The Finder is the core file management application on macOS. Whenever you open a new Finder window, you are presented with a grey sidebar on the left containing shortcuts to your Desktop, Documents, Downloads, iCloud Drive, and various connected network drives. While this sidebar is incredibly useful for navigating your hard drive, it can be distracting if you are trying to present your screen during a meeting, or if you simply want a minimalist window focusing entirely on the contents of a specific folder. Fortunately, you can easily collapse and hide this sidebar.
How to Hide the Finder Sidebar
Hiding the sidebar is a simple view toggle, not a deep system setting.
- Open a new Finder window (click the smiling Mac icon in your Dock).
- Look at the very top of your Mac’s screen to the main menu bar.
- Click on the View menu.
- From the drop-down list, click on Hide Sidebar.
The grey sidebar on the left will instantly vanish, allowing the file icons inside the folder to stretch across the entire width of the window.
The Faster Keyboard Shortcut
If you find yourself frequently needing to toggle the sidebar on and off depending on your workflow, navigating through the top menu is too slow.
Instead, simply open a Finder window and press Command + Option + S (⌘ + ⌥ + S) on your keyboard. This shortcut instantly toggles the sidebar. Press it once to hide the sidebar for a clean presentation view, and press it again the moment you need to drag a file into your Downloads folder.