Check if Python directory exists

General Discussions
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#1

How do I check if Python directory exists?

#2

I’ve been working with file systems for a while, and one quick way to python check if directory exists is by using os.path.exists(). It checks if a file or directory exists at a specified path:

import os

directory = "/path/to/directory"
if os.path.exists(directory):
    print("Directory exists")
else:
    print("Directory does not exist")

This works for both files and directories, so it’s pretty versatile!

#3

That’s a great start, Rima! Just to refine it a bit further, if you specifically want to python check if directory exists and not just any file, os.path.isdir() is more precise. Here’s how you could do it:

import os

directory = "/path/to/directory"
if os.path.isdir(directory):
    print("Directory exists")
else:
    print("Directory does not exist")

This way, you’re strictly checking for directories only.

#4

Both methods are fantastic! But if you’re leaning toward a more modern, object-oriented approach, the pathlib module is worth exploring. When I need to python check if directory exists, I often use Path.is_dir() from pathlib—it’s concise and Pythonic:

from pathlib import Path

directory = Path("/path/to/directory")
if directory.is_dir():
    print("Directory exists")
else:
    print("Directory does not exist")

pathlib works seamlessly with other filesystem operations, so it’s great for more complex scripts.