# How to Sort Folders First on Mac

ComfortFiles is a Windows Explorer-style file manager for macOS.

Finder can sort folders above files: open **Finder → Settings → Advanced** and check **"Keep folders on top: In windows when sorting by name."** The catch is in the name of the setting — it only applies **when sorting by name**. Sort a folder by date, size, or kind, and folders mix back in with the files.

## Turning it on

1. With Finder active, press <kbd>⌘,</kbd> (or Finder → Settings in the menu bar).
2. Open the **Advanced** tab.
3. Under "Keep folders on top", check **In windows when sorting by name**.
4. Optionally also check **On Desktop** — same idea for desktop icons.

The change applies immediately to every Finder window. No restart needed.

## The limitation: name sorting only

Windows Explorer keeps folders on top no matter how you sort — by date modified, size, or type. Finder's setting doesn't: switch a window to sort by **Date Modified** and folders scatter among the files again, sorted purely by their own dates.

There's no hidden setting to extend folders-first to other sort orders. If you mostly browse by name, the built-in option covers you. If you habitually sort by date ("what did I touch last?") — a very Windows-Explorer habit — Finder has no answer.

## Folders first, on every sort order

ComfortFiles sorts folders first on **every** column, exactly as Explorer does: sort by date and you get the newest folders, then the newest files. It's the default — nothing to configure. That behavior, along with the folder tree and address bar, is the point of the app: [what else it fixes for switchers](/#features).