Find Attachments in Notes on Mac & iPhone

This guide shows you how to browse and locate attachments—photos, scans, links, map locations, and audio—inside the Notes app on both your Mac and iPhone. You’ll learn the fastest ways to see everything you’ve attached, how to search for a specific file, and what to do when an attachment seems to be missing. No special setup is required; you just need the Notes app with at least one note containing an attachment.

What You’ll Need

• A Mac running macOS Monterey or later, or an iPhone with iOS 16 or later (the steps work on older versions too, but the menu names may differ slightly).
• Your Notes app synced to iCloud (or another synced account) if you want to see the same attachments on both devices.
• At least one note that contains an attachment (photo, PDF, link, map, or audio recording).

Step-by-Step

On Your iPhone (or iPad)

1. Open the Notes app on your iPhone. Tap the Notes icon on your Home Screen or in your App Library.
2. View all attachments at once. From the Notes list (the screen showing all your folders), tap the ellipsis (…) button in the top-right corner of the screen (or top-right of the folder list). From the menu that appears, tap “View Attachments.� This opens a grid of every photo, scan, map, link, and audio file stored across all your notes.
3. Filter by attachment type (optional). At the top of the attachment grid, you’ll see filter chips: Photos, Scans, Maps, Links, and Audio. Tap one to see only that type. Tap “All� to return to everything.
4. Jump to the note containing an attachment. Tap any thumbnail in the grid. This opens the note that contains it, with the attachment highlighted. You can then read the note or tap the attachment again to view it full-screen.
5. Search for a specific attachment. Go back to the Notes list and pull down from the top to reveal the search bar. Type a keyword that might appear in the note’s text, or type the file name if you know it. Notes searches the text of your notes, not the attachment content itself, so search for words near the attachment.
6. Find attachments inside a single note. Open a note and scroll through it. Photos and scans appear inline. Links appear as a preview card. Audio recordings appear as a waveform. Tap any of these to interact with them.

On Your Mac

1. Open the Notes app on your Mac. You’ll find it in the Applications folder or via Spotlight (press Command + Space and type “Notes�).
2. View all attachments at once. In the sidebar, click the folder you want to search (or “All iCloud� to include everything). Then click the attachment icon in the toolbar—it looks like a small square with a mountain and a sun inside. This switches the note list to a grid of all attachments in that folder.
3. Filter by type. At the top of the attachment grid, click the filter buttons: Photos, Scans, Maps, Links, Audio. Click “All� to clear the filter.
4. Open the note behind an attachment. Double-click any thumbnail. The note opens in the main viewing area, with the attachment selected. You can now read the note or edit it.
5. Search for an attachment by text. Click the search field in the toolbar (or press Command + F). Type a word that appears in the note. Notes will show matching notes; click one to see the attachment in context.
6. Locate attachments within a note. Open a note and scroll. Photos appear inline, links appear as preview cards, and audio shows as a playable waveform. If the note is long, use the search field inside the note (Command + F) to jump to a specific word near the attachment.

Common Mistakes

• Looking for attachments in the wrong folder. The “View Attachments� grid on iPhone shows attachments from all folders by default, but on Mac it only shows the folder you have selected in the sidebar. Click “All iCloud� or “Notes� in the sidebar first.
• Expecting the search to find text inside images. Notes does not search the text inside a photo or a scanned document. It only searches the text you typed in the note. If you can’t find an attachment, search for a word you remember typing near it, not something that appears in the image itself.
• Forgetting that links are attachments. A URL you pasted into a note is treated as an attachment. If you’re looking for a link, use the “Links� filter in the attachment grid.
• Assuming deleted attachments are recoverable. If you delete a note, its attachments go with it. If you delete just the attachment (by tapping it and choosing delete), it’s gone unless you have a backup. The “Recently Deleted� folder in Notes only holds notes, not individual attachments.

Tips

• Use the attachment grid as your main browsing tool. It’s the fastest way to see everything you’ve saved without opening each note.
• Name your notes with attachment keywords. Since search only looks at text, add a word like “receipt� or “contract� to the note title so you can find it later.
• Pin important notes with attachments. Swipe right on a note (iPhone) or right-click (Mac) and choose “Pin.� Pinned notes appear at the top of the list, so you won’t lose track of critical files.
• Keep attachments in one folder. Create a folder called “Attachments� and move notes with files there. This makes the Mac attachment grid even more useful because you can select that folder and see only those files.
• Use Quick Notes for quick saves. On iPhone, swipe from the bottom-right corner to open a Quick Note, then paste an image or link. On Mac, use the Quick Note button in Control Center. These appear in the “Quick Notes� folder and are included in the attachment grid.

Troubleshooting

I don’t see the “View Attachments� option on my iPhone. Make sure you’re on the Notes list screen, not inside a single note. Tap the back arrow until you see your folders. Then look for the ellipsis (…) in the top-right corner. If you still don’t see it, update iOS to the latest version.

The attachment grid is empty, but I know I have photos. Check that you’re looking at the right folder on Mac. On iPhone, tap “All� to clear any filter. Also confirm that the notes with attachments are in an account that’s enabled in Settings > Notes > Accounts. If they’re in an “On My iPhone� account, they won’t appear on your Mac unless you move them to iCloud.

An attachment shows a blank or gray thumbnail. This usually means the original file is still downloading from iCloud. Wait a few seconds and try again. On a slow connection, tap the thumbnail to force it to load. If it stays blank, check your internet connection and ensure iCloud Drive is enabled in System Settings (Mac) or Settings > Apple ID > iCloud (iPhone).

I can’t find a specific attachment by searching. Remember that search only looks at note text. If you don’t remember any words from the note, use the attachment grid and scroll through all photos or links. On Mac, you can also use Spotlight (Command + Space) and search for the file name if you know it—Spotlight indexes some attachment names.

Attachments appear on my iPhone but not on my Mac. This is almost always a sync issue. On your Mac, go to Notes > Preferences and confirm iCloud is checked. On iPhone, go to Settings > Apple ID > iCloud and make sure Notes is on. Then force a sync by toggling Notes off and on in iCloud settings on either device, or simply wait a few minutes.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I see all attachments across all notes at once? Yes. On iPhone, tap the ellipsis (…) and choose “View Attachments.� On Mac, select “All iCloud� in the sidebar and then click the attachment icon in the toolbar.

Does Notes search inside PDFs or scanned documents? No. Notes only searches the text you type. It does not perform OCR (optical character recognition) on images or PDFs. For scanned documents, you’ll need to remember a word from the note text itself.

How do I save an attachment from a note to my Files app? On iPhone, tap and hold the attachment, then choose “Share� and select “Save to Files.� On Mac, right-click the attachment and choose “Export� or drag it to your Desktop or a Finder window.

What counts as an “attachment� in Notes? Photos, scanned documents, map locations, links (URLs), and audio recordings. Text, checklists, and tables are not attachments. Emojis are not attachments either.

Can I move an attachment from one note to another? Not directly. You’ll need to save the attachment to Files (or copy it), then paste it into the other note. On Mac, you can drag the attachment from one note to another if both notes are open in separate windows.

Why do some attachments show a cloud icon? That means the attachment is stored in iCloud and not downloaded to your device yet. Tap it (iPhone) or click it (Mac) to download it. This saves space on your device.

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