How can I organize documents, codes, and memos in groups?

Who this article is for

This article is for ATLAS.ti Windows, Mac, and Web users who want to organize projects using groups and folders.

Understand the difference between groups and folders

Groups and folders both help organize your project, but they work differently.

Groups are flexible labels that help you organize and filter entities across your project. For example:

• documents grouped by participant type
• codes grouped by themes
• memos grouped by research stage

An item can belong to multiple groups at the same time.

Folders create a hierarchical structure. They are useful when you want to organize items into nested structures, especially for codes.

For code hierarchies, folders and sub-codes are usually more appropriate than groups.

Open managers in ATLAS.ti Windows and Mac

Managers are where you organize documents, codes, memos, and networks.

You can open managers by:

• double-clicking Documents, Codes, Memos, or Networks in the Project Explorer on the left side

In ATLAS.ti Windows, you can also:

• go to Home and select Documents, Codes, Memos, or Networks

In ATLAS.ti Mac, you can also:

• go to Document > Show Document Manager
• go to Code > Show Code Manager
• go to Memo > Show Memo Manager
• go to Network > Show Network Manager

Inside each manager:

• the right side displays the entities themselves
• the left side displays groups
• folders appear within the entity list on the right side

Create groups and folders in Windows and Mac

To create groups or folders:

1. Open a manager
2. Select one or more items
3. Right-click the selection
4. Choose:
   • New Group from Selection
   • New Folder from Selection

This works for documents, codes, memos and networks

You can also create empty folders or other entities directly from managers:

1. Open the manager

2. Click New

   

3. Select Folder or any desired option.

In the Code Manager, for example, you can create:

Organize entities with drag and drop

You can quickly organize items using drag and drop.

For example:

• drag codes into an existing code group
• drag documents into document groups
• drag memos into memo groups

You can also drag items into an empty area in the groups panel to create a new group automatically from the selected items.

This is often the fastest way to organize larger projects.

Use group managers

ATLAS.ti also includes dedicated group managers:

• Document Group Manager
• Code Group Manager
• Memo Group Manager
• Network Group Manager

To open them:

• double-click the group section in the Project Explorer

These managers help you navigate and organize groups themselves, which is especially useful in large projects.

Organize groups in ATLAS.ti Web

In ATLAS.ti Web, you can organize documents, codes and memos.

Quotations do not support groups.

To manage groups:

1. Open the Document, Code, or Memo Manager from the left panel
2. Locate the Groups column
3. Click inside the Groups field for an item

4. Select existing groups or create new ones

   

You can assign multiple groups to the same item.

To manage all groups:

1. Open a manager

2. Click the three dots in the top-right corner

   

3. Select Groups

   

You can:

• create groups
• rename groups
• delete groups

You can also:

1. Select multiple items using the checkboxes
2. Click the action menu at the bottom
3. Select Add to group

Structure codes with categories and sub-codes in ATLAS.ti Web

ATLAS.ti Web also supports hierarchical code organization.

You can:

• Create categories and sub-codes
  • to learn more about sub-codes in ATLAS.ti Web click here
• Move codes into nested structures

This helps organize larger code systems into broader themes and more detailed subtopics.

For broader labels or overlapping classifications, groups may still be more appropriate.

Common issues

• I cannot find my groups
  • Make sure the groups panel is visible inside the manager. In some layouts, it may be collapsed or hidden.
• Should I use folders or groups?
  • Use:
    • folders for hierarchical organization
    • groups for flexible labels and filtering
• Why can one item belong to several groups?
  • Groups are designed as organizational labels rather than containers. This allows the same document, code, or memo to appear in multiple analytical contexts.

When to contact support

Contact support if:

• groups are not saving correctly
• drag and drop does not work as expected
• managers or groups panels are missing
• code hierarchies behave unexpectedly after syncing or importing projects