How to share a SharePoint file with someone outside your company

You want to send a SharePoint document to a client. The Share button has six options and three of them sound scary. Here's the safe way.

Quick steps

1. In SharePoint (or Teams' Files tab), click the document you want to share.
2. Click Share in the top bar.
3. In the dialog, click the "People you specify" dropdown at the top.
4. Change to Specific people (the most restrictive option that still lets you add an external email).
5. Type the external recipient's email address.
6. Choose whether they get Can edit or Can view.
7. Add an optional message → Send.

The recipient gets an email with a link. They sign in with their Microsoft, Google or one-time-passcode account to access the file. No one else can use that link.

Why "Specific people" is the right default

The dropdown above the recipient field has a few options:

• People with existing access — no new permissions, just sends the link.
• Anyone with the link — anyone, no sign-in. Forwardable. Dangerous.
• People in your organization — anyone in your company, but not external users.
• People in [partner organization] — sometimes appears for trusted external tenants.
• Specific people — only the email addresses you list.

For external sharing, Specific people is the right balance. The recipient can't forward the link to someone else and have it work.

When "Anyone with the link" makes sense

Useful when:

• The content is genuinely public-ready (marketing collateral, signed contracts, PDFs).
• The recipient might not have a Microsoft account and you don't want them to set one up.

Make sure to:

• Set Can view (never Can edit) for anonymous links.
• Set an expiration date (Share → ⋯ → Settings → Expiration).
• Set a password if it's even mildly sensitive.

What if the Share dialog says external sharing is blocked?

This means your IT admin has restricted external sharing at the tenant or site level. Options:

1. Ask IT to enable external sharing for that specific site. Don't ask for global changes — most admins will say no, rightly.
2. Use a guest account. IT can invite the external person as a guest, then they can be added to the site like an internal user.
3. Use OneDrive instead. OneDrive sharing rules are sometimes more permissive than SharePoint's. But the file lives on your personal storage, not the project's library — be careful.

Track what's shared (and revoke it)

To see everyone with access to a file:

1. Right-click the file → Manage Access.
2. The panel shows direct shares, group permissions, and active links.
3. To revoke: click the X next to a person or link.

Run a quarterly review of files shared externally. Old project links sit forever otherwise.

Sharing a whole folder externally — be careful

When you share a folder, every file inside inherits the same permissions, including files added later. That's a security landmine for a SharePoint library that grows over time.

Better: create a sub-folder called External or Client review, share only that folder externally, and copy files in as needed.

What the recipient sees

External recipients accessing a SharePoint file go through:

1. The email link.
2. A Microsoft sign-in page (or one-time passcode if they don't have a Microsoft account).
3. The file opens in their browser via Office for the Web — full Word/Excel/PowerPoint, but in the browser.

They can edit, comment, and download if you allowed it. Their changes are tracked under their email address.

Common gotchas

• "Block download" is on the Share → Settings menu. Turn this on for sensitive files; recipients can read in the browser but can't save a copy.
• Versions are kept — if an external editor messes up your document, restore via right-click → Version history.
• Removing someone's access doesn't delete copies they already downloaded. Treat downloaded files as gone.

TL;DR

Click Share → switch to Specific people → add the email → choose Can View or Can Edit → Send. Avoid Anyone with the link unless it's truly public, and if you must use it, add expiration and a password. Audit shared files quarterly via Manage Access.