How to Hide or Show the Finder Sidebar
Beginning with OS X Snow Leopard (10.6) and subsequent releases of the macOS operating system, you can hide the Finder sidebar or display the sidebar for easy access to folders and locations. To hide or show the Finder sidebar, complete the following steps:
Open a Finder window by selecting the Finder icon in the Dock. By default, the Finder displays a sidebar when it opens. If you prefer to hide the sidebar, in the Finder menu bar, select View > Hide Sidebar. To reopen the sidebar after you close it, select View > Show Sidebar from the Finder menu bar. You can also use the keyboard shortcut Option+Command+S to toggle between viewing and hiding the sidebar.
How to Customize the Finder Sidebar
To customize the items that appear in the Finder sidebar out of the box, complete the following steps:
Open a Finder window by selecting the Finder icon in the Dock. Select Finder in the menu bar and choose Preferences. In Finder Preferences, select Sidebar at the top of the screen. Items in the Finder sidebar fall into four categories: Favorites, iCloud, Locations, or Tags. Select or clear the check box, as appropriate, for each item in the list. The items you check appear in the Finder sidebar until you change the preferences again. Close the Finder Preferences to save your choices.
How to Add a Folder to the Finder Sidebar
You can add your most often used folders to the Finder sidebar for easy access whenever you open a Finder window. To add a folder to the sidebar, complete the following steps:
Open a Finder window by selecting the Finder icon in the Dock. Locate a folder in the main Finder window and drag it to the Favorites section of the sidebar. A horizontal line appears, indicating the location the folder will occupy when you release the mouse button. If the Favorites section doesn’t appear in the Finder sidebar, select Finder > Preferences, select Sidebar, and then select the check box for at least one item in the Favorites section. Release the mouse button to add the folder to the Finder sidebar. When you add a folder, app, or disk to the Finder sidebar, you only create a shortcut to that item. The item remains in its original location.
How to Add an Application to the Finder Sidebar
The Finder sidebar gives you quick access to more than folders. You can create shortcuts to the applications you use most often, as well.
To add an application to the Finder sidebar, complete the following steps:
Open a Finder window by selecting the Finder icon in the Dock. In the Finder menu bar, select Go and choose Applications in the menu. Locate the application you want to add to the sidebar, press and hold the Command key, and drag the application to the Favorites section of the Finder sidebar. Position the application where you want it to appear and then release the mouse button.
How to Rearrange Items in the Finder Sidebar
You can rearrange most items in the sidebar as you like. To do so, drag the item to its new target location. The other items in the sidebar rearrange themselves to make room for the item you’re moving.
How to Remove Items From Finder Sidebar
Like the desktop, the Finder sidebar can become cluttered. To tidy things up, you can remove folders, disks, or applications you’ve added by dragging the item’s icon out of the sidebar. It disappears in a puff of smoke.
