{"id":5125,"date":"2022-09-30T04:04:20","date_gmt":"2022-09-30T04:04:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/?page_id=5125"},"modified":"2025-03-27T10:20:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-27T10:20:58","slug":"python-path","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-standard-library\/python-path\/","title":{"rendered":"Python Path"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Summary<\/strong>: in this tutorial, you’ll learn how to use the Python Path class from the pathlib module to interact with the file system across platforms easily and effectively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction to the Python Path class #<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The pathlib<\/code> is a built-in module that allows you to interact with the file system more effectively. In addition, the pathlib<\/code> works across operating systems including Windows, macOS and Linux.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pathlib<\/code> treats the paths as objects. So instead of using paths as strings, you use the Path<\/code> class to manage paths.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To use the Path<\/code> class from the pathlib<\/code> module, you import<\/a> it as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n

from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Getting the path of the home directory  #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Since Path<\/code> is a class, you can access its methods and properies. For example, you can get the path of the home directory by calling the home()<\/code> static method like this:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\nhome = Path.home()\nprint(home)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
On Windows, it returns something like:<\/p>\n\n\n
C:\\Users\\root<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
On Linux, it returns the home directory of the current user:<\/p>\n\n\n
\/home\/root<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
…with an assumption that the root<\/code> is the user on both Windows and Linux.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Getting the path of the current working directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Similarly, you can call the cwd()<\/code> static method to get the path of the current working directory:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\ncwd = Path.cwd()\nprint(cwd)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
D:\\demo\\pathlib<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Creating a Path object from a string #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To create a Path<\/code> object, you can pass a string to the Path()<\/code> like this:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Getting the parent directory of a path #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To get the first parent directory path of the current working directory by accessing the parent property like this:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('D:\/home\/root\/projects\/project_a\/tests'<\/span>)\nprint(path.parent)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
D:\\home\\root\\projects\\project_a<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
To get the path of the nth<\/sup> parent directory, you can use the parents property:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('D:\/home\/root\/projects\/project_a\/tests'<\/span>)\nprint(path.parents[3<\/span>])<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
D:\\home<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Joining paths #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To join paths, you use the \/<\/code> operator. For example, the get the path of the Downloads<\/code> directory located inside the home directory, you can use the \/<\/code> operator as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path.home() \/ 'Downloads'<\/span>\nprint(path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
C:\\Users\\root\\Downloads<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
The \/<\/code> operator returns a new Path<\/code> object. Therefore, you can use it multiple times in an expression. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path.home() \/ 'Downloads'<\/span> \/ 'Documents'<\/span>\nprint(path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
C:\\Users\\root\\Downloads\\Documents<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Checking if a path exists #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A path can be a file or a directory, to check if a path exists, you can use the exists()<\/code> method. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\nprint(path.exists())<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
The exists()<\/code> method returns True<\/code> if the path exists or False<\/code> otherwise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Resolving a path #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To get the full path of a Path<\/code> object, you use the resolve()<\/code> method. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\nfull_path = path.resolve()\n\nprint(full_path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
D:\\demo\\path\\readme.txt<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Getting file name and extension #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To get the file name of a path, you use the name<\/code> property:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\nprint(path.name)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
readme.txt<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
To get the file name without extension, you use the stem<\/code> property:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\n\nprint(path.stem)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
readme<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
To get the extension of the file, you use the suffix<\/code> property:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\nprint(path.suffix)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Output:<\/p>\n\n\n
.txt<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Checking if a path is file or directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The is_file()<\/code> method returns True<\/code> if a path is a file or False<\/code> otherwise. Likewise, the is_dir()<\/code> reuturns True<\/code> if a path is a directory  or False<\/code> otherwse.<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('readme.txt'<\/span>)\nprint(path.is_file())  # True<\/span>\n\npath = Path.cwd()\nprint(path.is_dir())  # True<\/span><\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Using Python Path to interact with files #<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The Path objet allows you to create, rename, and delete files.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Creating a file #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To create a file, you use the touch()<\/code> method. For example, the following creates the readme.md<\/code> file in the current working directory:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('notes.md'<\/span>)\npath.touch()<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
To write text to a file, you use the write_text()<\/code> method:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('notes.md'<\/span>)\npath.touch()\npath.write_text('# Path is awesome'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Note that you can also create a binary file and write bytes to it using the write_bytes()<\/code> method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Deleting a file #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To delete a file, you use the unlink()<\/code> method:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('notes.md'<\/span>)\npath.unlink()<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
If the path doesn’t exist, the unlink()<\/code> method will raise a FileNotFoundError<\/code> exception. To avoid this, you can use the missing_ok<\/code> argument:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\npath = Path('notes.md'<\/span>)\npath.unlink(missing_ok=True<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Renaming a file #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To rename a file, you use the rename()<\/code> method. The following example creates the notes.md<\/code> file, write a text into it, and rename its name to notes.txt<\/code>:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n# create the notes.md<\/span>\npath = Path('notes.md'<\/span>)\npath.touch()\npath.write_text('My notes'<\/span>)\n\n# rename nodes.md to notes.txt<\/span>\npath.rename('notes.txt'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Listing files in a directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
The iterdir()<\/code> method iterates over a directory. It returns a generator that yields the paths including both a path of a file or a directory. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
To list all files in a directory, you can combine the iterdir()<\/code> method with is_file()<\/code> method. For example, the following lists all files in the downloads directory located inside the home directory:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\ndownload_path = Path.home() \/ 'downloads'<\/span>\nfor<\/span> path in<\/span> download_path.iterdir():\n    if<\/span> path.is_file():\n        print(path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
If you want to get a particular file type, you can use the suffix property. For example, the following lists all text files from the downloads directory:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\ndownload_path = Path.home() \/ 'downloads'<\/span>\n\nfor<\/span> path in<\/span> download_path.iterdir():\n    if<\/span> path.is_file() and<\/span> path.suffix == '.txt'<\/span>:\n        print(path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Or in a more pythonic way using a list comprehension:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\ndownload_path = Path.home() \/ 'downloads'<\/span>\n\nfile_paths = [path for<\/span> path in<\/span> download_path.iterdir()\n              if<\/span> path.is_file() and<\/span> path.suffix == '.txt'<\/span>]\nprint(file_paths)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Using Python Path to interact with directories #<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Like files, the Path also allows you to create, rename, and remove directories.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Creating a directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To create a directory, you use the mkdir()<\/code> method. The following example creates a test directory in the current working directory:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('test'<\/span>)\npath.mkdir()<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
If the test directory exists, the mkdir()<\/code> method will raise the FileExistsError<\/code> exception. To avoid the exception if the directory already exists, you can use the exist_ok<\/code> argument:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('test'<\/span>)\npath.mkdir(exist_ok=True<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Renaming a directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To rename a directory, you use the rename()<\/code> method. For example, the following renames the directory test to tests (with additional s<\/code>):<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('test'<\/span>)\npath.rename('tests'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Deleting a directory #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To delete a directory, you use the rmdir()<\/code> method. Note that the directory must be empty:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('tests'<\/span>)\npath.rmdir()<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
If the directory doesn’t exist, the rmdir()<\/code><\/code> method will raise a FileNotFoundErorr<\/code> exception. To avoid this, you can check if the directory exists before calling the rmdir()<\/code><\/code> method:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\npath = Path('tests'<\/span>)\n\nif<\/span> path.exists():\n    path.rmdir()<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Listing subdirectories #<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
To list all subdirectories of a path, you use the iterdir()<\/code> and is_dir()<\/code> methods. For example, the following lists all subdirectories of the downloads path:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\ndownload_path = Path.home() \/ 'downloads'<\/span>\n\nfor<\/span> path in<\/span> download_path.iterdir():\n    if<\/span> path.is_dir():\n        print(path)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Or in a more pythonic way using a list comprehension:<\/p>\n\n\n
from<\/span> pathlib import<\/span> Path\n\n\ndownload_path = Path.home() \/ 'downloads'<\/span>\n\npaths = [path for<\/span> path in<\/span> download_path.iterdir() if<\/span> path.is_dir()]\nprint(paths)<\/code><\/span>Code language:<\/span> Python<\/span> (<\/span>python<\/span>)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n
Summary #<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Description<\/th>Methods \/ Properties<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
Create a new Path object from a string<\/td>Path('path\/to\/file\/or\/directory\/')<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Join paths using the \/<\/code> operator<\/td>path = path1 \/ path2 \/ 'my_dir' \/ 'my_file.txt'<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Get the path of the home directory<\/td>Path.home<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Get the path of the current working directory <\/td>Path.cwd<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Get the first parent directory of a path<\/td>path.parent<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Get the nth parent directory of a path<\/td>path.parents[n]<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Return True if a path is a file<\/td>path.is_file<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Return True if a path is a directory<\/td>path.is_dir<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Return True if a path exists<\/td>path.exists<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Create a file<\/td>path.touch<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Write text to a file<\/td>path.write_text(contents)<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Write bytes to a file<\/td>path.write_bytes(bytes)<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Rename a file or directory<\/td>path.rename(target)<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Delete a file<\/td>path.unlink<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Create a directory<\/td>path.mkdir<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
Remove a directory<\/td>path.rmdir<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr>
List files and\/or directories<\/td>path.iterdir<\/code>()<\/code><\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n
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