How to List Files in a Directory in Linux (ls & find)

Quick Answer

To list files in a directory in Linux, run ls (or ls -lah for hidden files, sizes and dates). To list every file in the directory and all its subdirectories, run find . -type f. Both are installed on every Linux distribution, and add > ~/files.txt to save the list.

Every command below works in Bash or Zsh on Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Arch and other distributions. Most also work on macOS; the exceptions are noted. On Windows, see our guides to listing files in CMD and PowerShell Get-ChildItem.

List Files with ls

ls lists the contents of one directory. With no argument it uses the current directory; pass a path to list another one, e.g. ls /etc or ls ~/Downloads.

Option	What it does
`-l`	Long format: permissions, owner, size, modified date, name.
`-a` / `-A`	Include hidden (dot) files / same but without the `.` and `..` entries.
`-h`	Human-readable sizes (K, M, G) together with `-l`.
`-1`	One name per line (the default when output goes to a pipe or file).
`-t` / `-S`	Sort by modified time (newest first) / by size (largest first).
`-r`	Reverse the sort order, e.g. `ls -ltr` for oldest first.
`-R`	Recurse into every subdirectory.
`-d`	List the directory entry itself, not its contents. Used in `ls -d */`.

# Everything here, hidden files included, with sizes and dates
ls -lah

# One name per line
ls -1

# Directories only
ls -d */

# Newest files first / largest files first
ls -lt
ls -lhS

Options can be combined in any order: ls -lah and ls -hal are the same. Run man ls for the full list.

List All Files in a Directory and Subdirectories with find

ls -R recurses, but it prints a separate block per directory with bare names, which is awkward to read, filter or save. find prints one path per line, which is what you usually want:

# Every file, all levels, relative paths
find . -type f

# Same, with absolute paths
find "$PWD" -type f

# Files in this directory only (no subdirectories)
find . -maxdepth 1 -type f

# Every directory, all levels
find . -type d

# Two levels deep only
find . -maxdepth 2 -type f

# Another directory
find /var/log -type f

find includes hidden files and hidden directories by default. To skip them, add -not -path '*/.*', for example find . -type f -not -path '*/.*'.

Filter and Sort the List

# Only PDFs, all subdirectories (case-insensitive)
find . -type f -iname '*.pdf'

# Several types at once
find . -type f \( -iname '*.jpg' -o -iname '*.png' \)

# Modified in the last 7 days
find . -type f -mtime -7

# Larger than 100 MB
find . -type f -size +100M

# 20 largest files, all levels (GNU find; Linux)
find . -type f -printf '%s\t%p\n' | sort -nr | head -20

# Find a file by part of its name
find / -type f -iname '*invoice*' 2>/dev/null

Quote the pattern ('*.pdf') so the shell passes it to find instead of expanding it first. -printf is a GNU extension: it works on Linux but not on the BSD find that ships with macOS. To filter by text in the path, pipe to grep: find . -type f | grep /archive/.

tree and du: Structure and Sizes

tree draws the directory hierarchy. It is not installed by default on most distributions: install it with sudo apt install tree (Debian/Ubuntu) or sudo dnf install tree (Fedora).

# Whole tree, hidden files included
tree -a

# Two levels deep, directories only
tree -L 2 -d

# Size of every file and directory, largest first
du -ah . | sort -rh | head -20

du reports disk usage rather than exact byte size, so small files show as at least one block (often 4.0K). For exact sizes use ls -l or find -printf '%s'.

Save or Count the File List

# Save to your home directory (overwrite)
find . -type f > ~/files.txt

# Append to an existing list
find . -type f >> ~/files.txt

# List with modified dates and sizes (GNU find)
find . -type f -printf '%TY-%Tm-%Td %TH:%TM\t%s\t%p\n' > ~/files.tsv

# Count files, all levels / top level only
find . -type f | wc -l
find . -maxdepth 1 -type f | wc -l

The .tsv output opens cleanly in a spreadsheet: date, size in bytes and path in three tab-separated columns. Saving the list inside the directory you are listing makes the text file show up in its own output; writing to ~ avoids that.

Don't parse ls in scripts

File names can contain spaces and even newlines, which breaks loops over ls output. In scripts, use find . -type f -print0 | xargs -0 <command> or find . -type f -exec <command> {} +. On large scans, add 2>/dev/null to hide Permission denied messages; the listing is not affected.

When a File List Isn't Enough

A file list tells you which names exist. It can't tell you whether a copy matches the original: a backup can have every name and size right while one file is corrupted or an older version. You can go one step further with built-in tools and record a hash for every file:

# Record a SHA-256 hash for every file
find . -type f -print0 | xargs -0 sha256sum > ~/manifest.sha256

# Later, in the copy: check every file against it
sha256sum -c --quiet ~/manifest.sha256

sha256sum -c reports changed and missing files, but not files that were added later. Our guide to verifying checksums with sha256sum covers the details, and comparing folders on Linux covers diff -rq and rsync dry runs.

FolderManifest does the same job with a report you can hand to someone else: every file with its path, size, dates and SHA-256 hash, exported as HTML, CSV or Markdown. Check a backup or migrated copy against it and it lists exactly which files were added, removed or changed. It runs locally on Linux, Windows 10/11 and macOS.

You may not need it

For a one-off list or a script, ls and find are the right tools. A manifest is worth it when you have to prove a copy is complete and unchanged, or check the same folder again next month.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the command to list files in a directory in Linux?

ls. Run ls on its own for the current directory, or ls /path/to/dir for another one. Add -l for sizes, owners and dates, -a to include hidden files, and -h to show sizes as K, M and G.

How do I list all files in a directory and its subdirectories?

Run find . -type f. It prints the path of every file below the current directory, one per line, hidden files included. ls -R also recurses, but its grouped output is harder to read, filter or save.

How do I list only files, not directories?

For the current directory only, run find . -maxdepth 1 -type f. Drop -maxdepth 1 to include every subdirectory. ls -p | grep -v / works too for a quick look, but find handles odd file names safely.

How do I list only directories in Linux?

Run ls -d */ for the directories directly inside the current one, or find . -type d to list every directory at all levels.

How do I show hidden files with ls?

Use ls -a to show everything including the . and .. entries, or ls -A to show hidden files without them. find includes hidden files by default.

How do I count files in a directory in Linux?

Run find . -type f | wc -l to count every file in the directory tree, or find . -maxdepth 1 -type f | wc -l for the top level only. A file name containing a newline would be counted twice, which is rare in practice.

How do I save a file list to a text file?

Redirect the output: find . -type f > ~/files.txt. Writing to your home directory keeps the list out of its own output. Use >> to append instead of overwrite.

Go From a File List to Proof

Record every file with its SHA-256 hash, then check any later copy against it. Linux, Windows, and Mac. 7-day free trial, no card required, 30-day money-back guarantee.

Create a Manifest Free for 7 Days Open Folder Compare Tool

4.9/5 on G2

How to List Files in a Directory in Linux