{"id":702,"date":"2020-10-22T08:46:39","date_gmt":"2020-10-22T08:46:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/?page_id=702"},"modified":"2025-03-30T11:49:53","modified_gmt":"2025-03-30T11:49:53","slug":"python-create-text-file","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-create-text-file\/","title":{"rendered":"Python Create Text File"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Summary<\/strong>: in this tutorial, you&#8217;ll learn how to create a new text file in Python using the <code>open()<\/code> function.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='using-the-open-function-to-create-a-new-text-file'>Using the open() function to create a new text file <a href=\"#using-the-open-function-to-create-a-new-text-file\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"using-the-open-function-to-create-a-new-text-file\" title=\"Anchor for Using the open() function to create a new text file\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>To create a new text file, you use the <code>open()<\/code> function. The <code>open()<\/code> function has many parameters. However, we&#8217;ll focus on the first two parameters:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\"><span><code class=\"hljs\">f = open(path_to_file, mode)<\/code><\/span><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>In this syntax, the <code>path_to_file<\/code> parameter specifies the path to the text file that you want to create.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For creating a new text file, you use one of the following modes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><code>'w'<\/code> &#8211; open a file for writing. If the file doesn&#8217;t exist, the <code>open()<\/code> function creates a new file. Otherwise, it&#8217;ll overwrite the contents of the existing file.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><code>'x'<\/code> &#8211; open a file for exclusive creation. If the file exists, the <code>open()<\/code> function raises an error (<code>FileExistsError<\/code>). Otherwise, it&#8217;ll create the text file.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>For example, the following creates a new file called <code>readme.txt<\/code> and write some text into it:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-1\" data-shcb-language-name=\"JavaScript\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"javascript\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-javascript\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">with<\/span> open(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'readme.txt'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'w'<\/span>) <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">as<\/span> f:\n    f.write(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Create a new text file!'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-1\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">JavaScript<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">javascript<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>This script creates a file with the name <code>readme.txt<\/code> in the same directory where the script file locates. If you want to create a file in a specified directory e.g., <code>docs\/readme.text<\/code>, you need to ensure that the <code>docs<\/code> directory exists before creating the file. Otherwise, you&#8217;ll get an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-oop\/python-exceptions\/\">exception<\/a>. For example:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-2\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">with<\/span> open(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'docs\/readme.txt'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'w'<\/span>) <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">as<\/span> f:\n    f.write(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Create a new text file!'<\/span>)\n<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-2\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Error:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-3\" data-shcb-language-name=\"JavaScript\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"javascript\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-javascript\">FileNotFoundError: &#91;Errno <span class=\"hljs-number\">2<\/span>] No such file or directory: <span class=\"hljs-string\">'docs\/readme.txt'<\/span><\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-3\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">JavaScript<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">javascript<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>In this example, Python <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-oop\/python-raise-exception\/\">raises an exception<\/a> because the <code>docs<\/code> directory doesn&#8217;t exist. Therefore, it could not create the <code>readme.txt<\/code> file in that directory. To fix the issue, you need to create the <code>docs<\/code> directory first and then create the <code>readme.txt<\/code> file in that folder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also, you can handle the exception using the try-except statement as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-4\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">try<\/span>:\n    <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">with<\/span> open(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'docs\/readme.txt'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'w'<\/span>) <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">as<\/span> f:\n        f.write(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Create a new text file!'<\/span>)\n<span class=\"hljs-keyword\">except<\/span> FileNotFoundError:\n    print(<span class=\"hljs-string\">\"The 'docs' directory does not exist\"<\/span>)\n<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-4\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>Output:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-5\" data-shcb-language-name=\"plaintext\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"plaintext\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-plaintext\">The 'docs' directory does not exist<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-5\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">plaintext<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">plaintext<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<p>If you don&#8217;t want to create a new text file in case it already exists, you can use the <code>'x'<\/code> mode when calling the <code>open()<\/code> function:<\/p>\n\n\n<pre class=\"wp-block-code\" aria-describedby=\"shcb-language-6\" data-shcb-language-name=\"Python\" data-shcb-language-slug=\"python\"><span><code class=\"hljs language-python\"><span class=\"hljs-keyword\">with<\/span> open(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'readme.txt'<\/span>, <span class=\"hljs-string\">'x'<\/span>) <span class=\"hljs-keyword\">as<\/span> f:\n    f.write(<span class=\"hljs-string\">'Create a new text file!'<\/span>)<\/code><\/span><small class=\"shcb-language\" id=\"shcb-language-6\"><span class=\"shcb-language__label\">Code language:<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__name\">Python<\/span> <span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">(<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__slug\">python<\/span><span class=\"shcb-language__paren\">)<\/span><\/small><\/pre>\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='summary'>Summary <a href=\"#summary\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"summary\" title=\"Anchor for Summary\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Use the <code>open()<\/code> function with the <code>'w'<\/code> or <code>'x'<\/code> mode to create a new text file.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id='quiz'>Quiz <a href=\"#quiz\" class=\"anchor\" id=\"quiz\" title=\"Anchor for Quiz\">#<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\"\n  name=\"quiz\"\n  src=\"\/quiz\/?quiz=create-text-file\"\n  height=\"700\"\n  width=\"600\"\n  class=\"iframe\"\n><\/iframe>\n\n<div class=\"helpful-block-content\" data-title=\"\">\n\t<header>\n\t\t<div class=\"wth-question\">Was this tutorial helpful ?<\/div>\n\t\t<div class=\"wth-thumbs\">\n\t\t\t<button\n\t\t\t\tdata-post=\"702\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-create-text-file\/\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-title=\"Python Create Text File\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-response=\"1\"\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"wth-btn-rounded wth-yes-btn\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t<svg\n\t\t\t\t\txmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"\n\t\t\t\t\tviewBox=\"0 0 24 24\"\n\t\t\t\t\tfill=\"none\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke=\"currentColor\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-width=\"2\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-linecap=\"round\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-linejoin=\"round\"\n\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"feather feather-thumbs-up block w-full h-full\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t<path\n\t\t\t\t\t\td=\"M14 9V5a3 3 0 0 0-3-3l-4 9v11h11.28a2 2 0 0 0 2-1.7l1.38-9a2 2 0 0 0-2-2.3zM7 22H4a2 2 0 0 1-2-2v-7a2 2 0 0 1 2-2h3\"\n\t\t\t\t\t><\/path>\n\t\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sr-only\"> Yes <\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t<button\n\t\t\t\tdata-response=\"0\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post=\"702\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-url=\"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/python-basics\/python-create-text-file\/\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-post-title=\"Python Create Text File\"\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"wth-btn-rounded wth-no-btn\"\n\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t<svg\n\t\t\t\t\txmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\"\n\t\t\t\t\tviewBox=\"0 0 24 24\"\n\t\t\t\t\tfill=\"none\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke=\"currentColor\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-width=\"2\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-linecap=\"round\"\n\t\t\t\t\tstroke-linejoin=\"round\"\n\t\t\t\t>\n\t\t\t\t\t<path\n\t\t\t\t\t\td=\"M10 15v4a3 3 0 0 0 3 3l4-9V2H5.72a2 2 0 0 0-2 1.7l-1.38 9a2 2 0 0 0 2 2.3zm7-13h2.67A2.31 2.31 0 0 1 22 4v7a2.31 2.31 0 0 1-2.33 2H17\"\n\t\t\t\t\t><\/path>\n\t\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"sr-only\"> No <\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/button>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/header>\n\n\t<div class=\"wth-form hidden\">\n\t\t<div class=\"wth-form-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"wth-title\"><\/div>\n\t\t\t<textarea class=\"wth-message\"><\/textarea>\n\t\t\t<input type=\"button\" name=\"wth-submit\" class=\"wth-btn wth-btn-submit\" id=\"wth-submit\" \/>\n\t\t\t<input type=\"button\" class=\"wth-btn wth-btn-cancel\" value=\"Cancel\" \/>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In this tutorial, you&#8217;ll learn how to create a new text file in Python using the open() function.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":37,"menu_order":67,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-702","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/702","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=702"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/702\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7227,"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/702\/revisions\/7227"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/37"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pythontutorial.net\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=702"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}