It doesn’t matter if it’s your office desk, your garage, or your smartphone: Knowing where your stuff is and being able to get to it quickly is important for your productivity and your state of mind. For phones, it can be anything from a recent photo to a downloaded PDF, but you need to be aware of where everything is.
Both Android and iOS come with fairly powerful search tools you can use to look for files of any kind. On top of that, if you want to track down a file associated with a specific application, you may have search options within that app. Here are the available features and how you can use them.
Searching for files on Android
The logical place to start searching for files on Android is inside the Files app made by Google, which comes preinstalled on Pixel phones. Recently saved and opened files are shown right at the top of the main interface. If you think the file you’re after might be in this batch, tap See all to view additional recent files.
There’s also a search box at the top of the screen. Just type in your query, and Files gets to work looking for matches. It’s able to look at text inside documents, images, and file names. If you’re looking for a saved e-ticket for a gig, for example, you could search for the artist and venue name.
At the top of your search result pages, you’ll see drop-down menus that can help you filter your results (very useful if you’ve got a lot of matches). Tap Category to filter by file type (like images or documents), Any time to filter by date, and Newest date first to change the order results are displayed in on screen.
It’s a little different if you’re using a Samsung device. You can use the Google Files app, but you’ll find Samsung’s own My Files installed on your phone. Tap the magnifying glass icon (top right) to run a search, and you’ll find options pop up on screen for filtering your results and searching through the contents of files.
Searching for files on iOS
With iPhones, you can get your searching started right from the home screen: Tap the Search button just above the dock to start looking for files. Type in a query, and you’ll see hits for files alongside matches for apps and the web. To control what shows up in these results, open iOS Settings and choose Search.
If that doesn’t turn up the file you’re after, head to the Files app that comes preinstalled on iOS. This app does a good job of covering both the files stored locally on your iPhone and those stored in the cloud, and it can integrate third-party file management apps like Dropbox. What’s more, there’s a search option on most of the screens.
Select the Recents tab from the toolbar at the bottom if the file you’re looking for was recently created or edited—the newest files are shown at the top, by default, across all of the different places files are stored on your iPhone. Tap the three dots up in the top right corner if you want to change the order in which recent files are shown.
Head to the Browse tab to look at all the places that the Files app covers. You can use the search box at the top to look for a file, or tap on one of the categories underneath—like On My iPhone, for example—and then run a search from there. You get matches returned for file names, as well as text matches found inside documents and images.
Searching for files in apps and the cloud
Sometimes it’s easier to head inside particular apps to run your search. With Google Photos for Android and iOS, for instance, you’re able to look up photos and videos captured on your phone: Head to the Search tab to look for something: You can run queries for file names, or the contents of your photos and videos (with searches like “sunsets”, “pets”, places, dates, or someone’s name).
It’s similar with Apple Photos, which is where your iPhone photos and videos go. Tap the magnifying glass at the top to start searching: You can look for people, places, file names, or something in your photos and videos, and it’s also possible to search for specific months and years (you may well see some suggestions pop up when you start your search).
Many of us have files synced between our phones and the cloud, and it can be helpful to dive into the apps responsible for this syncing too—whether you’re looking for something stored locally or on the web. With Dropbox for Android or iOS, for example, you’re able to search for anything via the box at the top of the Files tab.
If there are files you’ve downloaded from the web to your phone, these should show up in the file manager searches on Android or iOS. If needed, you can jump straight to these downloads as well, depending on the browser: On Chrome on Android or iOS, for example, tap the three dots (top right), then Downloads.
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