As smartphone users, we constantly have to save one file, folder or the other (pictures, videos, documents, ebooks, etc.), daily on our devices. Now how do we access, arrange, move or rename those files and folders? Of course, we have to make use of a file manager application, and today in this article, I’ve made up a list of the best Android file manager apps to use.
File managers are currently one of the most used applications on Android devices in this jet age. We get to use them for the safekeeping of important files and folders and to access them when needed for one reason or the other. With a file explorer app, you can zip, password, and unlock files (though not all have these features). Before using any file manager application, you must have checked for features it can offer you.
It’s no doubt that some recently developed Android smartphones do not come with an inbuilt file manager, and even those that have got file managers, still lack features that may be useful or important to us. Nevertheless, here on Naijaknowhow, you’ll get to see the best file manager apps to use on your Android device. Let’s dig right into this topic now without wasting much time.
List of the Best Android File Manager Apps
Below is an articulated list of the best file manager applications to be used on Android devices. These apps come with amazing and quite useful features that have proven to be helpful. They are well-designed and easy to navigate and understand.
1. ES File Explorer
ES File Explorer has come a long way to be topped as the best file manager application that one can use on his/her Android smartphone. With this file explorer installed on your Android device, you’ll be able to save files, documents, and folders easily. You can also move your important files wherever you wish to keep them safe. ES File Explorer offers amazing features you wouldn’t find on other file manager apps.
If you’re one of those folks who’s fond of downloading huge files that require extraction or unzipping before you can have access to the main file, then ES File Explorer would help you to achieve this. You can also lock up files, and folders with passwords to avoid anyone intruding on them. ES File Explorer has a beautiful and material-designed blue and white user interface for easy navigation.
2. Mi File Manager
Mi File Manager is a unique file explorer application that was developed by Xiaomi, a tech giant in China. This app was designed mostly to be used by Xiaomi smartphone users, but equally offers the same features and uses for other Android smartphones, and so it has marked a spot as one of the best Android file manager apps which you can use on your Android device.
Mi File Manager will help you to access your files faster and also manage them easily. You can use features such as; renaming, unzipping, opening, and deleting files. There’s even a share option feature that allows its users to be able to share files easily just like the popular Xender app. This file explorer does recognize file formats such as; mp3, mp4, APK, doc, jpg, jpeg, png and others so you’ve got all you need.
Mi File Manager does get updated regularly, so you’d enjoy the best experience with it. Talking about its design, this application has a clear crisp and clear user interface which would make file management easier and better. To enjoy its features better, it’s advisable to get yourself a Xiaomi smartphone.
[appbox googleplay com.mi.android.globalFileexplorer]
3. Solid Explorer
Solid Explorer can be said to be one of the best-looking file and cloud managers that have got independent panels. This file manager has got you covered for any feature which you might have been looking for in a file manager app. With this application, you get to enjoy a new level of file-browsing experience on your Android device. Solid Explorer has got speed and efficiency.
Solid Explorer gives you options that’ll help you customize the file manager using themes, and colours and place any icon set of your choice. That’s to say that you can design the interface of this application to your taste. This file manager application will enable you to manage your files and folders in all your preferred locations. Solid Explorer is top-notch when it comes to file management on Android devices.
[appbox googleplay pl.solidexplorer2]
4. X-plore File Manager
X-plore File Manager is a powerful tool for file exploration on Android devices. With this application, you can view the inside and outside of your device. That is to say that anything hidden can be seen using this app on your device. One of the complex features this app offers is extracting zipped or compressed files. Of course, the X-plore file manager does offer commonly used features, and with it, you can perform basic operations related to file management.
X-plore File Manager doesn’t have a nice design, but it does have an understandable user interface and good navigation. There are a few features in this application that can not be found on other file manager apps, and for sure, there are quite useful and amazing features. If you’ve got a rooted Android device, you would be able to perform system operations like making changes to system data backup files and removing unwanted apps.
[appbox googleplay com.lonelycatgames.Xplore]
5. File Commander
File Commander is another good file manager for Android, and of course, it has made its way to becoming one of the best Android file manager apps to use on your device. This file explorer application is among those that offer fine cloud storage to help you save files, documents, and folders easily on your Android smartphone. You would surely want to try out this app.
File Commander has also got a nice and beautifully designed user interface for Android devices. This application has also a storage analyzer feature that performs daily checks on your phone storage and shows you a detailed report of what is occupying and eating up space on your device, and that’s not all, because it also gives you guides on what to do, to free up your storage quickly and easily.
[appbox googleplay com.mobisystems.fileman]
6. Files By Google
Files by Google is an amazing file explorer app for Android, developed by Google means we can always expect its features to be amazing, I prefer this file explorer app though, and what it offers is quite similar to that of ES File Explorer, with Files by Google you can easily share files offline, backup files to cloud server and also free up space on your Android device.
This file explorer app does have features you won’t find on ES File Explorer and that is why it’s being considered as an alternative to it, Files By Google is free and doesn’t have a pro or paid version. It’s a good alternative to ES File Explorer.
[appbox googleplay com.google.android.apps.nbu.files]7. ASTRO File Explorer & Storage Organizer
ASTRO File Explorer & Storage Organizer is another file manager app you can use on your Android device, it does a lot and its features are pretty amazing. I’ll recommend this file explorer app at any time cause it works amazingly. With ASTRO File Explorer & Storage Organizer, you can free up space on your Android device, uninstall unused apps easily and also zip and extract files at the same time.
ASTRO File Explorer & Storage Organizer does a lot, has many features and contains no ADS, it’s even a free file explorer app that charges nothing. This app is an alternative to ES File Explorer, if you need a very solid File Explorer app for your Android device, here is the perfect one for you.
[appbox googleplay com.metago.astro]8. File Explorer Root Browser
If you’re using a rooted Android smartphone, this is one of the best file explorer apps you should use on your device, File Explorer Root Browser has a lot to offer in terms of features, it doesn’t just work because it’s for rooted devices, it has some addon features that just make the app so lovely to use.
This file explorer app also serves as an editor to SQLite, you can use it to analyze APK files, and you can use it to view and edit any type of file. You can discover more file manager apps for rooted Android phones here.
[appbox googleplay com.jrummy.root.browserfree]9. Samsung My Files
Of all file manager apps on the Google Play Store, one of the best ones you can download is Samsung My Files. This is a file manager app by Samsung and it comes by default on most Samsung phones. This is a sleek file manager app that comes with a lot of features, you’ll be able to access files just like it is on a computer. This file manager is lightweight and it makes it easier to modify files. Although it doesn’t support root access, you can use it for basic file modifications. Samsung My Files makes it easier to edit, create, renew, delete, move and copy files easily on Android.
The convenience of Samsung My Files makes it an amazing file manager for most Android device users. You can also use this file manager to access files from SD Card, OTG and any USB files. Samsung My Files is very easy to use and it puts files in their respective categories. Anytime you download music, videos, pictures or APK files. They’ll be automatically moved to different folders. You can also view long file names without using the listview button in the app. Samsung My Files also works with cloud storage services like Google Drive and OneBox.
[appbox googleplay com.sec.android.app.myfiles]
10. ZArchiver
You can consider ZArchiver to be a file manager and at the same time not a file manager. This app is mainly used for managing archived files like ZIP, RAR, TAR, ISO and different formats. If you want to extract RAR & ZIP files, ZArchiver is arguably the best application you can use and it has different features. ZArchiver is mainly used for compressing and decompressing files on Android, you can use it to create archives and also extract archives. This app is very powerful and one of the features it has is file management. You can use Zarchiver to move, copy, cut, rename, delete or hide files on your Android device. Zarchiver works with internal and external storage devices and you can also use USB drives on Zarchiver.
ZArchiver is convenient and it is a lightweight app. Although it doesn’t work like a native file manager app, it is worth using. If you’re looking for one of the best file manager apps on Android, ZArchiver is an option to consider. It is quite good for compression and decompression and all the features it has are mainly for archived files only. But since there’s a file management feature, you can consider it as an option for your device. Zarchiver works with Android devices with 4.0+ and more. There are both pro and free version of this app and both works fine.
[appbox googleplay ru.zdevs.zarchiver]
11. Cx File Explorer
CX File Explorer also ranks as one of the most powerful and easy-to-use file manager apps for Android users. It comes with a clean and intuitive interface that makes it different from most File Managers. The app will give you the same interface as Windows Explorer. If you desire a file management app that has advanced users, you can consider CX File Explorer a good option. You’ll be able to access and organize files on your Android device. CX File Explorer allow users to browse, move, copy, compress, rename, extract, delete, create and share files (folders) on both internal and external storage of their mobile device.
One of the standout features of Cx File Explorer is that it allows remote access to files via FTP. CX File Explorer works with FTP, FTPS, SFTP, SMB, WebDAV, and LAN. You can manage apps, files and folders easily with Cx File Explorer. This is a material design app and it’s one of the few you’ll see on the Android app store. You can download CX File Explorer for free on your Android device.
[appbox googleplay com.cxinventor.file.explorer]
12. Simple File Manager Pro
Simple File Manager Pro is a paid file management app for Android devices. You’re looking at one of the fastest file managers on the Android platform. It is enriched with a lot of features and you’ll find it very easy to use. With Simple File Manager Pro, you’ll be able to compress, transfer & convert media files within a few clicks. This app also allows users to customize folders and that’s one of the cool features that comes with it. You can navigate easily between different folders and it also makes it easy to search, navigate, copy & paste, cut, delete, rename, decompress, transfer, download and organize.
If you’re looking for features like compression and decompression, Simple File Manager Pro offers those features. You can use this file manager on any archived file format. You can extract password-protected files and it also comes with a simple file organizer. The only downside of Simple File Manager Pro is that it is a paid app and you’ll need to buy it. But when it comes to modifications, you’ll love Simple File Manager Pro.
[appbox googleplay com.simplemobiletools.filemanager.pro]
13. Solid Explorer File Manager
Another file manager on the list is Solid Explorer File Manager, you’ll love it because it works for rooted and non-rooted. If you want to explore anywhere on your Android device, Solid Explorer File Manager will let you do it easily. It comes with basic features that’ll let you view, delete, move, rename, copy, hide or share any files. Solid Explorer File Manager also organizes files to their respective folders automatically. Aside from the basic file management features, there are other great features that came with Solid Explorer File Manager.
Being able to password-protect files is one of the things to look out for in a file manager. With Solid Explorer File Manager, you’ll be able to protect files. It has a strong AES encryption and even if you uninstall the app. The files you locked will still be protected. You can have your storage analyzed with Solid Explorer File Manager and it supports different archive formats. You can extract archives like ZIP, 7ZIP, RAR and TAR files. It has a powerful root explorer. You can connect it with cloud storage like Google Drive, OneDrive, Dropbox, Box, Owncloud, SugarSync, MediaFire and Mega.
[appbox googleplay pl.solidexplorer2]
14. File Manager TV USB OTG Cloud
File Manager TV USB OTG Cloud is another outstanding file manager app. One of the reasons why I love this file manager is that it comes with application management. If you want to quickly uninstall multiple apps at once, you can do it on File Manager TV USB OTG Cloud app. Using this app, you’ll be able to manage files and folders easily on your Android device. You can also use it on TVs and Chromebooks. Some of the basic features of the app include browsing and creating, multi-select, deleting, renaming, compressing, extracting, copying & paste, move files and folders easily.
It is a very powerful storage file manager as well, it works on devices with FAT32 or NTFS file systems like SD Cards, Internal Storage, External Storage, USB Storage, Flash Drive, Pen Drives, and USB OTG. This is one of the best Android file manager apps you can download for free. The app comes with an intuitive design and is also very easy to use.
[appbox googleplay dev.dworks.apps.anexplorer]
Conclusion:
Well, now you’ve seen the best file manager apps on your Android device, you should read about the top file managers for iPhones and iPads. These apps do offer features that’ll be useful to you anytime and any day. With them, you can easily organize, safeguard and access your files. You now stand a chance to get free storage space when you have them installed. Meanwhile, for those who prefer iOS devices, here’s our list of the best file manager apps on iPhones and iPads. That said, please do share this article for others to benefit from. Thank you.