Organise your files in Google Drive

To organise your files in Drive, you can create folders to make files easier to find and share with others.

Note: If you organise a lot of files or folders at once, it might take time for the changes to appear.

There is no correct way to organise your files in Drive. However, below are some general suggestions for how to keep your files in order.

  • Use a naming convention: Keep file names short, simple and meaningful. You can also add a date or use hashtags or numbers.
  • Colour-code folders: Use colours to label folders so that you can easily identify the type of file.
  • Create folders and subfolders: Folders help you to keep track of files and find them quickly.
  • Drag and drop files: You can drag and drop files into folders.
  • Add descriptions: You can add descriptions to files and folders. To do this, right-click the file or folder and then click File information Information and then Details Information. Scroll to the bottom of the side panel and add your description.
  • Use the star feature: Star important files and folders to access them quickly. To do this, right-click the file or folder and then click Organise and then Add to starred .

Tips to organise your files:

  • Use folders inside folders: Start with a simple structure and adjust it as required. You could have folders for each project ('Project_1', 'Project_2', 'Project_3'), then smaller folders inside for different topics or assignments.
  • Use clear names: Use easy-to-understand names for your files and folders. Use dates (like 'YYYY-MM_DD_Project_notes'), project names ('Book report_The Forest') or keywords ('Maths_homework_Chapter 5') to keep track of everything.
  • Colour-code your folders: Use colours to label folders. You can use the same colour for similar projects (like using green for projects related to gardening) and so on.
  • Star your favourites: Put a star on files that you need to find quickly. You can find all your starred files in one place.

Remember, the goal is to make your Google Drive easy to use and navigate. A simple, organised structure helps you to find what you need quickly and efficiently.

Tip: If you organise a lot of files or folders at once, it might take time for the changes to appear.

Create, move and copy files

Create a folder

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. On the left, click New and then Folder.
  3. Enter a name for the folder.
  4. Click Create.

Move items to a file or a folder

Important: To move a file, you must have permission to move the file from the source to the destination, otherwise the file won't be moved. A shortcut is created in the destination folder instead.

There are multiple ways to move items to a file or folder. You can do this while you access an item on:

  • The main window
  • The left panel
  • Google Drive search results

Tip: If you move folders with a lot of files or subfolders, it will take time for you to find the changes.

Manually move to a folder

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click the item that you want to move.
  3. Click Organise > Move .
  4. Select or create a folder.
  5. Click Move.

Drag to a folder

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Drag the item that you want to move.
  3. Move the item over the folder and release it.

Tip: To move items into any folder in Google Drive, go to the left panel.

Use keyboard shortcuts to move to a folder

Important: This function is only available on Chrome.

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Select a file.
  3. To cut the file, press Ctrl + X.
  4. Go to the new location.
  5. Select an option:
    • To paste the file into the new location, press Ctrl + V.
    • To create a shortcut of the file in the new location, press Ctrl + Shift + V.

Tip: Users can move across browser windows.

Create a link to a file or folder in other applications

Important: This function is only available on Chrome.

With Google Drive, you can copy and paste the name of a file and/or folder in Google editor documents and other applications.

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Select a file.
  3. Select an option:
    • To copy the file or folder name to the clipboard as a link, press Ctrl + C. 
    • To copy the file or folder URL to the clipboard as a link, press Ctrl + Shift + C.
  4. To paste the file or folder into a Google document or other application, press Ctrl + V.

Make a copy of a file

Important:

  • This function is only available on Chrome.
  • This functionality isn't available on Drive for desktop.
  • You can't copy folders, only files.
  • To find a folder easily, you can create a shortcut to a folder.

Manually copy a file

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click a file.
  3. Click make a copy Make a copy.

Use keyboard shortcuts to copy a file

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Select a file.
  3. To copy the file to the clipboard, press Ctrl + C.
  4. Go to the new location.
  5. To make a copy of the file in the new location, press Ctrl + V.

Tip: Users can move across browser windows.

Delete a file or folder

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click the file or folder that you want to delete.
  3. Click Remove.

If you accidentally put an item in the bin, you can restore your item.

Create a shortcut for a file or folder

Shortcuts make it easier for you or your team to find and organise files and folders in multiple Google Drives. A shortcut is a link that references another file or folder. 

Create a shortcut

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click the file or folder that you want to make a shortcut for.
  3.  Click Organise  > Add shortcut .
  4. Choose where you want the shortcut to be.
  5. Click Add shortcut.

Tip: You can create a copy of a shortcut in a Drive folder but you can't create a shortcut to another shortcut file.

Use keyboard shortcuts to create a shortcut

Important: This function is only available on Chrome.

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Select the file.
  3. To copy the file to the clipboard, press Ctrl + C.
  4. Go to the new location.
  5. To paste the shortcut into the new location, press Ctrl + Shift + V.

Delete a shortcut

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click the shortcut that you want to remove.
  3. Click Remove.

To permanently delete the shortcut, empty your bin.

Important: If you delete a shortcut, the original file will not be deleted.

Change the colour of your folder

You can customise the colour of folders and shortcuts to folders in your My Drive and shared drives. If you change any colours, it will only apply to your version of Drive.

  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Right-click the folder that you want to change.
  3. Click Organise  and then select the colour from the Folder colour options.
Find duplicate files or folders
  1. On your computer, go to drive.google.com.
  2. Select an option:
    1. Sort files by name and ensure that you're in the list view. This can help you to spot duplicate files with similar names.
    2. Use the search bar to look for specific file types or names that you suspect might have duplicates.
If you accidentally put an item in the bin, you can restore your item.

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