By default, Windows File Explorer does not display the size of the folders. So, you can use third-party software to view the size of the folders. Such software lets you manage your storage more efficiently by combining it with File Explorer and giving you full details about the size of your folders. They help you quickly find large folders that take up much disk space. It is helpful when you are trying to free up space. So, in this article, we will introduce you to a few of these software and walk you through the steps of using them to view folder sizes in Windows File Explorer.
How to See the Folder Size in File Explorer on Windows
Now that we have discussed the basics of using File Explorer and the advantages of using third-party applications to check folder size, let us get into the steps to use these tools on your Windows PC:
- WinDirStat
- TreeSize Free
1] WinDirStat
WinDirStat is a helpful tool for Windows users who want an overview of their disk consumption. It offers a thorough view of your files and folders sorted by size but with more detail than Windows Explorer. After scanning your hard disk, the tool displays the data in three views: a Treemap, an extension list, and a directory list. It makes it easy to find big files or folders occupying disk space. Let us see how to check folder sizes using WinDirStat:
- Download and install the WinDirStat app and open it on your Windows PC.
- When the app opens, you will have two options to check the folder sizes in All Local Drives or Individual Drives.
- Once you have made your choice, press OK, and it will display the size of all the folders in the drive you chose.
WinDirStat uses a visualization where each rectangle represents a folder with colors that help you identify its actual disk usage. This allows you to identify large folders and subfolders at a glance easily.
2] TreeSize Free
TreeSize Free is an excellent disk space management app for Windows that offers a comprehensive, in-depth overview of your files and folders sorted by size. This application lets you quickly identify large files or folders that are taking up space on your hard drive. It analyzes your drive and displays the data in a tree-like structure. So, let us see how to use the TreeSize Free app to find the size of the folders in your drive:
- Download and install the TreeSize Free app and open it on your Windows PC.
- Once you have opened the app, click the Select Directory button in the Home tab at the top left corner.
- Choose the drive you want to analyze and find the folder size.
- Once the scan is complete, it will display the details about the size of all the folders in your drive in a tree-like manner, with the folders with larger sizes displayed on top.
- Click the main folder to view the sub-folders and their sizes.
The subtle gradient bar makes it easy to identify folders that take up much space at a glance. You can also apply filters for specific file types and examine the scan results to the file level.
Conclusion
TreeSize Free and WinDirStat apps are both efficient for managing Windows disk space. They make detecting large files or directories simple by offering comprehensive, visual figures of disk usage. These tools are necessary to keep your computer’s file system effective and well-organized.
I just use Total Commander to check folder size. And sometimes I use FileTree to check which folder uses more space in my WinXP.
This not actually work in Windows 7. Only Work in older XP
I can not follow this and I seem to have lost several older records that I really need to keep. I am not bright at computing and this is making me feel sick>
My needed folders are in Windows 10/11. I want them ALL.