Three rules, one document
The folder tree decides where a document goes. Custom fields extract extra values from its contents. A naming pattern combines available values into a filename. You configure each part separately.
The complete project example shows how the three rules work together. Its path is illustrative, not a guaranteed extraction.
Start with a structure that fits
A template gives your folder tree a starting shape. Use Preview templates to compare them before generating a structure: Personal Filing covers everyday documents, while Freelancer includes Income, Expenses, Clients, Projects, and Contracts. General and business templates offer other starting points.
Start with categories you will recognize later. Creating a new folder for every individual file makes the structure harder to use.
Add and edit folders
Open Folder tree. Use Add folder to create a category, or Edit beside an existing folder to change its settings.
- Enter a clear name, such as “Projects.”
- Choose Organize files by. Fixed keeps files in the folder; date and entity behaviors create subfolders.
- If you group by person, company, or your own value, select the relevant Folder naming fields.
- Add specific positive or negative keywords where useful, inspect the example result, then save.
Custom-folder availability depends on your plan and workspace permissions. Adding a folder does not automatically move existing files into it.
Set the folder order
Drag a folder to the position you want in the tree. This keeps the structure readable for your team—for example, Income, Expenses, Bank, then Contracts. Use Edit to change a folder’s behavior or keywords instead.
Choose a folder behavior
The folder editor offers eight behaviors. These paths show what each can create beneath the selected folder:
Container
Fixed
Year
Month
Year → month
Person or company
Year → month → person or company
Person or company → year → month
Actual names depend on the template, language, document content, and selected fields. Check Example result in the editor for your current configuration.
Guide matching with keywords
Positive keywords describe signs that a document belongs in a folder. For Insurance, “insurance policy,” “coverage,” and “policy number” are more useful than the broad word “document.”
Negative keywords describe signs that point elsewhere. Use them sparingly: excluding “invoice” from Insurance could work against you when a genuine insurance invoice contains that word.
Extract the extra details you need
A custom field captures information important to your workflow, such as Project, License plate, Invoice number, or Renewal date. Choose Text for names and identifiers, or Date for a specific date.
Describe precisely what Sortify should look for. For Project, you might write: “Extract the project name explicitly stated in the document, not the client company name.” If there are several dates, say which one you mean.
To make “Apollo” a subfolder, edit Projects, choose an entity-based behavior, and select Project in Folder naming fields. To put the same value in the filename, add Project to the naming pattern separately.
Build a filename pattern
In File naming, set a workspace default pattern. A folder can inherit that pattern or use its own. Without an override, it follows the applicable parent pattern or workspace default.
- Select Edit on Default naming or the chosen folder.
- Add fields such as document type, document date, person/company, or your custom fields, then drag them into order.
- Choose a separator, capitalization, and a format for Document date.
- Check the preview and save. Use inherited pattern to remove a folder-specific override later.
Example: document type + Project + date with underscores gives “Invoice_Apollo_2026-01-20.pdf.” A hyphen or space separator changes how fields join; the format inside the date is set separately. The original file extension is preserved.
A complete example
Suppose an invoice names project Apollo and has a document date of January 20, 2026:
- Create a Project text field with a precise extraction description.
- Set Projects to an entity-based behavior and select Project in Folder naming fields.
- Set a naming pattern using document type, Project, and document date.
Projects / Apollo / Invoice_Apollo_2026-01-20.pdf
The folder tree supplies the category, the custom field supplies “Apollo,” and the naming pattern supplies the filename. The upload flow and result review are covered in the upload article.
Review and improve results
Open the affected document and compare extracted details with the original. Then adjust the relevant rule:
- Wrong category: Review the relevant folders’ descriptions and positive and negative keywords.
- Wrong dynamic subfolder: Check the folder behavior, Folder naming fields, and the custom field description.
- Wrong filename: Check field order, formatting, and whether the pattern is inherited or custom.
Test changes with a new file. You can review and correct an individual processed document; new structure and naming rules do not retroactively change existing results. See result review →