Can Transnomino Use File Attributes Like Dates, ID3 Tags, and EXIF Data in Filenames?

Updated

Yes. Transnomino can insert file attributes — creation date, ID3 tags, and EXIF data — directly into filenames or paths. You can format dates with presets or your own pattern, and for photos with EXIF GPS data, the latitude and longitude can be used to retrieve address details such as street, city, and country. This makes it possible to rename and sort files automatically by when they were created or where they were taken, rather than doing it by hand.

How attributes fit into the renaming workflow

Transnomino works by stacking renaming actions in sequence and previewing the result in real time as you build them. Attribute insertion is one of those actions, alongside find-and-replace, regular expressions, numbering, case changes, and trimming.

Two details matter for planning:

  • Scope: each renaming action can be applied to the filename, the path, the extension, or the full path. Choosing path is what lets you move files into directories rather than just rename them.
  • Order: because actions run in sequence, the position of the attribute action in your list affects the outcome. Preview before committing.

Dates

Dates can be inserted using pre-set formats or a custom format you define. This applies to creation date and other date attributes, so you can standardize naming (for example, a consistent year-month-day prefix) across a whole batch.

ID3 tags and EXIF data

ID3 tags (audio metadata) and EXIF data (image metadata) can be added to filenames or paths the same way. For images carrying EXIF GPS coordinates, Transnomino can resolve the latitude and longitude into address information — street, city, and country — which you can then use in the name or folder structure.

Organizing files into folders by date or location

Path renaming is the mechanism for sorting rather than just labeling. The site gives two concrete examples:

  • Organize files into directories based on their creation date.
  • Sort photos into separate directories by date and GPS location.

In practice, this means building a path action that combines a date attribute with a location attribute, then previewing to confirm the folder tree before applying it to the batch.

Practical limits to check before you start

  • Version and OS: the current download is version 10.1.0 for macOS 14 and later; older macOS versions need the legacy builds listed on the site.
  • Attribute coverage: the site points to its changelog for the complete list of supported file attributes, so confirm your specific tag type there before relying on it.
  • Automation: Transnomino supports automation, documented on its own automation page, if you want attribute-based renaming to run as part of a repeatable process.

If your goal is simply to rename many files at once with text rules, the attribute features aren't required. They become useful specifically when the naming or folder structure should be derived from what's inside the file — its creation time, its audio tags, or where a photo was taken.