Diawi limits in 2026: file size, link life and installs per plan
· 7 min read
Diawi is the oldest name in link based app sharing. You drop an .ipa or an .apk, you get a link and a QR code, and a tester installs from the phone. It is simple and it works. The limits are where people get caught: a build that is too big for the free account, a link that stopped working over the weekend, or an install count that ran out after two phones. This guide lists every published Diawi limit, explains how each one is counted and shows what you can do when you hit it. Diawi figures come from its features and services page and its knowledge base as read on November 2, 2026. Prices are in euros, monthly, and Diawi shows no yearly price.
All Diawi limits in one table
| Free account | Starter | Premium | Enterprise | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Price | EUR 0 | EUR 2.99/month | EUR 29.99/month | EUR 299.99/month |
| Largest upload | 20 MB | 50 MB | 250 MB, more with add-ons | 1.2 GB, more with add-ons |
| Link availability | 1 day | 3 days | 7 days, more with add-ons | 15 days, more with add-ons |
| Installs per app | 2 | 10 | 50, more with add-ons | 100, more with add-ons |
| API access | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Install notifications and stats | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Team management, full history, single billing | No | No | Yes | Yes |
| Support | None listed | Community | Ticket | Priority, business days |
Diawi accepts Development, Ad Hoc and In-house (enterprise) iOS builds as an .ipa or a .zip that holds a .app, and any signed Android .apk. It does not accept Android App Bundles. Its allowed and forbidden page also says it is not an app store: public distribution is not allowed.
Upload size: 20 MB is small for a release build
The free account takes files up to 20 MB. A plain native app fits. Many apps do not, once they bundle fonts, images, a game engine or a cross platform runtime, and debug builds are bigger again. Starter raises the cap to 50 MB, Premium to 250 MB and Enterprise to 1.2 GB. On Premium and Enterprise you can buy more: +500 MB for EUR 4.99 a month or +1 GB for EUR 9.99 a month.
If your build is just over a limit, check what is inside before you pay. An .ipa often carries debug symbols or unused architectures, and an Android build may hold resources for every screen density. Our free IPA inspector and APK analyzer list the frameworks, native libraries and architectures in the browser without uploading the file.
Link life: counted from the last install
This is the limit people misread most. Diawi does not count link life from the upload. Its link duration page says availability runs from "the date of the last installation (or the date of the upload itself if no installation has yet been made)". So on Premium, a link that someone installs every few days keeps going, while a link nobody opens ends 7 days after the upload.
Three things end a Diawi link: the time since the last install, running out of installs, or you disabling it. After that the link shows as not available. With an account you can re-enable it for a short window: 1 day on Free and Starter, 3 days on Premium, 5 days on Enterprise. After the window the link is gone and the files are deleted. Links made without an account cannot be re-enabled. We cover this in detail in Diawi link expired: how link life is counted.
One honest note: Diawi's homepage still says an account brings "no expiration". The plan table above says otherwise. When the two disagree, plan around the table.
Installs per app
Each plan caps installs per app: 2 on the free account, 10 on Starter, 50 on Premium and 100 on Enterprise. A tester who reinstalls, or tries on two phones, uses two. With two installs on the free account, a developer checking the link once and one tester installing is the whole allowance. On paid plans you can buy +100 installs for EUR 0.49 or +1,000 for EUR 4.99.
API access starts at Starter
Diawi's upload API is listed from Starter up. When we read the same page in mid October 2026 it showed API access on every plan, including the free account. If a free account script stopped working recently, check this first. The API itself is covered in the Diawi API with curl and Node.
Pay as you go add-ons
Diawi sells small extras on top of the plans. This is a real strength: you can pay a few cents for one link instead of moving to a bigger plan.
| Add-on | Price |
|---|---|
| +100 installs | EUR 0.49 |
| +1,000 installs | EUR 4.99 |
| Extended availability, +1 month | EUR 0.49 |
| Extended availability, +1 year | EUR 4.99 |
| Link changes | EUR 0.29 per change |
| Upload +500 MB / +1 GB | EUR 4.99 / EUR 9.99 per month |
| Custom pages | EUR 0.99 per month |
| Custom address | EUR 2.99 |
| Custom domain with SSL | EUR 4.29 per month |
The page does not spell out every detail, for example whether an availability extension applies per link. Ask Diawi before you rely on one for a client deadline.
Without an account
Diawi still lets you upload without signing up, but the features page no longer shows the limits for that case, and third party pages disagree with each other. History shows the trend: in 2016 Diawi's own blog listed 100 MB, 3 days and 10 installs without an account, and 250 MB, 7 days and 25 installs with a free account. Today's free account is 20 MB, 1 day and 2 installs. Test with your own build before you promise a client anything.
What the free account really covers
Put together, Diawi's free account is good for one thing: one small build, one or two phones, today. That is a fair use case. A developer sending a quick fix to their own phone, or showing a prototype to one person at a meeting, does not need more. For a test round that lasts a week, a team of five, or builds above 20 MB, you need Starter at least, and probably Premium.
How AppForShare's limits compare
AppForShare is the tool we make, so read this part with that in mind. The limits are counted differently: link life runs from the upload on Free, and installs are counted by monthly bandwidth instead of a cap per app.
| Guest (no account) | Free | Pro ($12/month) | Team ($39/month) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largest file | 50 MB | 150 MB | 2 GB | 4 GB |
| Link life | 3 days | 7 days from upload | While subscribed | While subscribed |
| Installs | 20 per link, 4 per day | 10 GB of downloads a month | 40 GB a month | 150 GB a month |
| Android App Bundle | No | Yes, turned into one APK | Yes, also with your own key | Yes, also with your own key |
| CI and API | No | No | Yes, including a Diawi compatible endpoint | Yes |
A 50 MB build installed 20 times is about 1 GB of bandwidth. Pro and Team can also set their own install cap, stop date or pause on a link, so a link only lives as long as you want it to. See pricing for every limit.
Where Diawi is ahead: Starter gives you the API for EUR 2.99 a month, the pay as you go extensions let you keep one link alive for cents, and the custom domain and custom page add-ons are cheap. Our Pro plan starts at $12 a month, and a custom domain needs Team. For the full side by side, read AppForShare vs Diawi.
Common questions
What is the Diawi file size limit?
20 MB on the free account, 50 MB on Starter, 250 MB on Premium and 1.2 GB on Enterprise, with paid upload add-ons on Premium and Enterprise.
How many installs does a Diawi link allow?
2 per app on the free account, 10 on Starter, 50 on Premium and 100 on Enterprise. Paid plans can buy more installs.
Does the Diawi free plan include the API?
Not as of November 2, 2026. The features page lists API access from Starter up.
Why did my Diawi link stop working before the time was up?
It may have run out of installs, or someone on your account disabled it. Time is only one of the three limits.
Can I upload an .aab to Diawi?
No. Diawi says Android App Bundles are not supported. See Diawi and .aab files for ways to share one as an APK.
