How to Open and Use Finder on Mac

To open Finder on Mac, click the blue smiling-face Finder icon in the Dock. To create a new window, make Finder active, then press Command + N. You can then browse folders, search for files, preview their contents, and organize them.

Open Finder from the Dock or desktop

Click Finder in the Dock to open it. For another window, choose File > New Finder Window or press Command + N. Make Finder active first, because that shortcut performs other tasks in other apps.

You can also click the desktop, then choose File > New Finder Window. If the folder you want is on the desktop, select it and press Command + O to open it in a Finder window.

For a folder already in your Dock, click Downloads or the other folder, then click Open in Finder. This route requires the folder to be present in the Dock.

Use the keyboard or return to an open window

Hold Command and press Tab until Finder is selected, then release the keys. That switches to Finder; creating a new window is a separate action. Press Command + N afterward if you need one.

To find an existing Finder window among your open windows, press Control + Up Arrow to open Mission Control, then click the window. For Finder windows specifically, hold Control, click Finder in the Dock, and choose Show All Windows, then select the window you want. With Finder active, Control + Down Arrow also displays its windows.

Restore a minimized Finder window by clicking it on the right side of the Dock. If Minimize windows into application icon is turned on in Desktop & Dock settings, the window is minimized into the Finder icon instead. If you have Stage Manager enabled and a Finder thumbnail appears at the side of the screen, click it to select that window. These routes return to existing windows.

Move between folders and favorite locations

Click a location in the Finder sidebar to open it. For a folder you visit frequently, drag it into Favorites to add a shortcut. To find a sidebar item’s original location, hold Control, click the item, then choose Show in Enclosing Folder.

With Finder active, open Go and choose Documents, Recents, or another listed location. To revisit a folder, choose Go > Recent Folders, then select the folder. Choose Go > Enclosing Folder to move up to the folder containing your current location.

In Finder, press Shift + Command + H for your home folder, Shift + Command + O for Documents, or Option + Command + L for Downloads. To open Desktop, use Shift + Command + D.

If you know a folder’s path, choose Go > Go to Folder. Paste a path such as ~/Pictures/, then press Return. You can also type a path and double-click the matching destination.

Search for files in Finder

With Finder active, press Command + F and enter your search. To open a Finder window with its search field already selected, press Option + Command + Space.

On macOS 26 and 27, you can choose where Finder searches by default. Open Finder > Settings > Advanced, then use When performing a search to choose the entire Mac, the current folder, or the previous search scope.

Change the view and preview files

Open a folder and use the toolbar’s View buttons to choose Icon, List, Column, or Gallery view. To customize the selected view, choose View > Show View Options. Click Use as Defaults to apply applicable settings to folders using that view; this button is unavailable for Column view.

To change the file order, choose View > Show View Options and select an order from Sort By. In List view, click a column heading to sort by it, then click again to reverse the order. Use the Group button to group items. In Icon view, choose View > Clean Up or View > Clean Up By to arrange items.

For a quick preview, select a file and press Space to use Quick Look. On a compatible Force Touch trackpad, you can also force click a file icon to preview its contents.

To display a preview pane in the window, choose View > Show Preview, then customize it through View > Show Preview Options. In Gallery or Column view, click More at the lower right for available file actions, which vary by file type.

Create folders and organize your files

Choose File > New Folder, enter a name, and press Return. Drag files into a folder on the same disk to move them, or hold Option while dragging to copy them. Dragging files to a different disk copies them; to move them to that disk instead, hold Command while dragging. The destination must allow you to write files there.

To collect selected files into a new folder, hold Control, click the selection, then choose New Folder with Selection. For information about a selected item, press Command + I.

To copy files with the keyboard, select the items and press Command + C, open the destination folder, then press Command + V. To move the copied files instead, press Option + Command + V at the destination. Permissions and item type can limit these actions.

Choose a starting folder and use tabs

On macOS 26 and 27, open Finder > Settings > General to choose your starting folder. Use New Finder windows show to select the folder displayed in new Finder windows.

For folders to open in tabs, go to Finder > Settings > General and select Open folders in tabs instead of new windows. Hold Command and double-click a folder to open it in a tab. To use separate windows for that action, uncheck Open folders in tabs instead of new windows, then hold Command and double-click a folder.

You can also choose a system-wide tab preference in System Settings > Desktop & Dock. Under Windows, set Prefer tabs when opening documents to Never, Always, or In Full Screen.

Click the Add button in Finder’s tab bar to create another tab. To close a tab, point to it and click its Close button.

Relaunch Finder if it stops responding

When Finder becomes unresponsive, press Option + Command + Esc, or choose Apple menu > Force Quit. Select Finder, then click Relaunch. You can also use the Force Quit window to force quit frozen Mac apps.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you show a Dock item’s location in Finder?

Hold Command and click the item’s Dock icon to reveal its location. For items offering the contextual command, you can also hold Control, click the item, then choose Options > Show in Finder.

Can you create a shortcut to a folder?

Select the folder and choose File > Make Alias, then move the alias to a convenient location. Open the alias to open the original folder.

How do you open Finder with VoiceOver?

With VoiceOver enabled and no Finder window open, press Control + Option + D, navigate to Finder, then press Return. If your VoiceOver modifier is Caps Lock, use Caps Lock + D instead.

Can Finder show iCloud files and a connected iPhone?

With the corresponding iCloud account setup, click iCloud Drive in the Finder sidebar to browse cloud files, or Shared to browse shared documents. Connect an iPhone or iPad, then select its name in the sidebar to access its management options.

How do you open the Library folder from Finder?

With Finder active, hold Option while opening the Go menu. Choose Library to open it.

Does removing a sidebar shortcut remove the folder?

Removing a sidebar shortcut removes only the shortcut. To remove it, drag the shortcut out of the sidebar.