Move and Rename macOS Documents from Title Bar - Quick Tip
Convenient Document Management in macOS
Users of macOS, beginning with OS X Mountain Lion, have been able to rename documents directly from the title bar of certain applications. This functionality has been progressively enhanced with subsequent macOS releases.
Application Compatibility
It’s important to note that this feature isn’t universally available across all applications. Typically, it functions within applications native to macOS, such as TextEdit and Preview. Furthermore, documents created using the iWork suite – Pages, Keynote, and Numbers – also support this capability.
However, other applications specifically designed for the macOS environment may also incorporate this feature.
Consider an untitled TextEdit document as an example. A small arrow located in the title bar allows for renaming the document, as illustrated below.
Clicking this arrow reveals a menu with four distinct options. These include renaming the file, adding tags for improved organization, relocating the document, and locking it to prevent modifications.
Moving Documents from the Title Bar
Selecting the dropdown menu adjacent to the "Where" field enables you to move your document to a different location without needing to open Finder or manually drag and drop the file.
If your desired destination isn't listed within the dropdown menu, choosing "Other" at the bottom will launch a standard Finder window. This allows you to navigate to any location on your computer, or even create a new folder.
Viewing Document Location
Double-clicking on the title bar itself will reveal the current location of the document. For instance, our example text document resides within the iCloud folder.
Clicking on the displayed location will open that folder in Finder, showcasing the active document alongside any other files stored there.
For files stored locally, double-clicking the title bar will display the location and its hierarchical path. In this case, the text file is located in the Desktop folder, which is within the user folder, on the system drive of the Mac.
Although macOS hasn’t yet extended this functionality to all file types, it represents a significant time-saving feature for compatible documents. The ability to move files seamlessly without leaving the application provides a convenient enhancement to the user experience.