How to Rename a File in the Google Docs iPhone App

To rename a file in the Google Docs iPhone app, find the file in the app’s file list, tap More (the three dots) on that file, tap Rename, type the new name, and tap Rename again. You do not need to open the document first, and the same steps work in the Google Sheets and Google Slides apps.

These steps cover the current Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps on an iPhone or iPad, including iPhones on iOS 27, and they follow the iPhone and iPad version of Google’s Create, view, or download a file help page. Google does not tie the steps to a specific iOS version.

What you need before you rename a file

• The Google Docs app. Google’s steps are written for the Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides apps on an iPhone or iPad. The Docs app handles documents, the Sheets app handles spreadsheets, and the Slides app handles presentations.
• The right Google Account. The file list only shows files that belong to, or are shared with, the account you are using in the app.
• Permission to edit. A file name is part of the file, so you need to be the owner or have the Editor role. The Editor role is the sharing level that lets someone change a file. Viewers and Commenters cannot edit. In a shared drive, the team storage area that some work and school accounts use, Google’s shared drive roles let Contributors, Content managers, and Managers edit files, while Commenters and Viewers cannot.

Before you rename a shared file, keep in mind that there is only one copy of it. A Google Doc is stored in Google Drive, Google’s online storage, and everyone you share it with opens that same file. The new name is what they will find too, so tell your collaborators if the name changes a lot.

How to rename a Google Doc on iPhone

1. Open the Google Docs app. Your list of documents appears.
2. Find the file you want to rename. If you do not see it, tap Menu in the top left and choose Recent, Starred, Shared with me, or Offline.
3. On that file, tap More (the three dots). A menu of actions for that one file opens.
4. Tap Rename. A box appears with the current name.
5. Enter the new name.
6. Tap Rename to confirm.

Tap the three dots, not the file’s name. Tapping the name opens the file. If that happens, go back to the file list and tap the three dots. Google’s help page documents Rename only from this file-list menu, so that is the route to use even if you already have the document open.

How to confirm the new name and change it back

The file list shows the new name right away. If it still shows the old name, pull down on the list to refresh it. There’s no save step. Changes save automatically when you’re online. Offline changes save to your iPhone and sync to Drive when you reconnect, so other devices may take a moment to show the new name.

There’s no undo button. To get the old name back, rename the file again and type the old name, so note it before you change it.

Rename a file in the Sheets or Slides app

The steps are the same in the Google Sheets and Google Slides apps: tap More on the spreadsheet or presentation, tap Rename, enter the name, and tap Rename.

This changes the name of the whole file. It does not change the names of the tabs inside a spreadsheet. To rename a tab, follow the steps for renaming a sheet tab in Google Sheets.

Rename from the Google Drive app instead

If you keep the Google Drive app on your iPhone, you can rename a Google Doc there too, which is handy when the file sits in a folder you already have open. In Drive, tap More next to the file, tap Rename, enter the name, and confirm. The Docs app and the Drive app show the same file, so the new name appears in both.

Choose a name you can find later

A file name is what you search for in the app, so a few habits make files easier to find from a phone:

• Put the important word first. A name like “Budget 2027 draft” shows the key word even when a long name is cut off in the narrow phone list.
• Write dates as year, month, day. A name such as “Meeting notes 2026-10-18” sorts in date order when you sort the list by name.
• Skip words like “final” or “new.” Google Docs keeps a version history of edits, so the name does not need to track versions.
• Agree on a pattern with your team. On a shared file, a predictable name helps everyone find it in search.

Name a new file when you create it

To skip renaming later, name the file when you create it. In the Google Docs app, tap Create in the bottom right and start a new document. Enter a name, then tap Create. If you start from a template, the app opens it right away, and you can rename it from the file list afterward.

Rename the same file on Android or a computer

The file lives in your Google Account, not on the phone, so you can rename it from any device. The steps differ a little on each one.

Device	Where to start	How to confirm
iPhone or iPad app	Tap More on the file, then Rename	Tap Rename
Android app	Tap More on the file, then Rename	Tap Ok
Computer (web browser)	Open the file and click the name at the top	Press Enter

On a computer, a new file is automatically named “Untitled document,” “Untitled spreadsheet,” or “Untitled presentation” until you rename it. You can also rename files from your Google Drive file list.

Why you can’t rename a file

If Rename does not work or is not offered, check these causes in order.

• You only have view or comment access. Google Drive’s share permissions table shows that Viewers and Commenters cannot edit a file. Only Editors and the Owner can. Ask the owner to rename the file or to change your role to Editor.
• You tapped the wrong menu. Use the More button on the file in the file list. Google’s steps for renaming start there, not from the menu inside an open document.
• You are in the wrong account. If the file is missing from every category under Menu, it may belong to a different Google Account than the one the app is using.
• You are offline. Offline changes save to your device first and reach Drive when you reconnect. If the old name still shows on another device, connect to the internet and give it time to sync.
• The app is out of date. If the labels on your screen do not match the steps, check the App Store for an update to Google Docs. As a fallback, you can rename the file from a computer.

Frequently asked questions