Host a website from your Dropbox folder.
Dropbox stopped showing HTML pages from its public links in 2016 and 2017, and the files can stay in Dropbox. Download the site's folder, which Dropbox saves as a ZIP, upload it here and the site gets its own address on nudgehost.site.
- 10 linkssites or files live at once, free
- 25MBa site on the free plan
- 200 filesin one site
What visitors see
Your Dropbox folder opens as a website.
Send the link and the site opens like any website, with its own pages, styles and scripts. Visitors need no Dropbox account and no NudgeHost account, and a site on a free account carries no NudgeHost bar.
- Its own nudgehost.site address
- Links between pages work as they did in the folder
- No sign-in to open it
How it works
From a Dropbox folder to a live site.
Download the folder
On dropbox.com, hover over the site's folder, tick its checkbox and click Download. Dropbox saves a folder as a .zip file.
Check the front page
The ZIP needs a file named index.html at the top, or inside one folder that holds everything. A front page named index.htm or home.html isn't picked up.
Upload and send
Drop the ZIP on the uploader. On the free plan it can be up to 25MB with up to 200 files, and the address is ready to send when the upload finishes.
What moves across
What a Dropbox folder becomes.
A Dropbox folder can hold more than web pages. This is what each kind of file turns into once the ZIP is up.
| In the folder | On NudgeHost | Why |
|---|---|---|
| HTML, CSS, JavaScript, images and fonts | Served as a site | Links between pages keep working, as long as the folders keep their layout. |
| PHP, Node or a database | Not supported | Nothing runs on a server, so a site that needs one needs a different host. |
| More than 200 files | Over the limit | One site holds up to 200 files. |
A ZIP without an index.html uploads as a file to download, not a site.
After it's live
Keep editing in Dropbox.
Replacing the ZIP works on every account plan. Your own domain comes with Pro and Studio.
Update it, keep the address
Download the folder again after you edit it and upload the new ZIP over the old one. Everyone you've sent the link to sees the new version.
Put it on your own domain
Pro attaches 1 domain you own and Studio 5, on a subdomain such as www.yourname.com. A site on your own domain can show up in Google.
See whether it was opened
Free accounts see how many times the link was opened. Pro and Studio add the time and country of each open.
Plans
What your site gets on each plan.
| Without an account | Free | Pro | Studio | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largest ZIP served as a site | 25MB | 25MB | 100MB | 100MB |
| Largest site once unpacked | 25MB | 25MB | 250MB | 1GB |
| Files in one site | 200 | 200 | 200 | 200 |
| Links live at once | 3 | 10 | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| How long a site lasts | 7 days | Until you delete it | Until you delete it | Until you delete it |
| NudgeHost bar on the site | Small bar | None | None | None |
| Your own domain | Not included | Not included | 1 | 5 |
| Password protection | Not included | Not included | Yes | Yes |
| API and MCP publishing | Not included | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Price | $0 | $0 | $12 a month | $29 a month |
A ZIP without an index.html uploads as a file to download. On Pro and Studio, a ZIP over 100MB still uploads, and it's shared as a download instead of served as a site. A password-protected site doesn't serve on a custom domain, so pick one or the other.
Dropbox and websites
Why a Dropbox folder needs a host now.
Dropbox's help says free Basic accounts lost the ability to show HTML pages through public links on 3 October 2016. Plus and team accounts followed on 1 September 2017, when Dropbox switched public links off for everyone. A site built that way stopped loading, though its files stayed in Dropbox, and guides written before then still turn up in search.
Dropbox still makes a good working copy. When you download a folder from dropbox.com, Dropbox saves it as a .zip file, which is the form NudgeHost needs. Check that an index.html file sits at the top or inside one folder, then drop the ZIP on the uploader. The site goes live when the upload finishes, on a nudgehost.site subdomain named after the link.
Dropbox says its shared links work for people without a Dropbox account, and they're still a good way to send a file. The public links that once served pages are gone, so a folder of HTML needs a host that serves it as a site. If the folder lives in Google Drive instead, the steps to publish a Drive folder as a website start the same way.
A free account keeps the site up with no end date, and replacing the ZIP keeps the same address. A free nudgehost.site address asks search engines not to list it, so a site meant for Google needs a domain of your own, and Pro and Studio let you put a hosted site on a custom domain. For any other folder of HTML, CSS and images, the steps to host a static site for free are the same.
Read on 15 October 2026 from Dropbox’s own pages, Important changes to the Dropbox Public folder and How to download a file or folder from Dropbox.
Guides
More ways to put a site online.
Frequently asked questions
Can Dropbox still host a website?
No. Dropbox's help says free Basic accounts lost HTML rendering through public links on 3 October 2016, and Plus and team accounts on 1 September 2017, when public links were switched off for everyone.
Can I keep editing the files in Dropbox?
Yes. Edit them in Dropbox, download the folder again and replace the ZIP from your dashboard, on any account plan. The address stays the same.
Do I need an account?
No. Signed out, a site lasts 7 days, carries a small NudgeHost bar and you can hold 3 at once. A free account keeps it online with no end date and no bar.
Do visitors need Dropbox?
No. The site opens in any browser, with no Dropbox account and no NudgeHost account.
Will links between my pages still work?
Yes, as long as the folders inside the ZIP keep the layout they had in Dropbox. Links written relative to each page, such as about.html or images/logo.png, keep pointing at the right files.
How big can the site be?
On the free plan the ZIP and the unpacked site both have to fit in 25MB. On Pro and Studio the ZIP can be up to 100MB, and the site can grow to 250MB or 1GB. A site holds up to 200 files.
Will Google list my site?
Not on a free nudgehost.site address, which asks search engines not to list it. A site on your own domain, with Pro or Studio, doesn't carry that tag.
Related tools
Other things you can do on NudgeHost.
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