Python Program to Display all the directories in a directory

In Python, we can use the pathlib module, os module, and glob module to display all the directories within a directory. The os module contains various functions like os.scandir(), os.walk(), os.listdir(), and glob methods like glob() and iglob() to list all directories in a specified path.

Method 1: Using the Pathlib Module

The pathlib module provides an object-oriented approach to handle file system paths. We can use Path.iterdir() to get path objects of directory contents and filter directories using is_dir().

Syntax

Path('directory_path').iterdir()

Example

This example shows how to list all directories in the current working directory ?

from pathlib import Path
import os

# Create some sample directories for demonstration
os.makedirs('sample_dir/subdir1', exist_ok=True)
os.makedirs('sample_dir/subdir2', exist_ok=True)
os.makedirs('sample_dir/subdir3', exist_ok=True)

# Create a file to show it's filtered out
with open('sample_dir/sample_file.txt', 'w') as f:
    f.write('Sample file')

# List all directories
root_path = Path('sample_dir')
print("Directories found:")
for path in root_path.iterdir():
    if path.is_dir():
        print(path)

Directories found:
sample_dir/subdir1
sample_dir/subdir2
sample_dir/subdir3

Method 2: Using the OS Module

Using os.listdir() Method

The os.listdir() method returns all contents of a directory, requiring additional filtering to get only directories ?

import os

# List all directories using os.listdir()
path = "sample_dir"
all_items = os.listdir(path)

print("All items in directory:")
print(all_items)

print("\nDirectories only:")
for item in all_items:
    item_path = os.path.join(path, item)
    if os.path.isdir(item_path):
        print(item)

All items in directory:
['sample_file.txt', 'subdir1', 'subdir2', 'subdir3']

Directories only:
subdir1
subdir2
subdir3

Using os.scandir() Method

The os.scandir() method is more efficient than os.listdir() as it returns directory entries with built-in methods to check file types ?

import os

# Using os.scandir() to list directories
path = "sample_dir"
print("Directories using os.scandir():")

with os.scandir(path) as entries:
    for entry in entries:
        if entry.is_dir():
            print(entry.name)

Directories using os.scandir():
subdir1
subdir2
subdir3

Using os.walk() Method

The os.walk() method recursively traverses directory trees, useful for finding directories at all levels ?

import os

# Create nested directories for demonstration
os.makedirs('sample_dir/subdir1/nested1', exist_ok=True)
os.makedirs('sample_dir/subdir2/nested2', exist_ok=True)

# Using os.walk() to find all directories recursively
path = "sample_dir"
print("All directories (recursive):")

for root, dirs, files in os.walk(path):
    level = root.replace(path, '').count(os.sep)
    indent = ' ' * 2 * level
    print(f"{indent}{os.path.basename(root)}/")
    
    # Print subdirectories
    subindent = ' ' * 2 * (level + 1)
    for directory in dirs:
        print(f"{subindent}{directory}/")

All directories (recursive):
sample_dir/
  subdir1/
    nested1/
  subdir2/
    nested2/
  subdir3/

Method 3: Using the Glob Module

Using glob.glob() Method

The glob module uses pattern matching to find directories. Use the */ pattern to match directories specifically ?

import glob

# Using glob to find directories with pattern matching
path = "sample_dir"

print("Directories using glob pattern '*/':")
directories = glob.glob(f"{path}/*/")
for directory in directories:
    print(directory)

print("\nDirectories using glob pattern (without trailing slash):")
all_items = glob.glob(f"{path}/*")
for item in all_items:
    if os.path.isdir(item):
        print(item)

Directories using glob pattern '*/':
sample_dir/subdir1/
sample_dir/subdir2/
sample_dir/subdir3/

Directories using glob pattern (without trailing slash):
sample_dir/subdir1
sample_dir/subdir2
sample_dir/subdir3

Comparison

Conclusion

Use os.scandir() for best performance, pathlib for modern object-oriented code, and os.walk() for recursive directory traversal. Choose glob when you need pattern matching capabilities.