How to Organize Files on Your Computer: Tricks for Everyday Use

Does it often take you forever to find files on your PC? In certain cases, you may begin to wonder whether you still have the file you’re looking for. Even when you are absolutely certain that you do have it, it’d probably take a considerable amount of time to comb through all the poorly placed and poorly named files on your PC to locate that one file.

Your desktop might even look something like the image below, and every other location on your computer may be similarly disorganized, littered with stray files and folders.

To help you step out of such a mess, this guide provides a step-by-step approach on how to organize the files on your computer.

The Obvious Question: Why Should You Start Organizing Your Files?

In case you’re thinking, “Hey, I seem to be doing alright so far,” then let’s spell it out. Not only are we talking about an untidy computer (see the image above) and valuable time wasted when finding a file, but there’s also the increased possibility of:

❗ Wasting of storage space because you’re creating too many duplicates of the same file

❌ Deleting important files by mistake when trying to declutter your PC

🕒 Slow workflow, errors, and project delays

It’s true that some people are naturally inclined to sorting and organizing everything in their lives, while others tend to follow a more laid-back approach. But you don’t have to be a born organizer to keep your digital life under control.

This guide offers practical tips on how to organize your files, whether you’re starting from scratch or sharpening your skills.

6 Steps to Organizing Files and Folders on Your PC

Adequate file management doesn’t have to be complicated. It simply means storing and organizing your files and folders in a way that makes sense to you and enables easy retrieval.

So without further ado, let’s get right into it.

Step 1: Create a clear folder structure to organize computer files easily

Using folders and subfolders in a hierarchical manner is arguably the best way to organize files on your computer. Therefore, every single file on your PC should be placed in a designated folder in which it is most at home. And in the same manner, every folder should reside within a main folder or subfolder.

However, you want a folder structure that not only makes sense to you now but which will still make sense three or more years down the line. You don’t want your future self to wonder where you tucked away a certain file.

To illustrate:

➡️ Start by creating your main folders

You can create them within the default Documents folder in File Explorer.

For example, I have created my main folders based on activity as follows: Work, Personal, and Coding. These three folders contain all the files that I have saved on my computer, including images, videos, photos, documents, and even sorted downloaded files.

➡️ Make use of subfolders but avoid deep nesting

Once you’ve created your main folders, organize further by using subfolders—just don’t go too deep.

Why? Digging through too many layers makes file retrieval a pain. Ideally, your structure should follow this simple hierarchy:

Main folder (level 0) → Subfolder (level 1) → Subfolder (level 2) → Subfolder (level 3) → Files

As a freelance writer, my Work folder contains subfolders for each establishment that I’ve written for, as you can see here:

Within the company folders, I have created additional subfolders by year:

And within each year, I have subfolders for Invoices and Completed Projects in which individual files are now stored:

Now take a look at my Personal folder. Within it, I have separated storage spaces for images, videos, documents, and audio files:

And within each of those folders, I’ve grouped my files based on topic. For example, Images contains separate folders for family photos, vacation photos, school days, etc.:

Documents contains folders for my eBook files based on the activities I engage in, namely chess, copywriting, and so on:

➡️ Enhance visibility

When organizing your files, you can employ color coding or custom icons to make your folders unique and easy to identify.

However, Windows has a feature for setting custom icons for your folders. Simply right-click on a folder, click on Properties, and head to the Customized tab. Next, click on the Change Icon button to pick an icon that will represent the folder.

➡️ Enable Quick access for frequently used folders

If there are folders that you will be opening often, instead of always going all the way to where they are located, especially for subfolders, you can simply add them to File Explorer’s Quick access. All you have to do is right-click on the folder and click on Pin to Quick access in the context menu.

Afterwards, you can expand the Quick access option in the left pane on File Explorer to find all the available folders.

To ensure that the Quick access section doesn’t get cluttered, be sure to unpin unused folders once in a while. You can also remove folders that are pinned by default if you do not require them to be there.

Step 2: Adopt consistent file naming conventions when saving your files

A file naming convention means having consistent, detail-rich names for your files and folders. Let’s be honest—naming files Final.docx, Latest.docx, or Stuff1.docx might seem fine in the moment until you try to find it two weeks later.

That’s where a file naming convention saves the day. It’s all about giving your files clear, consistent names so you instantly know what they are without having to open them.

The guiding principles to keep in mind here are:

🔤 Avoid abbreviations: They might make sense now, but you might forget later what PRJNWRP is supposed to mean.

🔎 Include keywords: Keywords let you find a file or related files easily via Search. While at it, make sure that your spellings are correct.

📅 Use dates: Start filenames with the date in YYYY-MM-DD format. This is especially useful for image files and work documents.

Thus, the name would go something like YYYY-MM-DD_Keywords. For example, 2025-06-27_Our_Wedding_Anniversary_Img1.jpg.

🔢 Add numbers for sorting: Prefix related files with 001, 002, etc., to mark the order and control how they are listed within the folder—especially useful when you’re dealing with series or priorities.

🗂️ Include file versions: Working on drafts or revisions? Add the version to the filename to aid tracking. For example: Apple_Pie_Recipe_Ver1.pdf.

🧩 Pick a format and stick to it: Whether you use underscores, hyphens, or PascalCase (like MyProjectFile.docx), consistency is key. It wouldn’t be a good idea to name files one way today and another way tomorrow. Use the same format always.

Continuing with my personal illustration as a freelance writer, the naming convention that I have adopted for my completed projects is a combination of dates and keywords.

As you can see in the image below, each file name starts with YYYY-MM-DD, followed by the name of the company and the project title, all separated with underscores.

Naming files in a meaningful manner makes retrieving them a breeze. Search becomes quick and effective, and you no longer have to wade through folders every time.

If you haven’t been following a naming convention, now is a good time to start. You can begin by renaming your existing files. This also provides an excellent opportunity to delete unwanted files and reduce clutter.

Step 3: Move and sort files into the right folders on your computer

Now that you have a logical folder structure, you can start moving your files to the associated folders.

➡️ Selecting files

Select multiple files by holding down the Ctrl key on your keyboard while clicking on the individual files in a given location. If the files are adjacent, select the first file, hold down the Shift key, and then select the last file in the order.

➡️ Tagging files

You can take your file organization a step further by tagging associated files before moving them into their respective folders. Windows has a built-in feature for tagging files. All you have to do after selecting your files is to:

• Right-click and click on Properties.
• Head over to the Details tab.
• Locate Tags under the Property column.

• Click on the Value field, and proceed to type in your tag keyword, for example, 2025, Invoices, Holiday, Birthday, New Years, Dad, Baby, etc. You can input multiple keywords by separating them with semicolons.
• Then click Apply and click OK.
• Afterwards, you will be able to identify files that are marked with a specific tag by going to File Explorer, expanding the View menu, and selecting Details so that your files will be listed in an orderly manner alongside their attributes (date, type, size, etc.) and available tags.

For example, I can find all files that I have tagged with the keyword Auslogics by typing tag:Auslogic s into the File Explorer search bar.

➡️ Moving files

You can drag and drop files into their associated folders or simply cut and paste. Keyboard hotkeys also come in handy. For example, cut selected files using Ctrl + X, then navigate to and open a folder, and press Ctrl + V to paste the files into the folder.

Step 4: Automate your file organization to save time

Now that you’ve put all your files in their proper place, you can apply some automation rules to ensure that new files stay organized:

➡️ Set up auto-save rules

On Windows, new files are saved on the system drive by default. However, you can change the default save location to be anywhere other than your Local Disk (C:). It could be on a connected external drive, a separate partition on your internal drive, or to your secondary internal drive. To apply this setting:

• Press the Windows + I hotkey to open the Settings app. Then, select System in the left pane and click on Storage from the options on the right-hand side of the window.

• Now, scroll down and click on Advanced storage settings.
• Next, click on the Where new content is saved option.
• Go ahead and expand each drop-down to select a preferred drive for apps, documents, music, pictures, videos, and offline maps.

➡️ Select default save locations within individual programs

You can change the default save location for your most-used apps to comply with your folder structure. For example, you can change Microsoft Word’s default save and auto-save locations by going to File > Options > Save.

➡️ Select default download locations

When downloading files from the web via your browser, the default download location is always the Downloads folder in File Explorer. Over time, this folder may get cluttered and become difficult to manage, especially if you are not in the habit of moving newly downloaded files to a more suitable folder afterwards.

So instead of letting your browser save all downloads to this same default location, you can change the settings so that you get to choose the folder where each new download will be saved.

For example, in Google Chrome:

• Click on the three-dots icon in the top-right corner of the window and click on Settings.
• Now, click on Downloads in the left pane and enable the Ask where to save each file before downloading option.

➡️ Use Windows File Explorer’s auto-sort

When accessing your files, File Explorer provides some useful features for sorting and finding files based on various criteria such as name, date created, date modified, file type, size, available tags, etc. Simply go to the folder containing your files and click on the Sort drop-down at the top of the window to find all the available sorting options.

You can also head to the View drop-down and select Details so that your files and folders are listed alongside all their available details.

➡️ Use automation tools

There are tools, such as Microsoft Power Automate, that enable users to automate file management and file organization processes locally on Windows, as well as across various apps and online services (for example, SharePoint) based on certain predefined conditions and triggers.

Step 5: Find and remove duplicate files to free up space

Poor file organization and inadequate file naming conventions lead to the proliferation of duplicate files on your computer.

But now that you’ve taken the time to organize your files, it’s important that you find and remove duplicates. There are various ways to achieve this. For instance, you could use the sorting and file preview options in File Explorer to track down duplicates and delete them.

However, it would be much more efficient to employ dedicated apps, such as Auslogics Duplicate File Finder or Sorcim Clone Files Checker, to find, sort, and remove similar files.

Step 6: Archive unused files to avoid cluttering the disk

Next to removing duplicate files, archiving old files is another important action that needs to be taken in order to declutter your storage drive and free up space.

Archiving is about the long-term storage of important files that, although they aren’t serving any immediate purpose, may need to be referenced some time in the near or distant future. They must, therefore, not be deleted but should instead be kept safe from possible loss.

Such files are best kept on external drives or cloud storage services like Google Drive.

Archiving your files on the cloud or an external SSD or HDD has its benefits, depending on your preferences. You should consider factors like accessibility, cost, durability, scalability, etc.

📌Also read: FAT32 vs. exFAT vs. NTFS: Which File Format Is Best for Your Drive?

➡️ The “one-touch rule” for file management: Take immediate, decisive action for every file that comes into existence on your computer. Give it a proper name, tag it, and send it to the appropriate folder. Delete it if it’s not of use. Don’t leave them unattended, or they might become overwhelming to handle.

➡️ Stay consistent: Avoid straying from your established folder structure and file naming convention.

➡️ Clean your Downloads folder regularly: Downloads are arguably the number one source of clutter on computers and mobile devices. Strive to keep files in check by specifying your download locations and observing regular cleanups.

➡️ Don’t use your desktop as storage: The desktop is best used for keeping shortcuts to frequently accessed programs, files, and folders. Saving folders and stray files on your desktop promotes clutter and makes finding files difficult. It also slows down your PC during startup. To create a desktop shortcut, right-click the file or folder, click on Show more options, and then click on Create shortcut.

➡️ Simplify file access: Use shortcuts, search, and tags to find files easily.

Keep It Simple and Stay Organized

This article reveals how to organize computer files, i.e., digital files stored on a Windows computer.

Organizing your files is all about consistency. Stick with a clear folder structure and naming convention that works, perform regular cleanups, avoid stray files and folders, and automate tasks where possible.

Let us know in the comments which file management strategies you’ve adopted.

FAQ