PYnative

Python Programming

  • Learn Python
  • Exercises
  • Quizzes
  • Code Editor
  • Tricks
Home » Python » File Handling » Python List Files in a Directory

Python List Files in a Directory

Updated on: January 19, 2022 | Leave a Comment

In this article, we will see how to list all files of a directory in Python. There are multiple ways to list files of a directory. In this article, We will use the following four methods.

  • os.listdir('dir_path'): Return the list of files and directories present in a specified directory path.
  • os.walk('dir_path'): Recursively get the list all files in directory and subdirectories.
  • os.scandir('path'): Returns directory entries along with file attribute information.
  • glob.glob('pattern'): glob module to list files and folders whose names follow a specific pattern.

Table of contents

  • How to List All Files of a Directory
    • Example to List Files of a Directory
  • os.walk() to list all files in directory and subdirectories
  • os.scandir() to get files of a directory
  • Glob Module to list Files of a Directory
  • Pathlib Module to list files of a directory

How to List All Files of a Directory

Getting a list of files of a directory is easy as pie! Use the listdir() and isfile() functions of an os module to list all files of a directory. Here are the steps.

  1. Import os module

    This module helps us to work with operating system-dependent functionality in Python. The os module provides functions for interacting with the operating system.

  2. Use os.listdir() function

    The os.listdir('path') function returns a list containing the names of the files and directories present in the directory given by the path.

  3. Iterate the result

    Use for loop to Iterate the files returned by the listdir() function. Using for loop we will iterate each file returned by the listdir() function

  4. Use isfile() function

    In each loop iteration, use the os.path.isfile('path') function to check whether the current path is a file or directory. If it is a file, then add it to a list. This function returns True if a given path is a file. Otherwise, it returns False.

Example to List Files of a Directory

Let’s see how to list files of an ‘account’ folder. The listdir() will list files only in the current directory and ignore the subdirectories.

Example 1: List only files from a directory

import os

# folder path
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'

# list to store files
res = []

# Iterate directory
for path in os.listdir(dir_path):
    # check if current path is a file
    if os.path.isfile(os.path.join(dir_path, path)):
        res.append(path)
print(res)

Output:

Here we got three file names.

['profit.txt', 'sales.txt', 'sample.txt']

If you know generator expression, you can make code smaller and simplers using a generator function as shown below.

Generator Expression:

import os

def get_files(path):
    for file in os.listdir(path):
        if os.path.isfile(os.path.join(path, file)):
            yield file

Then simply call it whenever required.

for file in get_files(r'E:\\account\\'):
    print(file)

Example 2: List both files and directories.

Directly call the listdir('path') function to get the content of a directory.

import os

# folder path
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'

# list file and directories
res = os.listdir(dir_path)
print(res)

Output:

As you can see in the output, ‘reports_2021’ is a directory.

['profit.txt', 'reports_2021', 'sales.txt', 'sample.txt']

os.walk() to list all files in directory and subdirectories

The os.walk() function returns a generator that creates a tuple of values (current_path, directories in current_path, files in current_path).

Note: Using the os.walk() function we can list all directories, subdirectories, and files in a given directory.

It is a recursive function, i.e., every time the generator is called, it will follow each directory recursively to get a list of files and directories until no further sub-directories are available from the initial directory.

For example, calling the os.walk('path') will yield two lists for each directory it visits. The first list contains files, and the second list includes directories.

Let’s see the example to list all files in directory and subdirectories.

Example:

from os import walk

# folder path
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'

# list to store files name
res = []
for (dir_path, dir_names, file_names) in walk(dir_path):
    res.extend(file_names)
print(res)

Output:

['profit.txt', 'sales.txt', 'sample.txt', 'december_2021.txt']

Note: Add break inside a loop to stop looking for files recursively inside subdirectories.

Example:

from os import walk

# folder path
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'
res = []
for (dir_path, dir_names, file_names) in walk(dir_path):
    res.extend(file_names)
    # don't look inside any subdirectory
    break
print(res)

os.scandir() to get files of a directory

The scandir() function returns directory entries along with file attribute information, giving better performance for many common use cases.

It returns an iterator of os.DirEntry objects, which contains file names.

Example:

import os

# get all files inside a specific folder
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'
for path in os.scandir(dir_path):
    if path.is_file():
        print(path.name)

Output:

profit.txt
sales.txt
sample.txt

Glob Module to list Files of a Directory

The Python glob module, part of the Python Standard Library, is used to find the files and folders whose names follow a specific pattern.

For example, to get all files of a directory, we will use the dire_path/*.* pattern. Here, *.* means file with any extension.

Read more: Python list files in a directory with extension txt.

Let’s see how to list files from a directory using a glob module.

Example:

import glob

# search all files inside a specific folder
# *.* means file name with any extension
dir_path = r'E:\account\*.*'
res = glob.glob(dir_path)
print(res)

Output:

['E:\\account\\profit.txt', 'E:\\account\\sales.txt', 'E:\\account\\sample.txt']

Note: If you want to list files from subdirectories, then set the recursive attribute to True.

Example:

import glob

# search all files inside a specific folder
# *.* means file name with any extension
dir_path = r'E:\demos\files_demos\account\**\*.*'
for file in glob.glob(dir_path, recursive=True):
    print(file)

Output:

E:\account\profit.txt
E:\account\sales.txt
E:\account\sample.txt
E:\account\reports_2021\december_2021.txt

Pathlib Module to list files of a directory

From Python 3.4 onwards, we can use the pathlib module, which provides a wrapper for most OS functions.

  • Import pathlib module: Pathlib module offers classes and methods to handle filesystem paths and get data related to files for different operating systems.
  • Next, Use the pathlib.Path('path') to construct directory path
  • Next, Use the iterdir() to iterate all entries of a directory
  • In the end, check if a current entry is a file using the path.isfile() function

Example:

import pathlib

# folder path
dir_path = r'E:\\account\\'

# to store file names
res = []

# construct path object
d = pathlib.Path(dir_path)

# iterate directory
for entry in d.iterdir():
    # check if it a file
    if entry.is_file():
        res.append(entry)
print(res)

Filed Under: Python, Python File Handling

Did you find this page helpful? Let others know about it. Sharing helps me continue to create free Python resources.

TweetF  sharein  shareP  Pin

About Vishal

Founder of PYnative.com I am a Python developer and I love to write articles to help developers. Follow me on Twitter. All the best for your future Python endeavors!

Related Tutorial Topics:

Python Python File Handling

Python Exercises and Quizzes

Free coding exercises and quizzes cover Python basics, data structure, data analytics, and more.

  • 15+ Topic-specific Exercises and Quizzes
  • Each Exercise contains 10 questions
  • Each Quiz contains 12-15 MCQ
Exercises
Quizzes

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

your email address will NOT be published. all comments are moderated according to our comment policy.

Use <pre> tag for posting code. E.g. <pre> Your code </pre>

Posted In

Python Python File Handling
TweetF  sharein  shareP  Pin

Python File Handling

  • File Handling In Python
  • Create File in Python
  • Open a File in Python
  • Read File in Python
  • Write to File in Python
  • Python File Seek
  • Rename Files in Python
  • Delete Files in Python
  • Copy Files in Python
  • Move Files in Python
  • List Files in a Directory
  • File Handling Quiz

All Python Topics

Python Basics Python Exercises Python Quizzes Python File Handling Python OOP Python Date and Time Python Random Python Regex Python Pandas Python Databases Python MySQL Python PostgreSQL Python SQLite Python JSON

About PYnative

PYnative.com is for Python lovers. Here, You can get Tutorials, Exercises, and Quizzes to practice and improve your Python skills.

Explore Python

  • Learn Python
  • Python Basics
  • Python Databases
  • Python Exercises
  • Python Quizzes
  • Online Python Code Editor
  • Python Tricks

Follow Us

To get New Python Tutorials, Exercises, and Quizzes

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Sitemap

Legal Stuff

  • About Us
  • Contact Us

We use cookies to improve your experience. While using PYnative, you agree to have read and accepted our Terms Of Use, Cookie Policy, and Privacy Policy.

Copyright © 2018–2023 pynative.com