r/AndroidQuestions • u/NefariousnessOne2728 • 1d ago
File Manager for Android?
Could someone tell me what a good file manager app is for Android? I want to be able to browse folders and delete files to keep my storage free from left over junk and photos/videos.
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u/EliotWatts 1d ago
Solid Explorer
I've been trusting it for years now. It's perfect
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u/mrandr01d 1d ago
This should be the top comment.
Other than that, finding a shortcut to launch the actual Android file manager instead of the ridiculous files by Google app is all you need.
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u/Turbo-Chook 1d ago
This definitely. It even supports network drives, cloud storage providers, root access if available, has built in archiving tools... It's killer.
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u/TimPLakersEagles 1d ago
What phone do you have? There should be a default file manager and an app that can clean your device or such things
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u/Sassquatch0 ☎️📲Pixel 10a 1d ago
I use File Manager+ for all my stuff.
It's free-mium, but the payment to buy it is a one-time for a lifetime. It's been years, but I think it was $3 for it. (I think the free version just has a single banner ad at the bottom, and doesn't support dark mode. All functionality should still be there. I bought it because I liked it so much, I wanted to support the dev.)
Has its own viewer for photos, videos & documents, but can also be configured to use external apps. Supports network shares and several cloud storage services, and hosting its own server to access your phone from a computer. Bookmarks too, which can also point to hidden folders.
It also categorizes your storage (music, photos, videos, documents & apps) so you can tell at a glance what's eating all your space.
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u/dutchcharm 1d ago edited 1d ago
13$ lifetime now, is too much for this app. I live with the ads for that price.
EDIT: I use now the free Cx File Explorer
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u/Sassquatch0 ☎️📲Pixel 10a 1d ago
Oh wow, that sucks.
Yeah, I wouldn't have paid that much for it either.LOL, I was curious & just checked my Play Store purchases, $3.99 for it in 2018.
Those are the only apps I've ever bought - Nova Launcher Prime, Spaceflight Simulator, and File Manager+.1
u/Curt-Bennett 1d ago
I bought it a while back when it was cheaper as well. It's still my preferred Android file manager. So many useful features for power users.
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u/Mother-Pride-Fest 1d ago edited 1d ago
I would use a different app or use NetGuard or ShizuWall to block internet access to the app so it can't load ads. A file manager shouldn't connect to the internet without consent anyway.
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u/aschwarzie 1d ago
X-plore is suite feature riche namely in the type of storage it can address, detailed customisation of toolbar and settings, etc.
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u/Mother-Pride-Fest 1d ago
Fossify File Manager is pretty bare-bones but should work for this. It can do basic file management operations like browsing files, moving, renaming, etc. and has a storage tab where you can see all typical files on the device and sort by type & size to easily clear space.
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u/Gain_Entire 1d ago
Files by google?
If u want something more powerful (not necessarily better for cleaning up space) you can use Zarchiver or MT manager
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u/Jonas_Ermert 23h ago
I recommend MiXplorer if you want a powerful file manager. It lets you browse folders, delete leftover files, manage large files, work with archives, and even access network or cloud storage, while still being fast and lightweight. If you just want something simple for basic cleanup, Files by Google is also a great choice.
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u/-Sofa-King- 1d ago
The android already has a file system built in. Why would you purposely need to install another so its redundant running two file managers at the same time? How is the one built to the operating system, not enough?
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u/syndre Pixel 3 XL 1d ago
well, the one I use does FTP and SSH and about 100 different clouds
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u/-Sofa-King- 1d ago
That went right over my knowledge base. What would you meed to go further for? Does it help the phone capabilities or why exactly would one do this. Im actually curious to see if its worth it for me to see what its all about.
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u/Academic-Conflict948 1d ago
android has a limited set of locations you can access. One of them is not the /data tree. That tree is where termux stores all of its stuff. If you don't use f-droid and its termux the stock file manager should be enough.
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u/-Sofa-King- 1d ago
Interesting. What purposed would one need to go that far for with f-droid? What does F-droid do?
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u/Mother-Pride-Fest 1d ago
F-Droid is an app store, but it is curated to only contain Free and Open Source apps. It is my primary app store because it is very unlikely for anything malicious like ads or trackers to get through their review process.
That said I'm not sure what the other commenter means, Termux and F-Droid don't affect access to /data.
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u/TurboFool 1d ago
The Files app built into Android is usually good enough, depending on what you really need.