How to get the Latest File in a Folder using Python

In this guide, you’ll see how to get the latest file in a folder using Python.

To start, here is a template that you may use to get the latest file:

import glob
import os.path

folder_path = r'path where your files are located'
file_type = r'\*type'
files = glob.glob(folder_path + file_type)
max_file = max(files, key=os.path.getctime)

print(max_file)

In the next section, you’ll see a simple example with the steps to get the latest file for a given folder.

Steps to get the Latest File in a Folder using Python

Step 1: Capture the Path where the files are stored

To begin, capture the path where your files are currently stored.

For example, let’s assume that 2 CSV files are stored in a ‘Test’ folder, where the path to the folder is:

C:\Users\Ron\Desktop\Test

The names, and the creation date, of the files, are as follows:

You’ll notice that the:

• First file, called Furniture, was created on 2020-01-09 8:04 PM
• Second file, called Products, was created 6 minutes later on 2020-01-09 8:10 PM

The ultimate goal is to get the latest file created. In this case, it would be the ‘Products’ file.

Step 2: Get the Latest File in the Folder using Python

You may now use this template to get the latest file in a folder using Python:

import glob
import os.path

folder_path = r'path where your files are located'
file_type = r'\*type'
files = glob.glob(folder_path + file_type)
max_file = max(files, key=os.path.getctime)

print(max_file)

In the context of our example:

• The path where the files are located is: C:\Users\Ron\Desktop\Test
• The file type is: CSV

So the complete Python code would look as follows (don’t forget to place the ‘r‘ character before your path to avoid any errors in the path name):

import glob
import os.path

folder_path = r'C:\Users\Ron\Desktop\Test'
file_type = r'\*csv'
files = glob.glob(folder_path + file_type)
max_file = max(files, key=os.path.getctime)

print(max_file)

And this is the result:

C:\Users\Ron\Desktop\Test\Products.csv

What if you want to import the latest file into Python?

If that’s the case, you may proceed to step 3 below.

Step 3 (optional step): Import the Latest File into Python

You can use Pandas in order to import a CSV file into Python.

If you haven’t already done so, install the Pandas package. You may use this command to install Pandas under Windows:

pip install pandas

Finally, apply the code below (adjusted to your path) in order to import the latest csv file:

import glob
import os.path
import pandas as pd

folder_path = r'C:\Users\Ron\Desktop\Test'
file_type = r'\*csv'
files = glob.glob(folder_path + file_type)
max_file = max(files, key=os.path.getctime)

import_file = pd.read_csv(max_file)
print(import_file)

You’ll then see the following data from the Products file:

   product_id  product_name  price
0           1          Oven    800
1           2     Microwave    350
2           3       Toaster     80
3           4  Refrigerator   1100
4           5    Dishwasher    900