Important documents have a habit of being everywhere except where you need them. MOT certificates in email. Insurance schedules in a folder on someone's desktop. Warranty PDFs downloaded and forgotten. The boiler manual physically taped to the inside of a cupboard door.
SimpliHome Files gives your Circle a shared document vault on your phone. Upload once, access from anywhere, share instantly — with a link or directly by email — without exposing files to the open internet.
#Opening Files
Tap Files in the app navigation.
The home screen shows:
- Storage usage — a visual breakdown of how much of your Circle's storage is in use and what's using it
- Pinned folders — folders you've starred for quick access
- Quick actions — upload a file or create a new folder
- Recent files — files added or modified recently across the whole vault
- All folders — every folder in your Circle's vault
#Folders
SimpliHome Files organises documents into folders. Several protected folders are created by default:
- Pictures — household photos
- Documents — general documents
- Houses — property and home-related documents
- Cars — vehicle documents
These cannot be deleted, but you can create subfolders within them and rename the subfolders freely.
Creating a folder:
- On the Files home screen, tap New Folder
- Enter a name
- Tap Create
Or navigate into an existing folder and tap New Folder there to create a nested subfolder.
#Uploading Files
- Navigate to the folder where you want to store the file
- Tap Upload (or the + button on the home screen)
- Choose a file from your device
- The file uploads immediately
The mobile app supports any file type — PDFs, Word documents, images, spreadsheets, ZIP archives. SimpliHome shows a preview for PDFs and images directly in the app.
Tip: Name files descriptively before uploading. "Insurance Certificate 2026.pdf" is far easier to find later than "doc1.pdf".
#Sharing files into SimpliHome from other apps
The SimpliHome app registers as a share target on iOS and Android, so you can send files directly from any other app — Mail, Files, Safari, Photos — without needing to download and re-upload.
On iPhone:
- Open the file in any app (e.g. a PDF attachment in Mail)
- Tap the Share button (box with arrow)
- Scroll to SimpliHome in the share sheet
- Choose the destination folder
- Tap Save to SimpliHome
On Android:
- Open the file or image
- Tap Share
- Select SimpliHome from the list
- Choose the folder and confirm
This is the fastest way to save email attachments — insurance certificates, utility bills, school letters — directly into the right folder as soon as they arrive.
#Viewing a File
Tap any file to open it.
The file detail screen shows:
- A preview (for PDFs and images)
- File name, size, type, and upload date
- Action buttons — Download, Share, Email, Move, Delete
#Searching Files
Tap the search icon at the top of the Files screen.
You can search by:
- File name — finds files whose names contain your search term
- Folder name — narrows results to files within a specific folder
Results appear as you type. Tap any result to open the file directly.
#Sharing a File With a Secure Link
Sometimes you need to share a document with someone outside your Circle — a contractor, a solicitor, a family member who isn't in SimpliHome.
To share a file:
- Open the file
- Tap Share
- The share sheet opens with a secure link (e.g.,
simplihome.app/v/x82-ZG7q-r4)
Sharing options you can configure:
| Option | What it does | |---|---| | Anyone with the link can view | Toggle off to disable the link entirely | | Require password | Recipients must enter a password before viewing | | Allow download | Toggle off to allow viewing but prevent saving the file |
Tap Copy Link to copy the URL. Share it via any app — iMessage, WhatsApp, email, however you prefer.
The recipient opens the link in their browser and sees the file — no SimpliHome account needed.
#Emailing a File
For a more formal share, send the file directly as an email attachment.
- Open the file
- Tap Email
- The email composer opens with the file attached and a draft message pre-filled
- Add or remove recipients — the composer remembers recently used addresses
- Adjust the subject and body as needed
- Tap Send
The email sends from your SimpliHome account email address with the file attached.
This is useful for:
- Sending an insurance certificate to a broker
- Forwarding a gas safety certificate to a tenant
- Emailing a warranty document to a manufacturer for a claim
#Moving a File
Need to reorganise? You can move any file to a different folder.
- Open the file
- Tap Move
- The folder picker opens — navigate the folder tree and select the destination
- Tap Move Here
The file moves immediately. Its location updates across all devices.
#Pinning Folders
For folders you use frequently, pin them so they appear at the top of the Files home screen.
Tap the pin icon on any folder in the folder list. Pinned folders appear in a dedicated section above the full folder list.
Tap the pin again to unpin.
#Deleting Files
- Open the file
- Tap Delete
- Confirm
Files are permanently deleted. If you're not sure, download a copy first.
The protected base folders (Pictures, Documents, Houses, Cars) cannot be deleted, but all files within them can be.
#Storage Usage
The Files home screen shows a visual storage breakdown — how much your Circle is using and what types of files are taking up space.
If you're approaching your storage limit:
- Delete files you no longer need
- Compress large images before uploading
- Check for duplicate files — the same document uploaded twice is common
To see your exact usage, check Settings → Subscription where your plan's storage allocation is shown.
#Permissions
| Action | Admin | Family | Relatives | Friends | |---|---|---|---|---| | View and open files | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Upload files | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Create folders | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Share / email files | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Move files | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Delete own files | ✅ | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | | Delete any file | ✅ | ❌ | ❌ | ❌ |
The Files vault is accessible only to Admin and Family members. Relatives and Friends do not have access.
#What to Store in the Vault
#Essentials (add these first)
These are the documents you'd be most stressed about losing or not being able to find in an emergency:
- Insurance certificates — home, car, life, health, travel
- V5C vehicle logbooks
- Mortgage agreement or tenancy agreement
- Property title deeds
- Will and power of attorney
#Important (add when you have time)
- MOT and service certificates for each vehicle
- Gas safety certificate and electrical installation certificate
- Warranties and proof of purchase for appliances
- Passport copies (for identity reference — not as a replacement for the physical document)
- School reports, GCSEs, A-levels
- P60s and self-assessment returns
#Useful
- Appliance user manuals (PDFs are usually available online, but having them in one place is convenient)
- Medical letters and test results
- Planning permission documents
- Building survey or homebuyer report
#Files vs Attaching Documents to Records
SimpliHome has two ways to store files:
The Files vault — a central folder structure for any document. Good for general household paperwork and documents that belong to the household rather than a specific record.
Record attachments — Bills, vehicles, and insurance records let you attach documents directly to that record. An MOT certificate attached to the car record is found in context when you open that car — you don't need to remember which folder it's in.
The best approach: use both. Attach the MOT certificate to the car record, and keep a copy in the Cars folder in the vault. The record-level attachment gives context; the vault gives a complete document archive that you can search and share.
#Tips
Upload immediately. When you receive an important document — an insurance certificate, a service record, a warranty card — upload it straight away rather than leaving it in email or downloads. The habit of "upload now, find it later" is what makes the vault actually useful.
Use subfolders for years. Documents/Tax/2025-26/ keeps annual documents from accumulating in one folder and makes retrieval trivial.
Share links for temporary access. If a contractor needs to see a survey or a specification document, share a link rather than attaching the file to an email. You can disable the link afterwards.
Don't store truly sensitive data in plain text. Passport numbers, bank account details, and similar data should go in the appropriate SimpliHome record fields (which are access-controlled), not in a note or document that could be shared by anyone with link access.