How do you Python get the size of the file?

General Discussions
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1

How do you Python get the size of the file?

Is there a built-in function in Python to get the size of a file in bytes? I’ve seen approaches like this:

def getSize(fileobject):
    fileobject.seek(0, 2)  # Move the cursor to the end of the file
    size = fileobject.tell()
    return size

file = open('myfile.bin', 'rb')
print(getSize(file))

However, since Python has many helper functions, is there a more straightforward or built-in way to Python get size of file?

2

The os.path module provides a built-in function, getsize, to fetch the size of a file in bytes.

import os

file_path = 'myfile.bin'
file_size = os.path.getsize(file_path)
print(f"File size: {file_size} bytes")

This method is straightforward and does not require opening the file.

3

The pathlib module offers an object-oriented approach to handling file paths, including retrieving file sizes.

from pathlib import Path

file_path = Path('myfile.bin')
file_size = file_path.stat().st_size
print(f"File size: {file_size} bytes")

This method is concise and integrates well with modern Python practices.

4

You can calculate the size manually using the file object’s seek and tell methods, though it is less preferred.

def get_file_size(file_path):
    with open(file_path, 'rb') as file:
        file.seek(0, 2)  # Move cursor to the end
        size = file.tell()
    return size

file_size = get_file_size('myfile.bin')
print(f"File size: {file_size} bytes")

This method mimics the process you provided but is encapsulated in a reusable function.