# Netlify Drop, tiiny.host and surge.sh alternatives, tested without an account

Which quick-publish hosts still put a page online without an account, how long an unclaimed link lasts, and where each one is the better pick. We tested the command-line paths ourselves on 1 October 2026. chorus.host wrote this page and is one of the options.

## The short answer

Checked 1 October 2026:

- **Netlify Drop** still works without an account, but the link is password-protected until you claim it, and an unclaimed site is removed after 1 hour.
- **tiiny.host** needs an email sign-up for its free plan. Its API can upload anonymously with only an email header, and that upload expires after an hour.
- **surge.sh** is alive (version 0.44.4 shipped on 25 September 2026) but asks for an email and password on its first run.

If you need a public link with no account at all: chorus.host keeps it public for 24 hours with a claim link, and Cloudflare's temporary deploys keep it public for 60 minutes.

## Which still work without an account?

| | Account to publish | Public before claiming | Unclaimed link lasts | Single HTML / folder / zip | Agent path | Custom domain | Free plan | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Netlify Drop (browser) | No | No: protected by a temporary password | Claim within 1 hour; capped at 3 anonymous sites per IP | Folder or .zip | Browser only | Yes, after claiming | Netlify Free, $0 | [docs](https://docs.netlify.com/start/quickstarts/netlify-drop-quickstart/) |
| Netlify CLI `--allow-anonymous` | No | No: same temporary password | Removed after 1 hour | Folder | `npx netlify-cli deploy` | Yes, after claiming | Netlify Free, $0 | [docs](https://docs.netlify.com/api-and-cli-guides/cli-guides/get-started-with-cli/) |
| tiiny.host | Yes, email sign-up (API: an email header, 1-hour uploads) | n/a | Free links stay up while you log in every 3 months | Single file or .zip | API from the Solo plan | From the Solo plan | 1 project, 3 MB, banner | [pricing](https://tiiny.host/pricing) |
| surge.sh | Yes, created in the terminal on first run | n/a | No automatic expiry | Folder | `surge ./site publish` | Yes, free, with SSL | Free; Professional $30/month | [docs](https://surge.sh/docs/getting-started) |
| Cloudflare Drop / `wrangler --temporary` | No | Yes | Deleted after 60 minutes unless claimed | Folder or .zip | `npx wrangler deploy --temporary` | Yes, after claiming | Workers Free | [docs](https://developers.cloudflare.com/workers/platform/claim-deployments/) |
| Vercel Drop | Yes (free Hobby plan) | n/a | n/a | Folder | Vercel CLI | Yes | Hobby, non-commercial | [Vercel KB](https://vercel.com/kb/guide/vercel-drop-vs-netlify-drop) |
| here.now | No | Yes | 24 hours | Single file or folder; .zip not documented | HTTP API, skill | From its free account plan (1 domain) | Free plan | [pricing](https://here.now/pricing.md) |
| chorus.host | No | Yes (optional password) | 24 hours | All three | One curl request, `publish.py`, CLI, MCP | No, on any plan | Free | [limits](/v1/limits) |

## Measured: command to live URL

We ran each command-line path once from an empty home directory, with no saved logins and a cold `npx` cache, on 1 October 2026 (Mac, San Francisco Bay Area), and checked what a visitor gets at the returned URL:

| | Command | Time to a URL | What a visitor got |
|---|---|---|---|
| Netlify CLI | `npx netlify-cli deploy --dir=site --no-build --allow-anonymous --prod --json` | 24.3 s, including the npx install | `401` and a password page |
| Cloudflare | `npx wrangler deploy ./site --name <name> --temporary --compatibility-date 2026-09-01` | 15.6 s, including the npx install | `200`, public |
| surge.sh | `surge ./site publish` (surge 0.44.4) | Stopped at "Login or create surge account by entering email & password" | n/a |
| chorus.host | `curl -fsSL https://chorus.host/publish.py \| python3 - ./site` (one file) | 2.0 s to publish | `200` at 2.5 s, public |

These are single runs, not averages, and the npx installs dominate the Netlify and Cloudflare times; a warm cache is faster. To reproduce, run each command in a fresh shell with `HOME` pointed at an empty folder and time it, then `curl -s -o /dev/null -w '%{http_code}' <url>`.

## Netlify Drop: what changed and when to keep using it

- Since January 2022, a site dropped without an account has 1 hour to be claimed (it used to be 24 hours), and each IP address can have 3 unclaimed sites.
- Until it's claimed, the site sits behind a temporary password, so you can't hand the link to someone else as is.
- Framework builds only run when you're signed in; a drop serves the files as they are. Netlify recommends keeping drops under 50 MB.

Keep using Netlify Drop when you'll claim the site right away: you get a custom domain, forms, functions and the rest of Netlify. When you need a link someone else can open without you signing up anywhere, try one of these:

```bash
# Netlify's own no-account path, same 1-hour window and password
npx netlify-cli deploy --dir=site --no-build --allow-anonymous
# Cloudflare: public for 60 minutes, then claim or lose it
npx wrangler deploy ./site --name my-site --temporary --compatibility-date 2026-09-01
# chorus.host: public for 24 hours, claim link to keep it
curl -fsSL https://chorus.host/publish.py | python3 - ./site
```

Agents can also use chorus.host's MCP server at [chorus.host/mcp](/mcp).

## tiiny.host: is it free, and what are the limits?

- **Free plan:** 1 active project, 3 MB per project (0.5 MB for PDFs), 5,000 visits a month, 3 uploads a day, and a tiiny.host banner. Free links stay up as long as you log in at least once every 3 months.
- **Paid plans, monthly:** Tiny $9, Solo $18, Pro $38, Pro Max $89. Billed yearly they work out to $5, $13, $31 and $74 a month.
- **Custom domain and password protection** start on Solo. The API also starts on Solo.

Where tiiny.host wins: uploading PDFs, Office files and images with no terminal, a free link that doesn't expire, and analytics and QR codes on paid plans.

When an alternative fits: an agent with no account and no email address to give, or files over 3 MB. On chorus.host, anything up to 250 MB per file works without an account, and passwords are free: `curl -sS https://chorus.host/v1/publish -F file=@report.html -F username=client -F password='...'`.

## surge.sh: still alive? Does it need an account?

Yes, it's alive. The `surge` CLI shipped version 0.44.4 on 25 September 2026, with 8 releases since mid-August and about 168,000 npm downloads in the month to 29 September. Its last outage on record ([issue #561](https://github.com/sintaxi/surge/issues/561)) lasted from 1 to 9 April 2025.

It does need an account: the first run asks for an email and password in the terminal. Note the newer syntax: in 0.44, a bare `surge ./site` prints "nothing to do"; use `surge ./site publish`.

Where surge wins: free custom domains with automatic SSL, free sites that never expire, and a mature CLI. When an alternative fits: an agent running without credentials, or a link for someone who shouldn't have to sign up.

## Where chorus.host falls short

- No custom domains, on any plan.
- Without an account you can publish 5 sites an hour from one IP address (here.now allows 60).
- Links without an account last 24 hours.
- No single-page-app fallback: unknown paths return 404 instead of `index.html`.
- The browser drop zone doesn't run framework builds; build first and drop `dist/`. (The `beacon` CLI does run `npm run build`.)

## Questions

### Is Netlify Drop free?

Yes. Dropping a site needs no account and costs nothing, and claiming it puts it on Netlify's free plan. Until it's claimed, the site is password-protected and is removed after an hour.

### How long does a Netlify Drop site last?

An unclaimed drop has 1 hour to be claimed; after that it's removed. A claimed site stays on your Netlify account.

### Does Netlify Drop still work without an account?

Yes, as of 1 October 2026, but the resulting link asks visitors for a temporary password until you claim the site.

### Is tiiny.host completely free?

The free plan is: 1 project up to 3 MB with a tiiny.host banner, kept up while you log in every 3 months. Custom domains, passwords and the API start on the Solo plan, $18 a month or $13 a month billed yearly.

### How much does tiiny.host cost?

Tiny $9, Solo $18, Pro $38 and Pro Max $89 a month, or $5, $13, $31 and $74 a month billed yearly (checked 1 October 2026).

### Is surge.sh down, or still working?

Working. surge.sh answered normally on 1 October 2026 and its CLI was updated on 25 September 2026.

### Does surge.sh need an account?

Yes. The first `surge` run creates one in the terminal with an email address and password.

### Which host gives a public link with no account?

chorus.host (24 hours, then claim or lose it), here.now (24 hours) and Cloudflare's temporary deploys (60 minutes). Netlify publishes without an account too, but the link is password-protected until it's claimed.

## How we checked

Every fact on this page comes from the vendor's own docs, pricing pages, npm and GitHub, read on 1 October 2026, plus the command-line runs above. Sources: [Netlify Drop quickstart](https://docs.netlify.com/start/quickstarts/netlify-drop-quickstart/), [Netlify CLI anonymous deploys](https://docs.netlify.com/api-and-cli-guides/cli-guides/get-started-with-cli/), [13 years of Netlify Drop](https://www.netlify.com/blog/thirteen-years-of-netlify-drop/), [tiiny.host pricing](https://tiiny.host/pricing), [tiiny.host free-plan link lifetime](https://helpdesk.tiiny.host/en/article/how-long-will-my-link-be-online-on-your-free-plan-137skdw), [surge.sh docs](https://surge.sh/docs/getting-started), [surge on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/surge), [Cloudflare claim deployments](https://developers.cloudflare.com/workers/platform/claim-deployments/), [Vercel Drop vs Netlify Drop](https://vercel.com/kb/guide/vercel-drop-vs-netlify-drop), [here.now pricing](https://here.now/pricing.md). We recheck monthly and whenever a vendor's changelog changes.

Related: [chorus.host vs here.now](/vs/here-now) and [host a static site with no signup](/guides/host-static-site-no-signup).