Windows 11 rolled out for everyone, and it has surprised me a lot, to say the least. I am a big fan of the updated, more minimalistic design. The File Explorer received a revamp as well, with a mixed color scheme in place of an all-out white interface and a sleeker command bar. In this article, we will explain to you what are the different ways in which you can change the column size of the File Explorer in Windows 11.
Reduce column width size of the File Explorer in Windows 11
By default, the layout view set for the File Explorer is the Details layout view where all the folder details are displayed in columns. This column size can be modified primarily in four ways:
- By using “Size Column to Fit” in Folder
- By using “Size All Columns to Fit” in Folder
- By dragging to modify the column size
- By changing the Pixel width of the selected columns
1] By using “Size Column to Fit” in Folder
- Open File Explorer by pressing the Windows + ‘E’ key combination
- Open the folder that you want to change the column width for
- Press and hold the column head that you want to resize
- Click on Size Column to Fit
If you want to resize any more columns, repeat the last two steps.
2] By using “Size All Columns to Fit” in Folder
- Press Win+E to open File Explorer
- Open the folder that you want to change the column size for
- Right-click on the column header that you want to resize and click on Size all columns to fit
Your File Explorer’s column(s) width has now been changed.
3] By dragging to modify the column size
- Open the File Explorer (Win+E keys)
- Move the mouse cursor to the vertical corner lines next to the column heads
- You’ll see a double-cross icon here and you can drag it to change the column size of File Explorer folders
4] By changing the Pixel width of the selected columns
A final way to change column width sizes is by modifying the Column details of your File Explorer. Here’s how you can do it:
- Open File Explorer and visit the folder that you want to make changes to
- You’ll see a strap of all the column heads there (Name, Date Modified, Type, etc.). Right-click on it and click on More
- This will open a separate dialog box. Here, select the box of the column that you want to change the width of
- On the bottom of the box is an option for you to change the width of the selected columns. Enter the required width in pixels and click on ‘Ok’ to apply the changes
The number of pixels you can enter will depend upon your display resolution and DPI scaling level.
Read: How to permanently add Columns to all Folders in Explorer.
How do I change the view of File Explorer in Windows?
To set a default Folder View for all folders in Windows 11/10:
- Open File Explorer.
- Browse to the folder that you want to change the View of
- Right-click the folder, and select Properties
- Click the Customize tab
- Use the Optimize this folder for the drop-down menu items and select the folder view you want.
How do I change the layout of File Explorer in Windows 11?
You can change the layout of File Explorer in Windows using the View section. For that, open File Explorer and click on the View button visible in the top menu bar. Here you can find several options to set different layouts. You can choose an option or layout as per your requirements.
We hope this helps!
