5 Best File Managers for iPhone and iPad

iOS does not have a user-accessible file system like Windows or Android. But that doesn’t mean you can’t use a file manager on your iPhone or iPad. 

If you have files and documents that you need to edit and share, you should use a third-party file manager app on iOS.

What does a good file manager app do?

A good file manager should have the following three functions:

Import: Importing files and documents into the app should be easy. The more import options, the better.

Managing Files: A good file manager gives you full control over the organization of your data. You must create nested folders, tag and color code files, archive folders, and more.

Export:  A file manager application without basic functions such as copy-paste is useless. To view and edit any file, you must be able to export it to a third-party app. It is also better if the app offers file conversion options.

The best file manager should meet all these three requirements and more. However, all these features may be too much for some users, so we have also listed simpler alternatives.

Best File Managers for iPhone and iPad

1. ‎Documents: File Manager

Documents is the best document and file manager app for iPhone and iPad. It’s completely free and packed with all the productivity features you can imagine.

Documents makes it really easy to import from a computer (cloud storage, Wi-Fi transfer, web pages and other apps) and manage files (drag and drop, share, archive features, tags and the like).

Documents works well with all file formats, including text, audio, and video. You can read books, listen to music, watch videos, share files, open PDFs, and more in the app.

Documents gives you the confidence you need by storing and managing all your data locally on the device. With Dropbox sync, you can reliably access your documents when you’re out and about.

2. Apple Files

With the iOS 11 update, the old iCloud Drive application was replaced by the brand new Apple Files application. The Files app is built into iOS and you can access multiple cloud storage sources from within the app.

Not only does it have drag and drop support inside the app, you can also use it to move files and folders and assign tags and favorites, but you can also easily drag files from the Files app. Drag and drop to select files and organize them into folders.

3. ‎Dropbox

If all your documents and files are stored in Dropbox, its official app for iPhone and iPad should be enough for you. Once you have an active internet connection, you will have access to your entire Dropbox library.

You can open a file, preview it in Dropbox, and use the Share menu to quickly open it in a supported app. 

For example, if someone is sharing a document with you via Dropbox, you can open it directly into the Pages app using the Share page. 

You can even edit Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files from within the Dropbox app. This eliminates the need to navigate between apps.

Dropbox also has an offline feature. In the free plan, you can save individual files for offline access. If you are a Dropbox Plus user, you can also save entire folders offline.

4. GoodReader PDF Editor & Viewer

If you often deal with PDFs on your iPhone or iPad, GoodReader is a must-have app. You can import PDFs from cloud services, local servers or your computer. Then you can use GoodReader to organize your Files into folders.

GoodReader has an excellent PDF rendering engine that makes browsing PDFs a joy on iPad. It’s one of the few apps that won’t be a hassle when you open PDFs with hundreds of pages.

The app also makes it easy to annotate PDFs. You can markup a PDF using text boxes or use it with Apple Pencil. There’s also a comment feature that lets you add classic sticky notes to PDF pages.

5. File Manager & Browser

Documents can be a bit complicated for novice users (as it has complex UI). File Manager & Browser app is a good alternative to this. 

It has a simpler, more visual interface that helps you perform many of the same tasks. You can retrieve files from a PC using Wi-Fi transfer, edit them and share them with third-party apps.

The user interface of the application is user-friendly and the menus are clearly displayed at the bottom of the screen with all the important options.

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