Airdrop problems for macOS Tahoe 26.2 (2026)

THANK YOU!!!

I took your advice and it worked.

This issue was driving me insane. I just decided to see if indeed my VPN settings were preventing me from using AirDrop and...it was! I went into Settings --> Login Items & extensions and my VPN was enabled at startup. Turns out my VPN must've installed this at the last update several weeks ago. I toggled it off, restarted my MBP and VOILÀ AirDrop is working as normal.

TonyLima wrote:

Jim, please stop. Airdrop breaks for some of us. Most of us (including me) have no vpn. There are many well-documented problems with 26.2.

Best,

Tony

Anyone having issues should run the third party app EtreCheck as suggested by @Mac Jim ID earlier in this thread and post the complete report here so we can examine it for possible clues. It is best if each person starts a new thread along with including the EtreCheck report so each person's issue can be give the full attention it deserves.

How to use the Add Text Feature When Posting an EtreCheck Report - Apple Community

While everyone posting here may have issues with AirDrop in Tahoe, each computer may have a different cause for the problem. Many times when upgrading to a new OS or even installing a minor OS update patch, can cause compatibility issues between macOS and the existing third party software. It is vital that all third party installed software is updated to their most recent version and is confirmed to be fully compatible with the major & minor OS version of macOS being used. Sometimes it can take third party developers time to update their apps to work even with a minor OS update patch.

The most troublesome third party software is anti-virus software, cleaning/optimizer apps, and third party security software (including VPN software) since they are made to interfere with the normal operation of macOS at a very low level where they can cause the most mischief. Just disabling these types of apps may not always be enough, and some of these apps may have made permanent modifications to some critical macOS settings which may not have any easy way of knowing until something breaks.

Since none of these types of apps are needed on a Mac and they tend to cause more problems than they solve, I highly recommend uninstalling those types of apps by following their developer's instructions. An EtreCheck report can confirm whether those types of apps have been completely removed....many times critical bits may be left behind & need to be manually removed.

Of course, there may be some missed macOS/iOS configuration option or a .plist preference file on one or more of your devices that is actually corrupt. Plus the devices must be using the same AppleID and must be on the same network & discoverable by each other and each device may need to be on the most recent patch level for their OS. There are so many little bits that can go unnoticed even with just a clean install of macOS & iOS. Over the years I have had multiple occasions where AirDrop failed where sometimes just rebooting one or all devices solved the problem, or toggling AirDrop off/on fixed things.

Of course the ultimate test would be to perform a clean install of macOS by performing an "Erase All Content & Settings" to completely remove all your stuff & modifications & customizations. You will be presented with Setup Assistant like when you first booted the Mac from the factory. Just create a new user account.....do not restore or migrate anything from a backup. You need to test the Mac in a factory clean configuration with just your AppleID enabled so you can test the AirDrop feature. If AirDrop works under these conditions, then macOS Tahoe is not the problem. Keep in mind you need to make sure you have a good backup before trying this option so you minimize the chances of data loss.

People could also install & boot macOS from an external USB3 SSD to test a clean installation of macOS, just remember do not migrate or restore anything or you will likely just bring the problem back to this clean install. Installing & booting from an external USB3 SSD allows you to test a clean install without having to worry about a lengthy restoration of data to the internal SSD. Once done testing with the external macOS boot drive, you can erase the external SSD & use it for other purposes again.

How to use an external storage device as a Mac startup disk - Apple Support

Keep in mind it takes two devices for AirDrop to be successful. The problem could be with either device, or possibly both. Or perhaps, the problem is with the local network. Perhaps try AirDrop while using those devices on a different network. It takes a lot of work before it is safe to say Tahoe may be the actual cause of the problem.

I know everyone is frustrated and we do understand the frustration.

FIX: AirDrop – Mac sees iPhone but iPhone does NOT see Mac (Solved)

If your Mac can see your iPhone in AirDrop, but your iPhone cannot see your Mac, this is likely a Bluetooth broadcast glitch on the Mac.

This is NOT a hardware issue.

Here’s the fix that worked:

SOLUTION (Bluetooth Daemon Reset)

1. On the Mac, open Terminal

2. Paste:

sudo pkill bluetoothd

3. Press Enter

4. Enter your Mac password

5. Restart the Mac

After reboot, AirDrop should work immediately.

WHY THIS WORKS

The Mac’s Bluetooth daemon sometimes stops broadcasting properly.

It can still see devices, but it stops advertising itself.

Restarting bluetoothd forces macOS to rebuild the Bluetooth table and restores AirDrop visibility.

SYMPTOMS THIS FIX SOLVES

- Mac sees iPhone

- iPhone does NOT see Mac

- Both devices on same Wi-Fi

- AirDrop set to “Everyone”

- Firewall not blocking

- VPN off

- Still not working

This saved hours of troubleshooting. Hope it helps someone else.

FIX: AirDrop – Mac sees iPhone but iPhone does NOT see Mac (Solved)

If your Mac can see your iPhone in AirDrop, but your iPhone cannot see your Mac, this is likely a Bluetooth broadcast glitch on the Mac.

This is NOT a hardware issue.

Here’s the fix that worked:

SOLUTION (Bluetooth Daemon Reset)

1. On the Mac, open Terminal

2. Paste:

sudo pkill bluetoothd

3. Press Enter

4. Enter your Mac password

5. Restart the Mac

After reboot, AirDrop should work immediately.

WHY THIS WORKS

The Mac’s Bluetooth daemon sometimes stops broadcasting properly.

It can still see devices, but it stops advertising itself.

Restarting bluetoothd forces macOS to rebuild the Bluetooth table and restores AirDrop visibility.

SYMPTOMS THIS FIX SOLVES

- Mac sees iPhone

- iPhone does NOT see Mac

- Both devices on same Wi-Fi

- AirDrop set to “Everyone”

- Firewall not blocking

- VPN off

- Still not working

This saved hours of troubleshooting. Hope it helps someone else.

TonyLima wrote:

In another thread, someone recommended LocalSend since Airdrop in 26.2 is broken. Available on all platforms, free (unless you want to pay). Usual disclaimers.

AirDrop is not broken on 26.2 and works perfectly fine on both of my Macs running Tahoe. What will break any communication with other devices is if you have a VPN installed. If that is the case, use the provided uninstaller for it and your problem will be solved. We have seen it over and over again.

FIX: AirDrop – Mac sees iPhone but iPhone does NOT see Mac (Solved)

If your Mac can see your iPhone in AirDrop, but your iPhone cannot see your Mac, this is likely a Bluetooth broadcast glitch on the Mac.

This is NOT a hardware issue.

Here’s the fix that worked:

SOLUTION (Bluetooth Daemon Reset)

1. On the Mac, open Terminal

2. Paste:

sudo pkill bluetoothd

3. Press Enter

4. Enter your Mac password

AirDrop should work immediately.

WHY THIS WORKS

The Mac’s Bluetooth daemon sometimes stops broadcasting properly.

It can still see devices, but it stops advertising itself.

Restarting bluetoothd forces macOS to rebuild the Bluetooth table and restores AirDrop visibility.

SYMPTOMS THIS FIX SOLVES

- Mac sees iPhone

- iPhone does NOT see Mac

- Both devices on same Wi-Fi

- AirDrop set to “Everyone”

- Firewall not blocking

- VPN off

- Still not working

This saved hours of troubleshooting. Hope it helps someone else.

Try to sign out of your apple account in the system settings and then sign in again. This solved the problem for me.

winexprt wrote:

AirDrop has not worked once since I updated to Tahoe 26.2

And I've tried every workaround hack out there and not one has worked.

Since you have tried everything, there is nothing else left to do. Some found a VPN install prevented the communication and the other suggestions provided here included posting the free EtreCheck report to identify a process that could be blocking the network connection. I can tell you it works for me on 26.2, but of course that does not help identify the unique difference in your setup where it may not be working for you.

parkus87 wrote:

I'm not using a VPN.

Then follow up by posting the free EtreCheck report using the Additional Text option when posting. This may be able to identify another conflict on your computer that is blocking network connections. We don't have the ability to perform remote diagnostics, so only able to work with the information you provide. The EtreCheck report contains no personal information and is useful to eliminate other possibilities.

How to use the Add Text Feature When Post… - Apple Community

All the other prerequisites for AirDrop still apply:

• Change AirDrop Settings to Allow for Everyone to test
• Same Wifi
• No Hotspot
• Bluetooth On
• No VPN on either of the devices

After that we can follow up with additional steps to perform where you will need to proved additional details like: I don't disagree that it may be best to create your own post with your information.

• Is it only when going from the Mac to iPhone?
• What do you see on your Mac when going from the iPhone to Mac?
• Does the Mac show up on your iPhone?
• Can you choose the device, but the document will not send?

Gina_LG wrote:

Yes, I'm having the same problem since the update and it's pretty frustrating as I take a lot of photos to airdrop on my Mac for my work. It's nothing any of us are dong wrong on our end. Let's just make sure Apple is aware of the bug so they resolve it soon.

If it was a bug in the software, then all of us would be experiencing the same thing and obviously that is not the case. You will need to investigate your unique setup further if you want to pursue this with additional information including which OS versions are involved and what is happening when you tried. In addition include the steps you took to resolve the problem including device restarts and changing the AirDrop receiving settings to all as a test. Also if you have a VPN installed, remove it. Simply turning it off may not work and there have been countless people claiming that AirDrop was broken, yet once the VPN was removed as advised, everything was working correctly.

Apple is not going to see your post here, so if the entire point was to make them aware, then that did not happen. This is a Support site made up of users, just like you, and Apple does not participate here to provide support. If you prefer you can contact Apple directly for a resolution using the link below if you do want to communicate with Apple.

Contact Apple Support - Apple Support

parkus87 wrote:

I'm not using a VPN.

You might want to open your own new thread as sometimes different users with different configurations have different solutions.

If you are not using a VPN but are having networking problems (e.g. AirDrop), you could explore what is installed in your network or on your Mac that might be conflicting. For example, networking security tools (non-Apple) often interfere as do other "enhancements." It's tricky because there are the two devices involved plus the router and network setup, any of which can be a factor.

TonyLima wrote:

Jim, please stop. Airdrop breaks for some of us. Most of us (including me) have no vpn. There are many well-documented problems with 26.2.

The whole point of this Support site is to determine WHY it is seen by some and most of us are not experiencing any problems at all.

There have been many posts where AirDrop was not working for those with a VPN and once they removed it, then there is not a problem. Those same users found that simply turning a VPN off did not solve the issue, so that is why the removal is suggested and some will think that if they turn it off it means they are not using a VPN. That cannot be ignored and will always be the first question when it comes to trouble shooting where that information has not been provided whether you like it or not.

Don't forget this is a Support Site for all users where it is not polite for someone to tell another not to post. There is a certain amount of etiquette that is expected here. It is nothing like a Social Media site where rude comments are commonplace.

Community etiquette guidelines - Apple Support

In another thread, someone recommended LocalSend since Airdrop in 26.2 is broken. Available on all platforms, free (unless you want to pay). Usual disclaimers.

Try LocalSend. Works for me.

Try LocalSend. Works for me.