Hidden Folders in macOS: Show, Create, Use

Hidden folders in macOS let you tuck away files so they don’t clutter your Finder views or get accidentally moved or deleted. You can hide any folder by adding a single dot to its name, and you can reveal those folders anytime with a keyboard shortcut or a Terminal command. This guide shows you how to create, view, and use hidden folders on current versions of macOS (Ventura, Sonoma, and later).

What You’ll Need

• A Mac running macOS Ventura (13) or later — the steps are the same on older versions, but menu names may differ slightly.
• Administrator access to your Mac (you’ll use Terminal and may need to enter your password).
• No extra software — everything is built into macOS.

Step-by-Step

Part 1: Create a Hidden Folder

1. Open Finder and navigate to the location where you want the hidden folder (for example, your Home folder or Desktop).
2. Press Shift + Command + N to create a new folder. Name it with a dot at the beginning, like .MySecretFolder. The dot is what tells macOS to hide it.
3. Press Return to save the name. The folder will disappear from Finder immediately — that’s normal.
4. Move files into it by dragging them to the folder’s location in Terminal or by using the “Go to Folder� trick below.

Part 2: See Hidden Folders in Finder

1. Open Finder and press Shift + Command + . (period). This toggles hidden files and folders on and off. You’ll see all dot‑folders appear in gray.
2. To hide them again, press the same shortcut again.
3. If the shortcut doesn’t work, make sure Finder is the active app (click on the desktop first).

Part 3: Go Directly to a Hidden Folder

1. In Finder, press Shift + Command + G to open the “Go to Folder� dialog.
2. Type the full path, including the dot, e.g., /Users/yourusername/.MySecretFolder.
3. Press Return. Finder will open that folder even though it’s hidden.

Part 4: Create a Hidden Folder Using Terminal

1. Open Terminal (found in Applications → Utilities).
2. Type mkdir ~/.MySecretFolder and press Return. This creates a hidden folder in your home directory.
3. To move files into it, use mv ~/Desktop/photo.jpg ~/.MySecretFolder/.
4. To see all hidden items in a directory, type ls -la and press Return.

Part 5: Unhide a Folder

1. Rename the folder to remove the dot at the beginning. You can do this in Terminal with mv ~/.MySecretFolder ~/MySecretFolder.
2. Or, if you can see hidden files (Shift + Command + .), right‑click the folder and choose “Rename� to remove the dot.

Common Mistakes

• Naming a folder with a space before the dot — the dot must be the very first character. My Folder is not hidden; .My Folder is.
• Forgetting that hidden folders are still searchable — Spotlight can find files inside them. If you need privacy, consider using FileVault or an encrypted disk image instead.
• Using the shortcut in the wrong app — Shift + Command + . works only in Finder, not in Open/Save dialogs (though those have their own shortcut: press Command + Shift + . in most dialogs).
• Deleting a hidden folder without realizing it — because it’s invisible, you might forget it exists. Use Terminal’s ls -la to check before cleaning up.

Tips

• Use hidden folders for configuration files, scripts, or personal notes that you don’t want cluttering your main folders.
• To make a hidden folder easily accessible, create an alias (right‑click → Make Alias) and place the alias on your Desktop. The alias works even when the original is hidden.
• If you need to hide a folder from other users on the same Mac, put it inside your Home folder and set the folder’s permissions to “No Access� for others (Get Info → Sharing & Permissions).
• For a more secure “hidden� folder, use Disk Utility to create an encrypted disk image. It appears as a single file and requires a password to open.

Troubleshooting

• Shift + Command + . doesn’t show hidden files — Make sure Finder is active. If it still doesn’t work, restart Finder: click the Apple menu → Force Quit → select Finder → Relaunch.
• I can’t create a folder with a dot at the beginning in Finder — Finder may complain about the name. Use Terminal instead: mkdir ~/.foldername.
• I moved a file into a hidden folder but can’t find it — Use the “Go to Folder� shortcut (Shift + Command + G) and type the full path. Or press Shift + Command + . to reveal hidden items.
• Hidden folders are visible after restart — The shortcut toggle is temporary. If you want hidden files always visible, run this in Terminal: defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles true; killall Finder. To revert, change true to false.
• Terminal says “No such file or directory� — Double‑check the path. Use pwd to see your current directory, and ls -la to list hidden items.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can hidden folders be password protected?

No, a dot‑folder is only hidden, not encrypted. Anyone who knows the path or toggles hidden files can view it. For password protection, create an encrypted disk image via Disk Utility.

Will hidden folders appear in Time Machine backups?

Yes, Time Machine backs up hidden folders just like any other file. If you want to exclude them, add them to Time Machine’s exclusion list in System Settings → General → Time Machine → Options.

Can I hide a folder that already has files in it?

Yes. Rename the folder to start with a dot (using Terminal: mv ~/oldname ~/.newname). All contents stay intact.

Why does my hidden folder show up in Spotlight search?

Spotlight indexes all files unless you exclude them. To prevent a folder from appearing in Spotlight, add it to the Privacy tab in System Settings → Spotlight → Search Privacy.

Is there a way to hide a folder without changing its name?

You can use the chflags hidden command in Terminal: chflags hidden ~/MyFolder. This hides the folder without a dot. To unhide, use chflags nohidden. Note that this flag may not be respected by all apps.

Can I hide files on an external drive?

Yes, the same dot‑name method works on any drive formatted as APFS or Mac OS Extended. On FAT32 or exFAT drives, the dot may still hide the folder in Finder, but it won’t be hidden on other operating systems.

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