File Organizer: Tagging & Rating

Tag and rate your files, and see it all right on the Explorer thumbnails.

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Tagging a file

Right-click any file in Windows Explorer and choose a tag from the context menu. You can also press Ctrl+Win+Alt+T followed by a number key (1-9) to quickly apply a tag to the selected file.

Rating a file

Right-click a file and pick a star rating from the context menu. Ratings and tags are stored locally with the file — nothing is sent anywhere.

Seeing tags and ratings on thumbnails

Once a file is tagged or rated, the tag and star overlays appear directly on its thumbnail in Explorer's Medium, Large, and Extra Large icon views. It may take a moment for Explorer to refresh the thumbnail after a change.

Where are my tags stored?

Tags and ratings are stored locally on your computer — either embedded in the file (for formats that support it) or alongside it. We do not collect or transmit any of your data.

Searching by Tag and Rating

Find tagged and rated files straight from Windows Explorer

Finding your tags and ratings in Explorer

File Organizer adds a File Organizer node to Explorer's left navigation pane. Open it and you'll find a set of ready-made folders and filters — one per tag, star rating, and a few common combinations — that you click to instantly see the matching files.

How a filter works under the hood

Each filter is a query against Windows' own search index, matching a file's tags and star rating (for example, "5 stars" matches the top slice of Windows' internal rating scale). Because it relies on Windows Search, only files in indexed, searchable locations will show up — the same locations Windows Search itself can reach.

Customizing your filters

Open the Settings app and go to Customize search filters to add, reorder, rename, or enable/disable the folders and filters shown in the File Organizer nav pane node. Each one can have its own name, icon, and tooltip.

Building a filter visually or as a raw query

New and edited filters can be built with a visual query builder — pick a field, an operator, and a value, and combine multiple conditions with AND/OR — or, for full control, switched to an Advanced mode where you edit the underlying search query directly.

Drag-and-drop actions on a filter folder

A filter folder can also be set up to apply a tag or set a rating to any file you drag onto it — turning it into a quick drop target for organizing files, not just a way to find them.

Resetting to the defaults

If your customizations get into a state you don't want, use Reset to defaults in the same Settings page — it backs up your current filters before restoring the originals.

Hiding the File Organizer nav pane entry

If you'd rather not see File Organizer in Explorer's navigation pane at all, turn it off in Settings. This particular change needs a reboot or sign-out to take effect.

Why don't tagged folders show up in search results?

Search filters only match files. Folder tags and ratings are stored differently (directly on the folder itself, not in a form Windows Search indexes), so a tagged or rated folder won't currently appear when you use these filters — even though the icon overlay still shows correctly when you browse to it. See Can I tag or rate directories? in the FAQ for more on this.