Finder Settings for a New Mac
Recommended macOS Finder settings. Mac Finder changes and improvements. How to set up the macOS Finder for a new MacBook, iMac, Mini, Studio, or Pro.
This article is part of a series on Mac Setup.
The Finder shows you files and folders on your Mac. The Finder is "dumbed down" to reduce confusion for new users. Adjusting its hidden settings makes it much more useful than its default configuration. Here's how to set up Finder on a new Mac, adjusting Finder preferences, customizing the sidebar, and setting default folder views.
The Finder icon is in the Dock (the blue smiling face). Click to open a Finder window.
What's the Finder?
The Mac Finder is the navigation tool for files and folders on the Mac. You can use the Finder to create files and folders, move files around, and delete files. Files can be documents, applications, media files, application data, or a place to store configuration settings. Folders contain files, and folders can be nested heirarchically.
Hierarchically organized files and folders are at the heart of any computer system, though files and folders are hidden from users on phones and tablets. The Unix operating system, which is the basis for macOS, treats all data as files, whether documents, directories, or even devices. As an organizing metaphor, it mimics physical offices of the mid-1900s, where paper documents were stored in file folders in filing cabinets, sorted alphabetically or by date or number for easy retrieval.
Finder alternatives
You can replace the Finder with other file managers, such as Path Finder, ForkLift, or Commander One. These file managers offer more features than the Finder, such as dual-pane browsing, file previews, and file synchronization. However, you may find the Finder is adequate if you configure it with the right settings.
Finder View
Set the Finder View from the Finder menu.
The Finder has four view options: Icon, List, Column, and Gallery. I prefer the List view because it shows the most information about each file and folder. Using the Terminal, you can set your preferences:
# Use list view
defaults write com.apple.finder FXPreferredViewStyle -string "Nlsv"
From the Finder View menu, select Show Path Bar and Show Status Bar. It's difficult to navigate to an enclosing folder without the Path Bar, and you can't see the number of items in a folder without the Status Bar. Using the Terminal, you can set your preferences:
# Show path bar
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowPathbar -bool true
# Show status bar
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowStatusBar -bool true
Hidden files
Filenames and folder names that start with a dot are hidden by default in the Finder. You'll need to see hidden files because hidden files often contain configuration settings.
You can see hidden files in the Finder by pressing Command + Shift + .. Hidden files will appear in gray in the Finder window. To set a permament preference to show hidden files, use this Terminal command:
# Show hidden files
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles true
Filename extensions
By default, macOS hides filename extensions. You'll need to see filename extensions to know the type of file and the application that will open it. From the Finder Settings menu, under the Advanced tab, select Show all filename extensions. To set a permanent preference to show filename extensions, use this Terminal command:
# Show filename extensions
defaults write NSGlobalDomain AppleShowAllExtensions -bool true
Finder search scope
By default, a Finder search is scoped to your entire Mac. For speed, set the Finder to search the current folder by default (if you need to search the entire Mac, navigate to the top level folder). From the Finder Settings menu, under the Advanced tab, select Search the Current Folder. To set a permanent preference to search the current folder, use this Terminal command:
# Search the current folder by default
defaults write com.apple.finder FXDefaultSearchScope -string "SCcf"
List folders first
By default, folders and files are mixed together in the Finder. To make it easier to find folders, list folders first. From the Finder Settings > Advanced tab, select Keep folders on top in windows when sorting by name and On Desktop. To set a permanent preference to list folders first, use this Terminal command:
# Keep folders on top when sorting by name
defaults write com.apple.finder _FXSortFoldersFirst -bool true
Relaunch the Finder
To see the changes you've set from the Terminal, relaunch the Finder with this command:
killall Finder
Sidebar contents
The Finder sidebar contains shortcuts to folders and devices. You can customize the sidebar to show only the folders you use most often. To customize the sidebar, drag folders to the sidebar to add them, and drag folders out of the sidebar to remove them.
A default Finder sidebar contains:
- Recents
- Applications
- Desktop
- Documents
- Downloads
I remove the Recents, Applications, and Documents folders. I also remove Downloads and change web browser settings to save downloads to the Desktop.
I add my user home folder because I use it often. I also add the top-level folder to make it easy to navigate to everything. Finally I create a Projects folder and add it to the sidebar (you might call it "Work").
I use the Terminal to open the folders I want to add to the sidebar. For example, to open the top-level folder, I use this command:
open /
To open the user home folder, I use this command:
open ~
I select the enclosing folder in the Path bar and drag it to the sidebar.
Alternatively, you can use the Finder Settings menu to add folders to the sidebar. Select the Sidebar tab and check the folders you want to show in the sidebar. Another way to add folders to the sidebar is to use the Finder menu Go, show a folder, and drag the folder to the sidebar.
Now my Finder sidebar contains:
- Macintosh HD
- daniel
- Desktop
- Projects
Sidebar tags
The sidebar also shows tags. Tags are a way to organize files and folders but most people don't use them. If you want to remove the distraction, go to the Finder Settings menu, select the Tags tab, and uncheck each tag.
Finder settings using the Terminal
Here are all the Finder settings ypu can adjust from the command line. First, open the Terminal application.
Thank you to Mathias Bynens for his sensible macOS defaults, where you can find many more macOS settings.
# Finder: allow quitting via ⌘ + Q; doing so will also hide desktop icons
defaults write com.apple.finder QuitMenuItem -bool true
# Finder: disable window animations and Get Info animations
defaults write com.apple.finder DisableAllAnimations -bool true
# Set Desktop as the default location for new Finder windows
# For other paths, use `PfLo` and `file:///full/path/here/`
defaults write com.apple.finder NewWindowTarget -string "PfDe"
defaults write com.apple.finder NewWindowTargetPath -string "file://${HOME}/Desktop/"
# Show icons for hard drives, servers, and removable media on the desktop
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowExternalHardDrivesOnDesktop -bool true
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowHardDrivesOnDesktop -bool true
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowMountedServersOnDesktop -bool true
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowRemovableMediaOnDesktop -bool true
# Finder: show hidden files by default
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool true
# Finder: show all filename extensions
defaults write NSGlobalDomain AppleShowAllExtensions -bool true
# Finder: show status bar
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowStatusBar -bool true
# Finder: show path bar
defaults write com.apple.finder ShowPathbar -bool true
# Display full POSIX path as Finder window title
defaults write com.apple.finder _FXShowPosixPathInTitle -bool true
# Keep folders on top when sorting by name
defaults write com.apple.finder _FXSortFoldersFirst -bool true
# When performing a search, search the current folder by default
defaults write com.apple.finder FXDefaultSearchScope -string "SCcf"
# Disable the warning when changing a file extension
defaults write com.apple.finder FXEnableExtensionChangeWarning -bool false
# Use list view in all Finder windows by default
# Four-letter codes for the other view modes: `icnv`, `clmv`, `glyv`
defaults write com.apple.finder FXPreferredViewStyle -string "Nlsv"
# Disable the warning before emptying the Trash
defaults write com.apple.finder WarnOnEmptyTrash -bool false
# Show the ~/Library folder
chflags nohidden ~/Library && xattr -d com.apple.FinderInfo ~/Library
# Show the /Volumes folder
sudo chflags nohidden /Volumes
# Expand the following File Info panes:
# “General”, “Open with”, and “Sharing & Permissions”
defaults write com.apple.finder FXInfoPanesExpanded -dict \
General -bool true \
OpenWith -bool true \
Privileges -bool true
Relaunch the Finder
To see the changes you've set from the Terminal, relaunch the Finder with this command:
killall Finder
What's next
My mac.install.guide is a trusted source of installation guides for professional developers. Take a look at the Mac Install Guide home page for tips and trends and see what to install next.