Windows 10: Change Sort by View of Folder in Windows 10

How to: Change Sort by View of Folder in Windows 10

How to Change the Sort by View of a Folder in Windows 10


In Windows, you can change the layout view of items in your folders to how you like.

Sorting options don't change the way your files appear. Instead, they just reorder them by the details you want to use to display for items in a folder. Items in folders are sorted by alphabetical order (ascending) by name (detail) by default.

Starting with Windows 10 build 17704, Microsoft has updated the sorting by size filters in File Explorer to be something a bit more modern. Youll find Tiny, Small, Medium, Large, Huge and Gigantic are now defined as 0 10KB, 16KB 1MB, 1 MB to 128 MB, 128 MB 1 GB, 1 GB 4 GB, and > 4 GB, respectively.

This tutorial will show you how to change the sort by order and details view of items in a folder in File Explorer for your account in Windows 10.

*note Included folders in a library will all share the same sort by view.


CONTENTS:

• Option One: To Change Folder Sort by View from File Explorer Ribbon
• Option Two: To Change Folder Sort by View from Context Menu
• Option Three: To Change Folder Sort by View from Column in Details View

OPTION ONE [/i] To Change Folder Sort by View from File Explorer Ribbon
1. In File Explorer, open the folder you want to change the sort by view of its content.

2. Click/tap on the View tab (Alt+V). (see screenshot below step 4)

3. Click/tap on Sort by in the ribbon, and click/tap on the detail (ex: Name) you want the order for items in this folder to be sorted by. (see screenshot below step 4)

*note You can also click/tap on Choose columns to be able to select to add or remove more details to sort by with, and add or remove as columns when in details layout view.





4. Select to sort items in this folder by ascending (default) or descending order with the selected detail (ex: Name) from step 3. (see screenshot below)









OPTION TWO [/i] To Change Folder Sort by View from Context Menu
1. In File Explorer, open the folder you want to change the sort by view of its content.

2. Right click or press and hold on an empty area inside the folder, click/tap on Sort by, and click/tap on the detail (ex: Name) you want the order for items in this folder to be sorted by. (see screenshot below step 3)

*note You can also click/tap on More... to be able to select to add or remove more details to sort by with, and add or remove as columns when in details layout view.





3. Select to sort items in this folder by ascending (default) or descending order with the selected detail (ex: Name) from step 2. (see screenshot below)









OPTION THREE [/i] To Change Folder Sort by View from Column in Details View

*note To be able to use this option, the folder will need to be using a details layout view for columns.

1. In File Explorer, open the folder you want to change the sort by view of its content.

2. Click/tap on the column title bar of the detail (ex: Name) that you want to sort the items in this folder by. (see screenshot below)



*note If you would like to select to add or remove columns, you can right click or press and hold on an empty area on the column title bar, and click/tap on details to check (add) or uncheck (remove).





*note You can also click/tap on More... to be able to select to add or remove more details to sort by with, and add or remove as columns when in details layout view.






3. Click/tap on the column title bar with the arrow head pointing up or down to select to sort items in this folder by ascending (default) or descending order. (see screenshots below)

*note The column with the arrow head indicates the detail order you selected in step 2 to sort items in this folder by.







That's it,
Shawn


Related Tutorials

• How to Backup and Restore Folder View Settings in Windows 10
• How to Apply a Folder's View to All Folders of Same Template Type in Windows 10
• How to Set a Default Folder View for All Folders in Windows 10
• How to Change the Template of a Drive, Folder, or Library in Windows 10
• How to Enable or Disable Auto Arrange in Folders in Windows 10
• How to Reset Folder View Settings to Default in Windows 10
• How to Change the Layout View of a Folder in Windows 10
• How to Change the Group by View of a Folder in Windows 10
• How to Size Width of All Columns to Fit in Folder in Windows 10
• How to Enable or Disable Numerical Sorting in File Explorer in Windows 10

:)

 

Customize default view in the "Save as" Window

Hello All,

I am looking for a way to customize the "Save as" file explorer window in Windows 10. Specifically I want it to default to a view where all files and folder are sorted by the "date modified" view with the most recent files on the top.

Strangely, customizing the view in regular file explorer and using the "Apply to Folders" button under "Folder Options" to set this view as the default for all Folder views does not apply to the "Save as" window.

So after setting the default view as described above, every file explorer window EXCEPT the save as window sort everything by Date Modified by default. Now if when I am navigating through a "save as" window (any application) and I change a view to be sorted
by "Date Modified" it stays that way, but I'd like that to just be the default view. I feel that if Windows can remember how I left the window there must be a way to change the default view. A registry hack maybe?

Does anyone know of a way to change the default view of the "Save as" window" to be sorted by "Date modified"?

Thanks

-Dave

 

How to I change the default view/sort order for Windows Explorer search results to Xtra Large Icons sorted by Name?

Hi,

See if this helps.

Change Sort by View of Folder in Windows 10

 

Hello Raj, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

You could use the method in the tutorial below to apply it to all folders.

Set Default Folder View for all Folders in Windows 10 - Windows 10 Customization Tutorials

 

I have been searching for this solution for a year! Thank you Shawn!

 

Oh, and sorry about the link (signature habit).

 

You're most welcome. *Smile

No worries.

 

When sorting by name, folders are grouped together (in alphabetical order) and then files (in alpha order)
Is there any way to integrate these so there is no distinction / grouping between folders & Files?

 

Hello Chas, and welcome to Ten Forums. *Smile

I'm not aware of a way to sort folders and files mixed together like that in Windows Explorer.

You might give a 3rd party program like the free Explorer++ below a play with to see if it may work for you instead. It still has folders above files, but they can be grouped by letters separately better.

*Arrow Explorer++ - A small and fast file manager for Windows

 

Cheers Brink for the welcome & prompt response
It's a shame it cant be done. I'll have a look at the explorer plus but dont think its going to do what I want be the sounds of it.
I've wondered if it could be done on many occasions in the past, but what spurned my post and as an example is I currently have various audio recordings named by date e.g 17_04_20 10am meeting.(date and time stamps on these files is random due to the recorder btw) but often have several recordings on one day which I've grouped into a folder named for instance 17_04_20. I want to be list sort/list them all in date order without having to jump up and down between the folders at the top and files at the bottom to see if there were any other multiple or sinle recordings on that day ... make sense?

 

Makes sense to me. Hopefully Explorer Plus or some other 3rd party explorer program may help or work for you.

 

Hi there, is there a way to set the default view based on specific file types rather than general ones like video/pictures? I want to always sort by Rating, Descending for ALL picture types (ARW, .CR2, .JPG, .png) but it doesn't seem to stick at all. For all other document folders, I want sort by date modified.

 

Hello tententwenty, *Smile

You could set a default folder view for all folders using the same folder template, but I'm not aware of a way for file types.

*Arrow Apply Folder View to All Folders of Same Type in Windows 10 Windows 10 Customization Tutorials