Mountain Duck is a paid Windows and macOS utility that mounts remote storage like FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, Amazon S3, Google Cloud, and more as local drives. Perfect if you want to open and save cloud files right from Finder or Explorer without syncing or bouncing between apps. There's a fully functional 14-day trial, too, so you can kick the tires before deciding to buy.

What is Mountain Duck?

Mountain Duck acts like a translator between your desktop and cloud storage. It maps your remote servers as local drives so you can use cloud files like they're sitting on your hard drive. There is no syncing, no browser windows, and no clunky upload or download routine. Just open, edit, save. Done.

Think of it like plugging in a USB stick, except instead of being physically connected, it could be something like an Amazon S3 bucket or a folder on an FTP server. Once mounted, you can open, save, rename, or move files using the same tools and apps you always use. No syncing, no browser logins, and no middlemen.

So when Mountain Duck mounts your Google Drive as D:, it's not copying files over, it's letting your system talk to Google Drive as if it's just another hard drive sitting inside your computer.

Why You Want This

If you work with remote servers, cloud storage, or any kind of off-site file system, this tool saves serious time. If you spend time editing code on a remote dev server, managing files in Backblaze, or pushing backups to S3, Mountain Duck makes it all native to your PC. Apps don't care if a file is in the cloud or not. They just see a local drive.

For example, Let's say you've got a pile of documents on Google Drive, and you want to work on them without the back-and-forth. You could download them, make edits, then upload them again every single time. Or you could just use Mountain Duck to mount Google Drive as a local drive, like D: Now you're editing files directly, just like they're on your computer. No more manual uploads or sync headaches.

Free Trial Details

You get 14 days of full access—no restrictions, no crippled features. That means every supported protocol, smart caching, offline access, file versioning, Cryptomator encryption, and even file locking and shareable links. Just download it, hit "Request Trial," and you're in. No credit card or weird hoops to jump through.

Key Features

Supports a wide range of protocols: FTP, SFTP, WebDAV, S3, Azure, Google Cloud, Backblaze B2

Deep integration with Finder and Explorer so remote files act like local ones

Smart caching keeps files accessible even if the connection drops

Saves directly from any app, including heavyweights like Photoshop or Visual Studio

Bookmark servers and remember credentials for fast access

Uses your OS's keychain or Credential Manager for secure logins

Handy menu bar or taskbar launcher for quick connections

How You’d Use It

Picture this: you're editing a config file on a Linux server. Instead of firing up an FTP client, just mount it as a drive, open it in Notepad++, make your changes, and hit save. Or maybe you're archiving project files directly to S3. No syncing, no extra apps. Just set the destination folder and go.

Pros & Cons

Pros:

Handles nearly every major cloud and server protocol

Works seamlessly with the tools you already use

Offline access when connections get sketchy

Cons:

Not free. There's a license fee after the trial

May take a minute to get the hang of remote mounting if you're new to it

Performance can drag if your network or server is slow

Geek Verdict

Mountain Duck quietly turns remote chaos into smooth, local-like access and does it without making the user jump through hoops. The 14-day trial is generous and gives you the full experience with no gimmicks. If you're constantly dealing with cloud storage or remote files, this thing's pretty slick. Worth the trial spin, especially if syncing apps or manual uploads are driving you nuts.