describes the options in Connect your Mac to shared computers and servers.
  • Terminal: sftp user@host opens an interactive session, and scp file user@host:/path copies a file. Both are fast and use your SSH keys, but there's nothing to see: you type every path.

For a few files now and then, Terminal is enough. For daily work, a client that shows both sides is easier.

What to look for in an SFTP client

Look for Why it matters
Your own ~/.ssh keys, agent and config No second set of keys and hosts to maintain
Jump hosts (ProxyJump) Many servers sit behind a bastion
Host key checks against known_hosts Tells you when a server isn't the one you expect
Your Mac and the server side by side You see both ends of every copy
Copies that survive a dropped connection Large uploads finish on their own
Edit in your own editor Fix a config file without downloading it by hand

AnyBucket does all of these. The comparison shows which of them other Mac apps describe.

Connect to an SFTP server

  1. Press ⇧⌘K (File → Connect to Server…) and pick SFTP.
  2. Enter the server's address and your user name. Leave the password empty if you log in with a key.
  3. Connect. If it's the first time, AnyBucket shows the server's host key; compare its fingerprint with the one your administrator published before you trust it.
  4. Save it as a bookmark, and next time ⌘K finds it by a few letters.

You can also paste an address into the palette: press ⌘K and paste sftp://deploy@example.com/var/www.

Copy files

  1. Press ⌘\ to open a second pane and pick This Mac, or another server.
  2. Mark files with Space, or press + and type a pattern like *.html.
  3. Press F5 to copy them to the other pane, or F6 to move them.

Transfers that hit a dropped connection retry on a fresh one, and the queue comes back if you quit. When both panes are on the same SFTP server and your account has a shell, copies run on the server with cp, so nothing comes down to your Mac.

Edit files on the server

Press F4 on a file and pick an app. AnyBucket opens it there, and every time you save, the change uploads. F3 shows it in Quick Look without opening anything. ⇧⌘C copies the file's URL.

Keys, config and jump hosts

Because AnyBucket runs /usr/bin/ssh, whatever works with ssh user@host in Terminal works here: password, keys, agent, ~/.ssh/config with Host, IdentityFile and ProxyJump, and security keys. If a login fails, try the same host in Terminal first. SSH keys and jump hosts walks through the setup.