To let people upload files to Google Drive from a Notion form, use a form tool that saves each upload to your Drive and writes the file link into the new Notion row. The other route is a file upload question in a Google form plus an automation that copies each response and its Drive link into your Notion database. Notion’s native form can’t do this: it stores uploads inside Notion itself.
Why save Notion form uploads to Google Drive?
Saving Notion form uploads to Google Drive keeps the files where your team already shares, previews and backs up documents, while Notion keeps the record. That split matters most for files people pass around: CVs for a hiring panel, signed contracts, photos for a client project.
There is also a technical reason. When an integration reads a Notion-hosted file through the API, Notion’s file object documentation says the link is a temporary URL valid for 1 hour, and tells developers not to cache it. A link to an external file, such as a Drive file, is returned as-is and never expires. So if other tools (a hiring dashboard, an email, a Slack message) need to point at the upload later, a Drive link is the sturdier thing to store.
The 3 ways to get uploads into Drive
There are three practical ways to do a Notion form Google Drive upload, and they differ mostly in who has to sign in and how many tools you maintain.
| Route | Respondent needs a Google account? | Moving parts | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Form tool that uploads to Drive | No | One tool | Public forms, clients, applicants |
| Google form + automation | Yes | A Google form, an automation tool, Notion | Internal teams who all have Google accounts |
| Native Notion form, then move files | No | Notion, plus manual work | Very low volume |
My take: if strangers fill in the form, skip the Google form route. Asking an applicant to sign in to Google before they can attach a CV is friction you don’t need.
Option 1: a form tool that saves files to Drive
A form builder with a Google Drive upload question is the shortest path: you connect Drive once, and every upload lands in your Drive with its link written into the Notion row. In nDBForms it works like this:
- Connect your Notion workspace and pick the database the form should fill.
- Add a file upload question (it’s one of the 17 question types).
- On the Pro plan, uploads of up to 10 MB per file are saved to the form owner’s Google Drive, and the link is written to the Notion page.
- Publish the form and submit a test response with a small PDF.
- Open the new Notion row and click the link to check the file opens.
The limitation: 10 MB per file suits CVs, invoices and photos, not video. If people need to send large recordings, ask for a share link in a URL question instead. Pro is $12 a month at the founding price, or $120 a year.
Option 2: Google Forms plus an automation
As of November 2026, Google Forms has its own file upload question, and it already saves to Drive. According to Google’s help page, uploaded files are stored in a new folder on Google Drive for the form owner. You can limit the allowed file types, the number of files and the maximum file size.
The catch is sign-in. The same help page says that to answer a file upload question, responders need to sign in to a Google Account. That is fine for a team where everyone uses Google Workspace. It stops anyone who doesn’t.
To get the response into Notion, you add an automation. Zapier has a ready-made template that processes form submissions, updates a Notion database and uploads files to Google Drive (linked in the sources below). The setup takes three accounts and one more thing that can break, so test it with a real file before you share the form. Our guide to sending Google form responses to a Notion database walks through the mapping step.
Option 3: native Notion form, then move the files
A native Notion form stores uploads in a files & media property, so getting them into Drive means downloading and re-uploading by hand. That is workable for a handful of responses a week and tedious beyond that.
If you only need uploads and don’t care where they live, the native question is the simplest choice; see how file uploads work in a Notion form.
Where the Drive link goes in Notion
The Drive link fits best in a URL property on the database row, because it is an ordinary web address. Notion’s request limits cap any URL at 2000 characters, which a Drive file link fits with plenty of room.
A few setup choices save pain later:
- A clear property name, for example “CV (Drive)”, stops people looking for the file in a files & media column.
- One property per upload question. A form asking for a CV and a portfolio gets two link properties.
- Share the upload folder with whoever reviews responses. A link in Notion only opens for people who have access to the file in Drive.
If you’re unsure how each question type lands in Notion, the guide to mapping form fields to Notion properties covers the rest.
Watch your Drive storage
Uploads count against the form owner’s Google storage, not the respondent’s. Google’s storage help page says each Google Account includes up to 15 GB, shared across Gmail, Google Drive and Google Photos.
A busy application form can eat into that faster than you expect, especially if your inbox is already large. Check your storage after the first week of responses, and move older uploads to an archive folder or a shared drive owned by the team.
A worked example: a job application form
Say you hire freelance designers and track applicants in a Notion database with Name, Email, Role and Status. You want each CV in a “Hiring / CVs” folder in Drive.
With a Drive-upload form tool, you add a file question labelled “Upload your CV (PDF, under 10 MB)”, keep the link in a property called “CV (Drive)”, and share the Drive folder with your two reviewers. Each application then appears in Notion with a clickable CV link, and the file sits in the folder your reviewers already open. The job application form template has the rest of the questions.
FAQ
Can Notion’s own form save uploads to Google Drive?
No. A native Notion form stores uploads in the files & media property of the new row. To get files into Google Drive you need a form tool or automation that uploads them there and writes the link to Notion.
Do people need a Google account to upload files?
With a file upload question in a Google form, yes: Google says responders need to sign in to a Google Account. Form tools that upload to the owner’s Drive on the respondent’s behalf don’t need that.
Whose Google Drive storage do the uploads use?
The form owner’s. Google stores form uploads in a new folder in the owner’s Drive, and every Google Account’s 15 GB is shared across Gmail, Drive and Photos.
Which Notion property should hold the Drive link?
A URL property works well, because the Drive link is an ordinary web address. Notion’s API limits any URL to 2000 characters, which a Drive link fits easily.