Struggling with the 25 MB Gmail limit? Whether you’re sending large reports or high-resolution images, hitting the Gmail attachment limit can be annoying. While Google enforces these limits to ensure security and performance, it doesn’t have to stop your progress. In this guide, we’ll explore why email file size limits in Gmail exist and provide three proven, bullet-proof workarounds so you can easily send even the largest file!
Summary:
Google limits the maximum size of attachments you can add to an email. This applies to both Gmail and Google Workspace accounts. The email file size limit in Gmail is usually 25 MB except for Google Workspace Enterprise Plus accounts (max. 50 MB).
Practical tips to deal with file attachments in Gmail:
➡️ Keep attachments under ~18 – 20 MB (since Bae64 encoding increases file size).
➡️ For larger attachments, split them into several emails, compress into a ZIP file or use a file sharing platform like WeTransfer, Dropbox or Google Drive (as recommended by Google; see tutorial).
💡 When performing an email migration from or to Gmail, consider these aspects to efficiently handle Gmail’s attachment size limit!
What AreGmail Attachment Size Limits?
Gmail limits the total amount of data you can add to an email. This “attachment size limit” applies to the entire message, not just individual files. This means that you can hit the limit in two ways: by attaching one single large file, or by adding several smaller files that collectively exceed the attachment size limit.
The maximum Gmail attachment limit depends on your account type and varies between Gmail and Google Workspace accounts. Here is an overview of the current Gmail attachment size limits:
| Account Type | Max. Attachment Size (Sending) | Max. Attachment Size (Receiving) |
| Gmail | 25 MB | 25 MB |
| Google Workspace Business | 25 MB | 50 MB |
| Google Workspace Education | 25 MB | 50 MB |
| Google Workspace Enterprise Standard | 25 MB | 50 MB |
| Google Workspace Enterprise Plus | 50 MB | 70 MB (since February 2026) |
Heads Up: Encoding Inflates File Size!
When adding a file to your Gmail message, your files are converted using Base64 encoding, which roughly adds 33% overhead to every file. This means that a 20 MB file is roughly 26 – 27 MB large after encoding.
➡️ This is why even files that appear smaller than the current limit can exceed the Gmail attachment size limit!
💡 Rule of thumb: Multiply your file size by 1.33. If it’s still smaller than your email file size limit (usually 25 MB), you can safely add it. Otherwise, consider relying on one of our three workarounds to send large files using your Gmail account!
Attachment Limits:Why Does Google Apply Attachment Limits?
While it might be frustrating when an important attachment is rejected, Google has good reasons to apply an attachment limit to your email:
🛫 Performance & Delivery Speed
Large email attachments significantly slow down the entire email transmission. By capping attachments at 25 MB (or 50 MB for Enterprise Plus customers), Gmail ensures that emails are delivered quickly and reliably, even for users operating on slower or unstable network connections. Furthermore, attachment size limits help to reduce “latency” in mail server queues, preventing negative impacts on the health of the entire email ecosystem.
🔐 Security and Threat Detection
Google scans every attachment for malicious content like spam or malware. The larger the file, the longer the scanning process takes. Reducing the maximum email file size allows Google to perform security checks more efficiently. Plus: Attachment size limits act as a defense against “Resource Exhaustion” or Denial of Service (DoS) attacks (i.e., attempts to overwhelm mail servers by flooding them with massive amounts of data).
🗂️ Storage and Infrastructure Efficiency
The email server architecture was never intended to serve as a permanent file-storage service. Since many users rely on their mailbox as a “second brain” to store everything from recent years to decades, mailbox size can increase rapidly. Applying a maximum attachment size limit to your Gmail or Google Workspace mailbox helps to prevent “inbox bloating,” which could otherwise compromise the reliability of the mail service.
Gmail Attachment Size Limits &Email Migration
When performing an email migration, it might be necessary to perform a few additional steps to migrate messages that exceed Gmail’s attachment size limits:
Migrating from Gmail to Another Provider:
When migrating from Gmail to another provider (e.g. from Gmail to Microsoft 365 or Gmail to IMAP), you don’t have to worry about Gmail’s attachment size limits.
All emails contained in your Gmail mailbox already adhere to a maximum attachment size of 25 MB (or 50 MB for Enterprise Plus Workspace accounts). Since most providers allow attachments of 25 MB (or even more), you can simply perform the email migration without worrying about attachment size limits.
Migrating Emails to Gmail or Google Workspace:
When migrating your emails to Gmail, it’s possible that your existing provider allowed attachments larger than 25 MB. This means that these emails may be rejected by Google. After the email migration, you’ll see the following error in MailJerry’s email migration summary:
INBOX/841 {42026170} could not append ( Subject:[=?GBK?B?yczStbrP1/c=?=], Date:["14-Mar-2023 07:16:39 +0000"], Size:[42026170], Flags:[\Seen] ) to folder INBOX: Error sending 'APPEND INBOX (\Seen) "14-Mar-2023 07:16:39 +0000" {42026170}': 40 NO Maximum size of appendable message has been exceeded
How to resolve the “Maximum size of appendable message has been exceeded” error:
1. Download the log file and collect the subjects of all emails that contain ”maximum size of appendable message has been exceeded”. If your mailbox contains many messages with large attachments, upload the log file to an AI of your choice and ask it to provide a list of all subjects for easier reference.
2. Open the affected messages in your Gmail account. For every message, download and then delete the attached files.
3. In MailJerry, click on your migration and scroll down to “Options”. Here, click on the “Sync Now” button to migrate the missing emails without attachments.
How ToChange the Gmail Attachment Size Limit
Here’s the bad news: You can’t increase Gmail’s maximum attachment size limit. Google applies a hard limit for every account, and this cannot be changed.
💡 If you’re on a Google Workspace Enterprise Plus plan, you can increase the maximum message size to 50 MB. This setting can only be changed in the Google Workspace Admin Center, so contact your Workspace admin if you need to send larger files frequently.
So what’s the best strategy if you need to send large files using your Gmail account? Here are three bullet-proof workarounds to easily send even large attachments:
How ToSend Large Files Using Your Gmail Account
The Quick-and-Dirty Fix:
Send Multiple Emails
If you need to send multiple files, each being roughly 18 – 20 MB, you can simply send multiple emails. Granted, this fix is not very elegant, but it allows you to send your files quickly, making it a great option if you’re in a rush.
ℹ️ To minimise confusion, number your emails with the current and total number of related messages so the recipient can easily verify that all data has been received.
Example: Company Report 1 of 3
The Compression Fix:
ZIP Your Files
If you need to send large file folders and only slightly exceed Gmail’s message size limit, compress your files into a a ZIP file.
How to Create a ZIP File on Windows:
1. Highlight the file(s) or folder you wish to send.
2. Right-click on the selection and select “Compress to ZIP file”.
3. Attach this ZIP file to your message instead of the original file / file collection.
How to Create a ZIP file on Mac OS:
1. Right-click on the file selection or folder you wish to send.
2. Select “Compress Your Folder Name**”.**
3. Upload the new ZIP file to your Gmail message.
The Professional Way to
Send Large Files Using Gmail
Both fixes presented above only work if you slightly exceed Gmail’s attachment size limit and / or only need to send a few files. To send messages significantly larger than 25 MB or when in a professional setting, it’s best to rely on a file sharing service such as WeTransfer or Dropbox.
➡️ Alternatively, you can rely on Google Drive, which is specifically recommended by Google for sending large files.
How to Send Large Files Using Google Drive:
1. Open Gmail and create a new message by clicking on “Compose”.
2. Click on the “Insert files using Drive”-icon on the bottom of your message.
3. To upload your file, click on “Upload” and select your file or drag it into the area.
4. In the “My Drive” tab, click on the file you wish to send and select “Add as Link”.
➡️ You can now send your message. Instead of the attached file, the recipient will receive a link to the Google drive download page.
⚠️ Sending Sensitive Data: Google Drive and Sharing Permissions
When sending an attachment via Google Drive, Google checks if the recipient has access to the file. This is usually the case if the recipient also has a Gmail account or if a Gmail account is associated with the recipients email address.
If they do not, you’ll be asked to change sharing settings so that the recipient is able to download the file. You can do this in two ways:
a) Making the download publicly available by setting the permissions to “Anyone with the link” (not recommended for sensitive data).
b) Changing the sharing settings of the individual file.
To do so, open your Google Drive, right-click on the file you wish to share and select “Share” > “Share”.
Add the recipients email address in the popup dialog and click on “Done”.
➡️ Now, the file can only be downloaded by people you granted access to.
Gmail Attachment Size Limit:Frequent Questions
Gmail rejects my file, even though it’s smaller than the Gmail attachment size limit! What is happening?
This happens because of Base64 encoding. When you attach a file, Gmail converts it into a text-based format that adds roughly 33% overhead to the file size. If you attach a 20 MB file, the actual size sent through the system is closer to 27 MB, which exceeds the 25 MB limit.
Tip: Always keep your original files at least 1/3 smaller than the limit (around 18–20 MB) to stay safe.
Does the attachment limit apply to every file I attach, or just the total email size?
The limit applies to the entire message. This includes the text in the email body and the cumulative size of all attachments. You can hit this limit by sending one massive file or by sending several smaller files that, when added together, exceed the threshold.
Can I increase the attachment size limit on my Gmail account?
For standard Gmail accounts, no. Google enforces a hard limit that cannot be changed. However, if you are using a Google Workspace Enterprise Plus plan, your administrator can increase the maximum message size to 50 MB via the Admin Console.
If I am migrating emails to Gmail, will my large attachments be lost?
They won’t be “lost,” but they may be rejected during the migration process. If your previous provider allowed attachments larger than 25 MB, you will likely see a “Maximum size of appendable message has been exceeded” error in your migration logs. If this is the case, you’ll need to download and delete the affected attachments and then perform a resync so that the rejected messages are migrated as well.
Is there a more professional way to send files larger than 25 MB than just sending multiple emails?
Yes. While sending multiple emails or using ZIP compression works for slightly oversized files, the professional standard is to use a file-sharing service. Google Drive is the best integrated option, but services like Dropbox or WeTransfer are also excellent for much larger or more complex data sets.
How can I ensure the recipient can actually open my Google Drive link?
When sharing via Google Drive, check your permissions. If the recipient is outside your organization or doesn’t have specific access, you may need to change the settings to “Anyone with the link” or manually add their email address in the “Share” dialog to prevent them from hitting an “Access Denied” error.
Is it safe to share files via Google Drive, or does it compromise my privacy?
It depends on how you configure your sharing settings. Using “Anyone with the link” makes the file accessible to anyone who happens to obtain that URL, which is not recommended for sensitive or private data. For maximum privacy, you should always use the “Share” dialog to invite specific recipients by their email address. This ensures that only the authorised person you explicitly granted access to can view or download the file.
