How Can I Efficiently List Only Files in a Directory Using Python?

Getting Files From a Directory

Retrieving a directory's file list is a common task in Python programming. One way to do this is using os.listdir(), which returns all items within a directory, including both files and directories.

Approach 1: Using os.path.isfile()

To list only files, use os.path.isfile():

from os import listdir
from os.path import isfile, join
mypath = 'path/to/directory'
onlyfiles = [f for f in listdir(mypath) if isfile(join(mypath, f))]

Approach 2: Using os.walk()

os.walk() iterates over a directory and its subdirectories, returning a tuple for each directory it visits. This tuple contains three lists: one for files, one for directories, and one for the current directory itself.

from os import walk
mypath = 'path/to/directory'
filenames = next(walk(mypath), (None, None, []))[2]  # [] if no files

This approach provides a more complete representation of the directory structure. To list files in only the current directory, break the loop after the first iteration:

from os import walk

f = []
for (dirpath, dirnames, filenames) in walk(mypath):
    f.extend(filenames)
    break

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