The good thing about computers is that you can change the location of a massive amount of files with the click of a button. Do you no longer want this file on your main drive? Simple: drag and drop it elsewhere. Do you want to create a duplicate file as an archive or share it with a friend? Copy the file and let the computer do all the work.
You might’ve noticed that the wait time differs when you’re copying a file compared to moving it. But, is there really a difference? Which method is faster and why?
Moving Files vs. Copying Files
Before determining which is faster, it’s important to understand the difference between moving and copying a file. When copying a file, you’re creating an exact duplicate of the original file. The directory of the file needs to be different. It must either have a different name or a different location.
Windows 10, for instance, adds “ - Copy” to the end of the file or folder’s name if you create a copy in the same location to differentiate it from the original.
That way, any changes you make to one of the files won’t affect the other.
You can move a file by right-clicking it and using the Cut and Paste commands or simply dragging and dropping it into the desired location. This changes the original file’s directory and, in a way, deletes the original file so that there’s only one version.
Which Is Faster: Copy or Move?
In most cases, the difference in timing is minuscule, especially for most modern computers. But you can notice the most difference in moving or copying time depending on the start and finish location.
Moving and Copying Files on the Same Drive
As long as you’re moving files in the same drive portion, the move should be almost instantaneous. That’s because you’re not really moving the file from one memory storage to another. You're simply changing the directory the computer has to follow to retrieve the file or folder’s contents from memory.
Copying, however, is different. Your computer doesn’t replace the directory and leaves the file as-is. It goes through the file bit by bit and creates an identical copy. As you might’ve guessed, this takes time depending on the size of the file, even if you’re working on the same drive.
Moving and Copying Files on Different Drives
When another drive comes into the picture, both processes are more or less identical. Separate storage location doesn’t only mean separate devices. Your own computer can have multiple partitioned hard drives that work independently, even if there’s physically only one hard drive.
By copying a file from one drive to another, the process is the same as copying it in-drive. The quality of the target drive can play a role in the speed. Newer drives—depending on the type of port they use—allow for faster data transfer. But all in all, you shouldn’t see a difference in speed when copying files on the same drive or outside of it.
When it comes to moving a file to a different drive—or using the Cut command—you’re basically creating a copy of the file in a different location then deleting the original file. You can think of it as a merged Copy and Delete command.
Similarly, file moving speeds depend on the quality and data transfer speeds of the target drive, but it takes just a little bit longer than copying to delete the file afterward.
Knowing the Difference
It may not seem like much, but knowing the differences between similar commands can be the start towards improving them. When you value your time and know exactly what you want to achieve, it’s easy to pick the right command if you know what it entails.
FAQs
But all in all, you shouldn't see a difference in speed when copying files on the same drive or outside of it. When it comes to moving a file to a different drive—or using the Cut command—you're basically creating a copy of the file in a different location then deleting the original file.
Is it faster to move or copy files? ›
A Move operation will always be MUCH faster than a Copy operation. While on the surface, Copy + Delete eventually gives you the same result as a Move, they're definitely 2 completely different operations.
Why is move more efficient than copy? ›
It's faster because moving allows the source to be left in a invalid state, so you can steal it's resources. For example, if a object holds a pointer to a large block of allocated memory, a move can simply steal the pointer while a copy must allocate its own memory and copy the whole memory block.
What is the difference between copying and moving files? ›
Difference between copying and moving files / folders
Copying – make a duplicate of the selected file or folder and place it in another location. Moving – move the original files or folder from one place to another (change the destination). The move deletes the original file or folder, while copy creates a duplicate.
Why does copying a file take longer? ›
Slow file copying can be caused by storage issues, client issues, and server issues. On the file server that hosts the shared folder, copy the file to its local hard disk. If the file-copying speed is unusually low (much slower than average speed), try to update the driver for your storage.
Does moving take longer than copying? ›
Moving is always faster on the same drive, copying is much slower on the same drive.
Why is copying faster than deleting? ›
When deleting a file, most Operating Systems will mark the file as deleted, but not actually remove the data from the hard drive. This allows for a fast delete as the OS just has to set one flag and not touch any of the data. When copying a file, data actually has to be duplicated in order to copy a file.
What is the difference between copying and moving average? ›
Copying means to create a new file with the same contents as the original. Moving has the effect of creating a new file and removing the original. This may involve copying, or it may just be an adjustment to the file pointer in a directory (or relocating the pointer to a different directory).
Why is my computer copying files instead of moving them? ›
it can be avoided by not moving your mouse while holding down the CTRL key and selecting the files. On the right-hand side you should see two values, DragHeight and DragWidth. Just double-click on them and change the value to something higher.
What is the difference between moving and copying cell? ›
Moving data in Excel involves cutting and pasting selected cells or ranges to a new location. Copying data, on the other hand, involves duplicating selected cells or ranges and pasting them to another location. Both moving and copying data in Excel can be done using keyboard shortcuts or through the ribbon menu.
Download and upload cycles: continually downloading and re-uploading files across multiple workstations can also lead to a loss of quality in your video. This is especially true when different members of your team use different applications to send and receive files.
Does moving a file make a copy? ›
Dragging a file to another location on the same Volume. Option-dragging will copy the file. Dragging a file to a location on a different Volume or Drive will copy the file.
What is the difference between move uploaded file and copy? ›
Copy will copy the file source to destination whereas move will move it. When a file is copied, a duplicate is made means temporary buffers(source) is not cleaned.
Why move faster than copy? ›
As long as you're moving files in the same drive portion, the move should be almost instantaneous. That's because you're not really moving the file from one memory storage to another. You're simply changing the directory the computer has to follow to retrieve the file or folder's contents from memory.
How to speed up copying speed? ›
FAQ about Speed Up Network File Transfer Windows 10
- Disable Windows Auto-Tuning.
- Turn off Remote Differential Compression.
- Check if your hard drive is corrupted.
- Check your Ethernet cable.
- Stop running unnecessary programs.
If we are cutting(moving) within a same disk, then it will be faster than copying because only the file path is modified, actual data is on the disk. If the data is copied from one disk to another, it will be relatively faster than cutting because it is doing only COPY operation. There's nothing faster than nothing.
What is the fastest way to transfer files? ›
The 4 Fastest Ways to Transfer Files From One Computer to Another
- Use a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 External SSD or Faster. ...
- Use an M. ...
- Share Files via a Local Area Network. ...
- Save Files on a Cloud Drive. ...
- Connect Your Phone Using a Cable. ...
- Use Apple AirDrop. ...
- Transfer Files Using Mobile Apps. ...
- Use a microSD Card.
Drag and Drop is a method of moving or copying a file or several files using the mouse or touchpad.
Is it faster to copy multiple files at once? ›
The physical head movement (latency) is what will slow a transfer from a spinning platter disk. If you were copying from a single HDD, then you would start a single big transfer rather than lots of small ones. The head going back and forth between two or more files that are being copied is what slows the transfer.
Which is faster, cloning or copying? ›
Cloning is usually quicker because it isn't concerned with file structure, directory organization, fragmentation, etc. Most importantly, many files on the drive containing the present operating system are locked and cannot be copied.
