Long, unstructured documents in note-taking apps frequently turn into cumbersome walls of text. Apple Notes on iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia introduces two powerful formatting enhancements designed to streamline document organisation: Collapsible Section Headers and Coloured Text Highlighting. These features allow you to fold secondary details beneath clean headings and highlight crucial phrases with vibrant accent tones.
How Collapsible Sections Work in Apple Notes
Collapsible sections allow you to collapse and expand paragraphs, lists, tables, and images placed underneath any heading style. The folding hierarchy adheres to Apple’s structured semantic headings:
- Title & Heading Levels: Folding a primary Title or Heading collapses all child subheadings and text down to the next equivalent or higher heading level.
- Subheadings: Collapsing a Subheading folds only the content nestled immediately beneath it, leaving the primary section visible.
- Persistent State: When a section is collapsed, Apple Notes maintains that collapsed state across all synced iCloud devices, keeping your workspace streamlined on mobile screens.
How to Create Collapsible Headings in Apple Notes
To implement collapsible sections in your notes on iPhone or iPad:
- Launch the Notes app and open an existing note or tap the compose button to create a new one.
- Type a line of text that will serve as your section title (for example, Project Deliverables).
- Highlight the text or tap at the end of the line, then tap the Format (Aa) icon located in the keyboard toolbar.
- Select Title, Heading, or Subheading to apply structural styling.
- Notice the subtle downward-pointing chevron icon (⌄) that automatically appears directly to the left of your formatted heading.
- Tap the chevron once to collapse all content nested below that header. The chevron flips horizontally to a right-pointing arrow (›), and the body text tucks neatly away.
- Tap the chevron again at any time to expand the section.
How to Highlight Text with Custom Colours
In addition to section folding, Apple Notes now features dedicated text highlighting with five coordinated colour palettes (Purple, Pink, Orange, Mint, and Blue):
- Within any note, double-tap or drag your selection handles across the word or paragraph you wish to accentuate.
- In the contextual popup menu (Cut, Copy, Paste), tap the right arrow until you locate Highlight, or tap the Aa format icon in the bottom toolbar.
- Select the Colour Highlight icon (represented by an underlined coloured circle or highlighter marker).
- Choose your preferred highlighter hue from the colour wheel:
- Orange / Pink: Ideal for immediate action items and urgent deadlines.
- Mint Green: Excellent for completed deliverables and verified metrics.
- Purple / Blue: Best for conceptual definitions, references, and citations.
- To remove highlighting, select the text again and tap the Highlight tool with the slash icon.
Best Practices for Structuring Large Documents
| Feature | Formatting Level | Recommended Usage Scenario |
|---|---|---|
| Primary Section Collapse | Heading | Use for major chapters, meeting dates, or project phases. |
| Granular Subsection Collapse | Subheading | Use for specific technical specifications, code snippets, or raw data logs. |
| Accent Highlighting | Character / Word | Combine with collapsible headings to allow readers to scan key takeaways before expanding detailed paragraphs. |