Full transcript of “Apple Notes or Files? Here's How I Decide”. Click a timestamp to open the video at that moment. Need another video? Use the YouTube transcript generator.
0:00 Notes aren't a replacement for Files, and Files aren't a replacement for Notes. That's a pretty simple idea. Maybe embarrassingly simple. But I think understanding the difference can make a surprisingly big difference in how you organize your digital life. Because sooner or later, we all run into the same question. Where should I put this? Does it belong in Notes? Does it belong as a file? Should I attach a file to a note, should I add a tag? And there's one question we should be asking instead. What will future-you type when you're trying to find this two years from now?
0:45 Let me show you how I think about it. So here's my basic rule of thumb. Use Notes for reference information. like a favorite recipe, the VIN number for your car, the model number of an appliance, the name of the interior paint color and where you bought it. See those aren't really documents, they're pieces of information that I want to be able to quickly reference. And that's where Notes is really good. I can open the app, search for what I need, make an update if something changes, and move on. For example, I might have a note for my truck, and it could contain something like this.
1:32 You see, I have the VIN, the date of purchase, the license plate, even my infamous wiper blades, and a little bit of my maintenance history. All of that is information. I don't need a Word document for it. I don't need it in a spreadsheet. I just wanna be able to find it when I need it. And that brings me to something that's easy to overlook. You should organize information today while keeping in mind the person you're going to be two years from now, because two years from now, you may not remember the title of a note. You may not remember which folder it's in. You may not even remember exactly what you called the thing you're looking for. So I like to think about what will future-me search for.
2:20 So let's talk about keywords versus tags. Apple gives us tags in Notes, and they are powerful when they're part of a comprehensive system. But here's a potential downside. Without that comprehensive system, they're just another thing to organize. Take that Toyota note. I could start creating tags like #cars, #vehicles, #toyota, #tocoma, #maintenance. None of those are necessarily wrong, but now imagine I've made five tags for each of 25 other things.
3:07 soon I've created a whole other organizational system that I should maintain and I have to remember which tag I used vehicle car truck auto instead I sometimes use something deliberately dumb keywords for example see my note again but down below I've added a row of keywords these are I anticipate my future-self using to find this information. That's it, there's no system to remember. I'm simply putting words into the note that I think I or future-me might search for.
3:54 And that's why I think keywords can be surprisingly robust. They're deliberately dumb and that's a good thing. So think about your future-self, and be kind to that person. And now let's talk about Files. My rule of thumb here is use Files for reference documents, historical information, and working assets. Think about things like tax returns, receipts for home repairs, product warranties, owner's manuals, and repair records. These are documents that I want to retain. They're not really information in the same sense of my car's vehicle
4:39 identification number. The document itself is what has value. And Files is also where I keep things I'm actually working with. Spreadsheets, presentations, Word documents, artwork, project files. A spreadsheet is a good example because it certainly contains valuable information, but it's still a file that I need to work with because Notes can't replace a spreadsheet and that's an important distinction. And a folder full of spreadsheets isn't a great place for quick reference information. Let's talk about the attachment trap. And this is where I think it's really easy to get in trouble with Notes.
5:26 because Apple lets you add documents to a note. Doesn't mean you should. Let's say I'm doing a kitchen remodel and I might create a note called kitchen renovation. And then I start attaching things to it. A contractor's estimate, the cabinet quote, the countertop quote, receipts, warranties. It feels convenient. Everything is right there. But here's the problem. At the end of the renovation, are you going to go back and clean all of that up? Probably not. And by doing this, you've built a second, less organized file repository that's shoehorned into Notes.
6:14 And I don't think that's what you want. Also, a quick side note, in the background, attachments will significantly increase the size of the Apple Notes data files, which can affect storage on your devices. You see, I'd rather have the documents in a properly organized folder structure in Files or Finder and use Notes for the information and context I want to reference. So the note might look like this. I've got the contractor name, I have specific details about the products I used, and I've noted when the project was completed. But I've also included notations about where the related documents are in my folder structure.
7:04 And of course, I've added my favorite terms to the keywords line. The note gives me information and context. The file folder contains the documents. That's a relationship I like. So what about photos? Okay, I promise I'm not trying to pull every Apple app into this system. But let's say I took several pictures during the kitchen remodel. These photos should stay in Apple Photos. I don't want to turn Notes into a second photos library for the renovation photos. I'll add it to an album named Kitchen Reno 2025 and add a notation to my notes like so.
7:54 And that's really the larger point for documents and photos in the Notes app. Don't confuse 'I can put it here' with 'This is where it belongs.' So let's address the important questions. When I'm deciding where something should go, I ask myself two questions. Is this information I want to reference? If so, Notes is probably the right place. Second, is this a document or an asset that I need to retain or work with? If yes, I'm probably putting it in Files. And then there's that final question, what will future-me search for?
8:39 Because the exact words you're using today probably won't come to mind a few years later. And that's really all I'm suggesting. I'm not saying my system is the right system for everyone. In fact, if your decisions are different than mine, good. The point isn't to memorize my rules. As you develop this organizational skill, take a moment or two to think about why you're putting something where you're putting it. Think about how you'll find it later. Think about whether you're saving information or saving a document. Use these organizational skills a few times
9:24 and before you know it, you'll be making these decisions quickly intuitively and that's when organizing your digital life gets a whole lot easier. So until next time, have fun, stay safe and keep learning.
