How to Hide Files on iPhone in 2026 (4 Ways)

Short answer: The Files app can’t hide or lock a file or folder. To hide files on iPhone, lock the Files app with Face ID, lock individual PDFs, move scans and photos into a locked note, or use a vault app that encrypts files behind its own code. Each method protects something different; the table at the end compares them.

This guide is for files you keep in the Files app: scans, PDFs, contracts, IDs, downloads. Steps checked against Apple’s documentation for iOS 26 and later.

Method 1: Lock the Files app with Face ID

1. Find Files on your Home Screen or in the App Library.
2. Touch and hold the icon.
3. Tap Require Face ID (or Touch ID, or Passcode), then confirm.

Now Files opens only after Face ID. Built-in apps like Files can be locked but not hidden, so the icon stays visible.

Method 2: Lock a PDF

1. Open the PDF in Files.
2. Tap the file name at the top of the screen.
3. Tap Lock PDF, enter a password twice, then tap Done.

The file stays where it is, visible in the folder, but it won’t open without the password. Write the password down somewhere safe: Files has no way to recover it.

For Pages, Numbers and Keynote documents, open the document, tap More (…), then Set Password.

Method 3: Move scans and photos into a locked note

Notes can be locked with a password separate from your iPhone passcode, which makes it the best free option for documents you can scan.

1. Set a Notes password: Settings > Apps > Notes > Password > Create Password.
2. Create a note, tap the paperclip (or camera) button, then Scan Documents, and scan the paper.
3. Tap More (…) > Lock.
4. Delete the original copy from Files or Photos, then from Recently Deleted.

Notes refuses to lock a note that contains a PDF, audio, video, or a Pages, Numbers or Keynote file. Step-by-step details are in how to lock notes on iPhone.

Method 4: Use a secure folder app

A vault app keeps files inside its own encrypted storage, behind a code that isn’t your iPhone passcode. You import a file, the app encrypts it, and you delete the original. Before you choose one, check that it:

• encrypts files on the device, not only behind a PIN screen;
• has a recovery option if you forget the code or change phones;
• backs up the encrypted files, not plain copies.

Cubbylock is a secure folder app in development, designed for exactly this: import from Files, Photos or the camera, encrypt on the iPhone, unlock with its own code. See the planned features.

What this doesn’t protect

• Locking the Files app stops someone opening Files. It doesn’t stop other apps from reaching your files through their file pickers, and your iPhone passcode still opens it.
• A locked PDF is still listed by name in its folder and in search, so people can see that it exists.
• A locked note shows its title in the notes list. Use a plain title like “Note” if that matters.
• Copies you forget about. The original file may still be in Downloads, Recently Deleted, an email attachment or iCloud Drive on your Mac. Delete those too.
• A lost password. Neither Apple nor any honest app maker can open a PDF, note or vault if you lose both the password and any recovery method.

How we checked this

We checked every step against Apple’s own documentation (support.apple.com) on 25 Oct 2026, for iOS 26 and later. We haven’t tested this guide on a device yet.

Methods compared

Method	Hidden from people using your phone	Needs more than your iPhone passcode	File types
Lock the Files app	No, the app is visible and opens with the passcode	No	All files, but only inside Files
Lock PDF	No, the file name is visible	Yes, its own password	PDFs only, one at a time
Locked note	Content hidden, title visible	Yes, with a separate Notes password	Scans, photos, text; not PDFs
Cubbylock (in development)	Designed to keep items inside the app only	Designed to use its own code	Designed for files, PDFs, photos, scans and notes

For a handful of PDFs, Lock PDF is enough. For scans of IDs and paperwork, a locked note is a good free choice. If you want every private file in one place behind one code, see secure folder on iPhone for how the options fit together.