How to Hide Files on iPhone: Lock a Folder or the Files App

The Files app on iPhone has no setting that hides or locks a single folder. We found no such feature in Apple’s Files documentation. What you can do on iOS 18 and later is require Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode to open the Files app itself, keep documents in a locked note, or move them into a vault app that has its own lock.

This guide covers each option, what it protects and where it stops, including what iCloud Drive does with the files you are trying to keep private. Every iOS detail is linked to the Apple Support page it comes from.

Why a folder in Files is not hidden

You create folders in Files by opening a location, tapping the more (…) button and choosing New Folder, as Apple’s guide to organizing files and folders describes. That page covers naming, moving and organizing. It does not offer a lock, a password or a hidden state for a folder. The same goes for Apple’s page on modifying files and folders, which covers colors, icons and views.

So a folder you name “Private” is only a folder with a name. Anyone who opens Files and browses to it can read what is inside. The options below add protection around the Files app or move the files elsewhere.

Option 1: Lock the Files app with Face ID

iOS 18 added a way to lock an app so it opens only after Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. Apple’s iPhone guide puts the steps in the Home Screen section.

1. On the Home Screen or in App Library, touch and hold Files.
2. Tap Require Face ID (the wording changes to Touch ID or Passcode depending on your iPhone).
3. Authenticate to confirm.

Apple’s Personal Safety guide says a locked app requires Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode to open, and that its information stays out of places like notification previews and search. It also lists the built-in apps that can’t be locked: Calculator, Camera, Clock, Contacts, Find My, Maps, Shortcuts and Settings. Files is not on that list. If you do not see the Require option on your iPhone, update to iOS 18 or later and check again. The full steps and exceptions are in how to lock apps on iPhone.

What this protects. Someone who picks up your unlocked phone and taps Files hits a Face ID prompt and stops there.

Where it stops. The lock is on the app, not on a folder. It falls back to your passcode, so anyone who knows your passcode can unlock it. The Personal Safety page also says locking and hiding apply only to the device where you set them and do not sync with iCloud. A second iPad or Mac signed in to your Apple Account has no such lock.

Option 2: Can you hide the Files app?

The same Apple page says hiding works only for apps you download separately, and that apps installed with iOS can’t be hidden. Files comes with iPhone, so you can lock it but not hide it into the Hidden folder in App Library.

You can still take the icon off your Home Screen, so it sits in App Library. How to hide apps on iPhone walks through that, and it is worth remembering what it is: the app is out of sight, not protected. Someone searching App Library finds it. The Hidden folder at the bottom of App Library is for apps, not for files, and it does not hold anything you save in Files.

Option 3: Use a locked note for documents and scans

If what you want to hide is a handful of documents, a locked note is the closest thing iOS has to a password you choose yourself. You set it in Settings > Apps > Notes > Password, choosing your device passcode or a custom password, and then lock individual notes. Apple’s Notes guide describes the steps.

Apple’s Notes guide also lists what can’t be locked, which matters for files: notes containing video, audio or PDF attachments, notes shared in iCloud and Quick Notes cannot be locked. A scan from the Notes document scanner or a photo of a card can go in. A PDF or a video cannot. A locked note also shows its title in the notes list, so keep the title bland. How to lock notes on iPhone covers the setup, the forgotten-password problem and hiding notes in full.

Moving a file into a note makes a copy. The original stays in Files until you delete it, so delete it afterwards. Files you delete go to Recently Deleted, where Apple says they are kept for 30 days unless you delete them from there as well.

What iCloud Drive does to files you want private

Where a file lives in Files changes who else can reach it.

• iCloud Drive. Files in iCloud Drive are available on every device signed in to your Apple Account. Apple says that when you delete files from iCloud Drive on one device, it removes them from every device signed in with that account. That includes the Desktop and Documents folders from a Mac if Desktop & Documents Folders is on: Apple says they are then stored in iCloud Drive and reachable from your other devices, including the Files app.
• On My iPhone. Files stored here are kept on that device. Apple’s deletion page groups it with iCloud Drive for Recently Deleted, but it does not say that deleting there reaches other devices.
• How iCloud Drive is encrypted. Apple’s iCloud data security overview lists iCloud Drive as encrypted in transit and on the server, with the keys held by Apple, under standard data protection. With Advanced Data Protection turned on it is end-to-end encrypted, and Apple says it then cannot help you recover it if you lose access.

A private file in iCloud Drive is reachable from any device signed in to your Apple Account, and the Face ID lock on your iPhone does not extend to them. If someone else uses your iPad or Mac, think about where the file is stored before thinking about the app lock.

Option 4: Keep the files in a vault app

When you want a real lock on documents, photos or videos, the straightforward answer is to store them outside Files, in an app with its own lock. The lock is then separate from your device passcode.

The tradeoff is that a lock you set yourself is a lock you can lose. Before you move anything in, read how to recover a private photo vault and set up the recovery method.

Which option fits

You want to	Use
Stop a friend opening Files on your unlocked phone	Require Face ID on the Files app
Keep a few scans or ID photos behind a password	A locked note
Keep an icon off the Home Screen	Remove it from the Home Screen (it can’t be hidden)
Keep any file type behind a lock that isn’t your passcode	A vault app
Hide a folder inside Files	No built-in way we could find

Forevault: import from Files into an encrypted vault

Forevault is our vault app for iPhone. You can import from Photos and Files, so documents sitting in a folder in Files can go into a vault. Files are encrypted on the device with AES-256-GCM. You open it with a pattern on a 5×5 grid, a passcode or a password, and Face ID is optional. Separate vaults can use separate patterns, and the lock screen doesn’t list them. It has a 12-word recovery phrase and an encrypted backup to your own iCloud with “Test a restore”, and export to Photos or Files is always free. There is no account and nothing is collected. The free tier covers 100 photos, 10 videos and 3 vaults. There is no calculator disguise.

It protects against someone holding your phone, not forensic analysis. If you also keep photos private, how to lock photos on iPhone goes through the built-in choices. Download Forevault on the App Store.

Frequently asked questions

Can I put a password on a folder in the Files app?

We found no setting for that in Apple’s Files documentation. The Files app lets you create and organize folders, but not lock them. The built-in alternatives are locking the Files app with Face ID on iOS 18 and later, or keeping documents in a locked note.

How do I lock the Files app on iPhone?

Touch and hold the Files icon, tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID or Passcode, depending on your iPhone), and authenticate. This needs iOS 18 or later. Files is not on Apple’s list of built-in apps that can’t be locked.

Can I hide the Files app?

Apple says apps that come installed can’t be hidden, and Files is one of them. You can lock it, or remove it from the Home Screen so it sits in App Library.

Does the Hidden folder in App Library hide my files?

No. The Hidden folder holds apps you chose to hide. It does not contain anything you save in the Files app.

Do files I hide still sync to my other devices?

Files in iCloud Drive are available on every device signed in to your Apple Account. Locking an app applies only to the device where you set it, according to Apple.

Is a locked note a good place for documents?

For scans and photos of documents, yes. Notes with PDF, video or audio attachments can’t be locked, and a locked note’s title stays visible.