Can I delete the hidden files on my Android phone?

Last reviewed: October 29, 2026 · Markdown version

Some of them, one at a time, once you know what each is for. A hidden file on Android is usually just a file or folder whose name starts with a dot, and most are written by apps for their own use. Deleting the wrong one rarely breaks the phone, but it can empty a trash you meant to keep, fill your gallery with an app's artwork, or simply come back the next day. If you cannot see them yet, switch on hidden files first; this page is about what to do once you can.

The ones you are most likely to find

Item	What the vendor says it is	If you delete it
`.nomedia`	Android: the "Name of the file signaling the media scanner to ignore media in the containing directory and its subdirectories"	The folder's pictures and sounds can start appearing in Gallery and music apps
`.FilesByGoogleTrash`	Files by Google's trash folder in internal storage	Everything in that trash is gone for good
`.thumbnails`	Not named in Android's folder reference	See our page on it; expect it to come back
Any other dot-folder	Usually an app's own settings or cache	Unknown; the app may rebuild it or lose its settings

`.nomedia`: small, and doing a job

This is an empty marker, not a space hog. Android's reference says developers "should use this to avoid application graphics showing up in the Gallery and likewise prevent application sounds and music from showing up in the Music app" (MediaStore, Android Developers, read 29 October 2026). Deleting it frees nothing worth having. The one good reason to remove it is the one Samsung gives: when your own photos are missing from Gallery, find the folder, look for a file named ".nomedia", then "Touch and hold that file, and then tap Delete" (Pictures will not display in the Gallery app, Samsung US, read 29 October 2026).

`.FilesByGoogleTrash`: a trash, not litter

Google's help mentions this folder only as a repair for a blank Trash screen, and the step it gives is "To delete, tap More Delete permanently". The same page says files moved to Trash "remain in Trash for 30 days and then are automatically deleted", and that "Files deleted from Trash are permanently deleted" (Move files to Trash & restore files from Trash, Files by Google Help, read 29 October 2026). So the folder already empties itself. Delete it by hand only if you have looked in Trash and want none of it back.

`.thumbnails` and everything else

Android's reference for the standard folders describes DCIM as "The traditional location for pictures and videos when mounting the device as a camera" and says nothing about a .thumbnails folder inside it; on that folder it is silent (Environment, Android Developers, read 29 October 2026). The same goes for the many dot-folders apps leave behind: no vendor page we read lists them. Our rule of thumb: if you cannot name the app that made it, leave it. A cache an app rebuilds is space you only borrow back; a settings folder you delete is a setup you redo.

Where the real space usually is

Hidden files are rarely what fills a phone. Downloads, chat media and app data usually are, and those are covered on what "Other" means in storage and emptying the trashes, where deleted files often sit for weeks.

If Adinand Auto File Sorter is installed

You may find a hidden .trash folder inside the app's output folder (Downloads › Sorted Files by default, or the folder you chose). It is the duplicate cleaner's: "Copies you clean go to a trash folder and can be put back for 7 days." After that they are removed when the app next runs, so deleting the folder yourself only throws away that 7-day safety net. That folder stays behind if you uninstall the app, and is then never emptied, so after an uninstall it is safe to delete once you have checked it. Sorting itself skips any file whose name starts with a dot, so your other hidden files are never moved.