How to change folder color and icon in the Files app on iPhone and iPad

Learn how to personalize folder icons in Apple’s Files app with custom color, icon, or emoji to distinguish them from regular blue folders.

macOS Tahoe 26 lets you colorize folders on your Mac without additional apps, and iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 (currently in beta) bring this feature to your iPhone and iPad. You can switch from the usual blue folder color to something different, such as green, or blue, or yellow. Or, you can apply a symbol or emoji to the center of the folder icon to further enhance its look.

Doing so will also enable you to visually locate a folder, especially in a sea of standard blue-colored folders. As an example, I’ve tinted my “iDB” folder orange and applied an iPhone emoji, making it easy to spot it among a bunch of folders on iCloud Drive.

Change folder color and icon in Files for iPhone

We’re going to use the built-in Tags feature to change folder color. Any changes to folder color or icon are reflected on your other iPhones, iPads, and Macs so long as they’re on iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe 26, and use the same Apple account.

1) Open the Files app and select the Browse tab at the bottom, then select either iCloud Drive or On My iPhone/iPad in the Locations section. If you use a compatible cloud-storage service, like Dropbox, you can use that, too.

2) Hold a folder icon and then choose Customize Folder & Tags in the menu.

3) To change the folder color, tap the Tags button at the top, select one of the colors (except White), and hit the checkmark icon. You can apply multiple tags to a folder, but the most recently selected color will be set as your folder icon color.

4) To add an icon, select one from the customization pane. To add an emoji instead, tap its button and make your selection. Don’t forget to hit that checkmark icon to save the changes.

Some folder icons aren’t changeable

Local folders on your Mac, as well as your folders created in iCloud, are fully customizable in terms of color and icon style. The only exception is special document folders in iCloud created by apps like GarageBand, Numbers, Pages, TextEdit, and others. For those, you’ll see the option to add tags, but selecting one won’t affect folder color. However, applying colored tags to a locally stored third-party app folder (i.e., Pages, Firefox, Infuse, or VLC, and more) will change its color.

What you also cannot do is change icons of system folders like Downloads and Shared iCloud Drive folders. Also, folders for third-party apps are off limits. If you use Dropbox, which integrates seamlessly with the Apple ecosystem, you can freely adjust the color of your Dropbox folders and assign symbols or emoji to them.

Revert default folder color and icon

Follow these steps if you’ve changed your mind and want to switch back to the default blue-colored folder style.

1) Hold a colorized folder in the Files app on your iPhone and iPad and choose Customize Folder & Tags in the menu.

2) Hit Tags and untick the selected color(s) for the default blue folder icon.

3) To remove the symbol or emoji from the folder icon, hit the Clear button and then tap the checkmark icon to save the changes.

What do you think of this new feature and the latest iOS 26 in general? Sound off in the comments section below.

Source link: https://www.idownloadblog.com/2025/07/23/how-to-customize-ios-files-app-folders/