If you are trying to change a folder color in SharePoint and the option is missing, unavailable, or simply does not work, you are not alone. SharePoint gives you several ways to organize document libraries, but folder color customization is not available in every SharePoint setup or folder view.
The problem can also happen because of the SharePoint experience you are using, permissions assigned to your account, library settings, or the difference between SharePoint folders and Microsoft 365 features.
In this guide, we will walk through the most practical ways to troubleshoot the can’t change folder color SharePoint issue.
To change a folder color in SharePoint,
- First, open the SharePoint document library and select the folder you want to modify.
- Check the folder’s More options (…) menu to see whether a color or customization option is available.
- If the color option is missing, check your SharePoint permissions, because you may not have permission to modify the folder or library.
- Make sure you are using the modern SharePoint experience, since available folder features can differ between modern and classic experiences.
- If SharePoint does not provide a folder color option in your environment, use folder naming, metadata, views, or icons as alternatives for visually organizing folders.
- If the feature previously worked but stopped working, try refreshing SharePoint, signing out and back in, or opening the library in another browser.
The following steps will help you determine what is happening and what you can do instead.
Start by opening the SharePoint site where your folder is stored. From the site’s navigation area, open Documents or the specific document library containing the folder.
For example, go to SharePoint site > Documents > Your Folder. Make sure you are working with an actual SharePoint document library rather than a folder synchronized to your computer through OneDrive.
This distinction matters because changing the appearance of a folder in Windows File Explorer does not automatically change how that folder appears in SharePoint.
Once the library loads, locate the folder whose color you want to change. Do not open the folder yet. Select it from the document library so that SharePoint displays the available commands.
2: Check the Folder’s More Options Menu
Select the folder and look for the More options (…) button in the SharePoint toolbar or beside the folder name.
Select More options (…) and carefully review the available commands. Depending on your SharePoint configuration, you may see options for sharing, renaming, moving, copying, downloading, deleting, or viewing additional information.
If you see a color or appearance-related option, you can use it to customize the folder. The exact wording and location can vary depending on the SharePoint interface available to your organization.
If there is no folder color option, move to the next step. Do not change unrelated library settings just to make the color feature appear.
3: Confirm That You Have Permission to Modify the Folder
Your SharePoint permissions can affect which options are available to you.
If you can open folders but cannot rename, move, delete, or otherwise modify them, your account may have limited permissions. In that situation, a folder customization feature may also be unavailable.
To check this, go to the SharePoint site > Settings > Site permissions if you have access to the site’s permission settings. Look at the permission level assigned to your account.
You may need a site owner or SharePoint administrator to confirm whether you have permission to make changes.
This is especially important on company or school SharePoint sites, where administrators often restrict document-library changes to prevent accidental modifications.
SharePoint has both modern and classic experiences, and they do not always expose the same controls.
Look at the document library interface. The modern experience generally has a cleaner Microsoft 365-style layout with a command bar at the top and modern menus.
If your organization is using an older or customized SharePoint interface, some features may look different or may not be available.
If you have an option to switch experiences, check SharePoint library > Settings > Library settings > Advanced settings and review the available experience settings. Only change this if you understand your organization’s SharePoint configuration.
For most users, staying with the modern SharePoint experience is the better choice because it receives Microsoft’s current interface and feature updates.
5: Check Whether the Folder Color Feature Is Actually Available
At this point, check the folder menu again. Select the folder, open More options (…), and review the commands carefully.
If there is still no option for changing the folder’s color, the most likely explanation is that your SharePoint environment does not support direct folder color customization.
This is an important distinction. Searching through every SharePoint setting will not necessarily make an unsupported option appear.
SharePoint focuses heavily on organizing documents through metadata, columns, views, permissions, and content types. These tools are often more useful for large document libraries than manually assigning colors to individual folders.
If you believe the color option should be available but it is missing, refresh the page.
Press Ctrl + F5 on your Windows PC to perform a stronger refresh. Then return to the SharePoint site > Documents and select the folder again.
You can also sign out of your Microsoft 365 account and sign back in. Sometimes an outdated session, cached page, or temporary browser issue can prevent the latest SharePoint interface from loading correctly.
After signing back in, open the same document library and check the folder’s More options (…) menu again.
7: Try Another Supported Browser
Browser problems can occasionally make SharePoint behave differently.
If you normally use Microsoft Edge, try opening the SharePoint site in Google Chrome. If you normally use Chrome, try Edge instead.
Sign in with the same Microsoft 365 account and navigate to SharePoint > Documents > Your Folder.
If the folder customization option appears in one browser but not another, clear the affected browser’s cached site data or update the browser.
However, if the option is missing in every browser, the problem is much more likely to be related to SharePoint functionality, permissions, or your organization’s configuration rather than the browser.
8: Use Folder Naming to Create Visual Organization
If SharePoint does not allow you to change folder colors, you can still make folders easier to recognize.
One simple approach is to use consistent folder names that clearly communicate their purpose. For example, instead of creating folders named “Folder 1,” “Folder 2,” and “Folder 3,” use names such as Projects, Invoices, Reports, and Archived Documents.
You can also use prefixes to create a consistent visual hierarchy, such as 01 Projects, 02 Reports, and 03 Archive.
This does not technically change the folder color, but it can make a SharePoint document library significantly easier to navigate.
9: Use Metadata Instead of Folder Colors
For a larger SharePoint library, metadata can be a much better alternative to folder colors.
Go to the SharePoint document library > Add column and create a column such as Department, Document Type, Status, or Priority.
You can then assign values to documents and use those values to filter or organize the library.
For example, a Status column could contain values such as Draft, In Review, Approved, and Archived. You can then create different SharePoint views based on those values.
This approach is particularly useful when several people are working with the same documents because everyone can understand the organization without relying on folder colors.
If you have confirmed that the feature should be available but your account still cannot access it, contact your SharePoint administrator or site owner.
Tell them exactly what you are trying to do and explain that the folder color option is missing from the folder’s More options menu.
Ask them to verify your permissions, the document library configuration, and whether any organization-specific customization affects folder appearance.
If your organization uses third-party SharePoint extensions, the administrator can also determine whether those customizations are responsible for the behavior.
Faqs
Not every SharePoint document library supports direct folder color changes. If you do not see a color option when selecting the folder and opening More options (…), the feature may not be available in your environment.
The most common reasons include feature availability, SharePoint interface differences, account permissions, or organization-specific settings. It can also simply mean that your SharePoint environment does not provide direct folder color customization.
No. A folder’s appearance in Windows File Explorer is separate from its appearance in a SharePoint document library. Changes made locally on your computer do not automatically change SharePoint.
An administrator can control many aspects of a SharePoint site and document library, but administrator permissions do not automatically mean that a folder color feature exists. The underlying SharePoint functionality must support the option.
What can I use instead of folder colors?
You can use metadata, custom columns, SharePoint views, consistent folder names, and document status fields. For larger libraries, these options can provide better organization than relying on colors.
OneDrive synchronization lets you access SharePoint files through File Explorer, but it does not add SharePoint folder customization features that are unavailable in the online document library.
If your organization permits it, the modern SharePoint experience is generally preferable for current document-library functionality. However, switching experiences should be done carefully on organizational sites because some older customizations may depend on the classic experience.