Apart from writing articles, I also make YouTube videos regularly. Both of these jobs involve working with multiple files simultaneously. With articles, I need to capture screenshots or relevant pictures and edit them to add to articles. By default, these images have generic file names like IMG_123, so it gets confusing to organize them in order. The same issue applies to videos too. My camera records straight to an SD card with filenames such as MOV_123 - again, very confusing to work with, especially when dealing with multiple files. Initially, I used to rename each file manually. But, I realized it was consuming a lot of my time. This is when I started looking for ways to batch rename my files on Windows.

If your workflow is similar to mine, I'm glad to report that there are multiple ways in which you can rename multiple files with a single click. In fact, some of these methods allow you to append file names with additional text, remove redundant characters, or even include macros like date, time, etc. macOS has a built-in batch rename tool that's quite powerful, but Microsoft's alternative is a bit lackluster in comparison. That's hardly an issue for Windows users, though, as there are several efficient ways using both native and third-party solutions to batch rename files on your Windows PC. Here are a few of them.

4 Using File Explorer

The simplest method with a catch

The native Windows File Explorer is a good starting point for renaming multiple files together. All you have to do is head to the folder with the files. Hit Control + A to select all the files, right-click on a file, and select Rename. You'll now be asked to enter a relevant name. Once you enter it, File Explorer will rename all the selected files with the same name, along with a number in parentheses at the end. For instance, if you enter 'Screenshot' as the name, your files will follow the sequence Screenshot (1), Screenshot (2), Screenshot (3), and so forth.

This may be good enough for users who only want to keep their files organized and in order. You cannot replace existing strings of text, or concatenate file names with other information like the date, location, etc. You can't even replace the parentheses with a hyphen or other formats of organization. If your workflow requires that level of customization, it's time to move to the more advanced solutions mentioned below.

3 PowerRename

PowerToys for the win

There are several tasks you cannot perform natively on Windows, but Microsoft's native PowerToys utility lets you execute them with specific modules. One of them is PowerRename. Once you download PowerToys from the Microsoft Store, use the panel on the side to select PowerRename from the list of utilities. Enable it and you're good to go. Now, when you select a bunch of files and right-click on them, choose the Rename with PowerRename option from the contextual menu instead of the usual Rename button.

The utility that pops up may seem intimidating at first but is quite simple to use. You can choose to concatenate filenames with additional strings of text, delete certain words, replace recurring strings with something else, etc. For example, let's say you have 10 files with 'IMG' in all of them. You can choose to replace the text with the name of a location for pictures taken on a trip, or a particular date if they were all taken on the same day. PowerRename can even automatically add the date and time of creation to the end of the filename. This helps determine the order in which clips were shot when editing a video on a large timeline.

2 Bulk Rename Utility

Lots of options

While PowerRename should cater to most people's requirements, some users may want a more powerful utility that has more features. If that's you, Bulk Rename Utility is worth checking out. The free version has a ton of features, such as the ability to change the case of filenames, remove/add digits and symbols, add the parent folder's name to each file, paste text from your clipboard to add to files, save renaming formats to favorites, etc. The last one, particularly, is one of my favorites, since I batch rename the same type of files regularly. It saves me from typing the same details every time.

Another feature that I absolutely love is the ability to preview the renamed files before actually going ahead with the renaming process. This saves you time and the agony of going through the entire process once again if you mess up. The advanced version of the tool offers more features, such as renaming using .csv files, image metadata (EXIF files), and ID3 tags for MP3s.

1 Advanced Renamer

Quick yet Comprehensive

One drawback of the Bulk Rename Utility app is that the UI is way too intimidating for first-time users. It almost feels like you're operating a spaceship. Advanced Renamer solves that with a more easy-to-use interface. That's not the only USP, though. It includes all the features of the free version of Bulk Rename Utility and provides those that were only available on the advanced version of that app for free. So, things like extracting EXIF data to rename images, adding artist names to MP3 files, etc. can all be done for free on Advanced Renamer.

Another cool feature of Advanced Renamer is the ability to read the GPS data from images and add the location to the file name. This is an amazing inclusion for those who travel a lot and want to segregate their photos based on the locations where they were shot. Advanced Renamer is also available on macOS if you happen to have a Mac that you use alongside your Windows PC.

Make your workflow more efficient

If you occasionally rename multiple files at once, PowerRename should be able to do the job for most people. However, power users whose workflow includes batch renaming files regularly may want to prefer Bulk Rename Utility or Advanced Renamer for their usage. Both these apps offer a host of features that take file renaming to a whole new level!