KDE Connect
FreeBridges phone and computer — notifications, clipboard, files, remote control
A tool that joins your phone and computer. Phone notifications appear on the desktop and can be replied to, the clipboard is shared both ways, files transfer by drag and drop, the phone works as a trackpad and presentation remote, and the desktop shows phone battery, rings a lost phone and pauses media on incoming calls. Everything runs over an encrypted direct connection on your local network.
Why we picked it
The continuity between an iPhone and a Mac — synced notifications, shared clipboard, handoff — is why many people stay inside Apple's ecosystem. KDE Connect brings that experience to mixed setups: an Android phone with a Linux, Windows or even macOS computer.
Developed by the KDE community, GPL-licensed, running over an encrypted direct connection on your local network. No data passes through any server and no account is required.
More of it proves useful than you would expect:
- Notification sync. Phone notifications appear in the corner of your desktop, and you can reply to messages from the computer — not picking up the phone during work is a substantial difference.
- Shared clipboard. Copy a link on the phone, paste it on the desktop, and the reverse.
- File transfer by right-clicking "send via KDE Connect" or sharing to the computer from the phone, sent directly over the LAN without compression or upload.
- Phone as trackpad or presenter remote, advancing slides or controlling the mouse and media from across the room.
- Auto-pause on calls: a video pauses when the phone rings and resumes afterward.
- Find my phone: one click makes the phone ring even when silenced.
- SMS from the desktop on Android.
- Remote input: type on the phone using the computer keyboard.
- Custom commands: tap on the phone to run a preset script on the computer — lock, shut down or launch something.
To be clear about:
- Both devices must share a local network. It deliberately does not connect across the internet, so it is unavailable when you are out. Pairing it with a mesh tool such as Tailscale works around this.
- iOS is limited. Apple's platform restrictions prevent notification sync and SMS, so the iOS build mainly does file transfer and remote control. The complete experience is Android plus a desktop — iOS users should set expectations accordingly.
- The Windows build is a port. It is natively a KDE project, and the Windows version works but is less integrated and less stable than on Linux. Windows users may also consider Microsoft's own Phone Link, which is similar but requires a Microsoft account.
- Corporate and campus networks often block it, since client isolation prevents devices from discovering each other.
- First-time pairing requires confirmation on both ends, after which it connects automatically.
For a Linux and Android combination this is close to essential; Windows and Android is also worth trying.