How to Delete a File in Python

What you’ll build or solve

You’ll delete files in Python using a path, with checks that prevent surprises.

When this approach works best

Deleting a file in Python works well when you:

• Clean up temporary downloads, exports, or build artifacts after a script finishes.
• Rotate logs or remove older snapshots to save disk space.
• Remove user-generated files in a local app, like cached thumbnails or reports.

Skip this approach if you need a trash bin or undo behavior. Deleting with Python removes the file immediately, and recovery is not guaranteed.

Prerequisites

• Python 3 installed
• You can run a Python script
• You know what a file path is and how to find the file you want to delete

Step-by-step instructions

1) Delete a file by path

Use pathlib.Path and call .unlink() to delete a file.

from pathlib import Path

path = Path("old_report.txt")
path.unlink()

What to look for: If the file doesn’t exist, .unlink() raises FileNotFoundError. Step 2 shows how to handle that cleanly.

2) Delete only if the file exists

If a missing file should not fail your script, check first or ignore the missing-file error.

Option A: Check with .exists()

from pathlib import Path

path = Path("old_report.txt")

if path.exists():
    path.unlink()

Option B: Use missing_ok=True (Python 3.8+)

from pathlib import Path

path = Path("old_report.txt")
path.unlink(missing_ok=True)

What to look for: missing_ok=True only ignores “file not found.” It still raises an error for permissions or if the path is a folder.

3) Handle common delete errors

Deletion can fail for reasons other than “missing file,” like permission issues or trying to delete a directory.

from pathlib import Path

path = Path("old_report.txt")

try:
    path.unlink()
except FileNotFoundError:
    print("Nothing to delete.")
except PermissionError:
    print("No permission to delete this file.")
except IsADirectoryError:
    print("This path points to a folder, not a file.")

What to look for: PermissionError often means another program has the file open, common on Windows, or the folder is protected.

Examples you can copy

Example 1: Delete a single temporary file after you read it

from pathlib import Path

tmp = Path("download.tmp")

# ... use the file ...

tmp.unlink(missing_ok=True)

Example 2: Delete all .log files in a folder

from pathlib import Path

logs_dir = Path("logs")

for path in logs_dir.glob("*.log"):
    path.unlink()

What to look for: glob("*.log") only matches files in that folder, not subfolders. Use Example 4 for recursive cleanup.

Example 3: Keep the newest 10 files, delete the rest

This pattern works for snapshots, exports, or backups.

from pathlib import Path

folder = Path("snapshots")
files = sorted(
    folder.glob("*.json"),
    key=lambda p: p.stat().st_mtime,
    reverse=True
)

for old_file in files[10:]:
    old_file.unlink()

What to look for: st_mtime sorts by last modified time. If your naming includes timestamps, you can also sort by name.

Example 4: Delete matching files recursively

Use rglob() to match files in subfolders too.

from pathlib import Path

root = Path("build")

for path in root.rglob("*.tmp"):
    path.unlink()

Example 5: Delete with os.remove() as an alternative

Some codebases use os.remove() for compatibility or to match existing style.

import os

os.remove("old_report.txt")

os.remove() raises the same kinds of errors like FileNotFoundError and PermissionError. You can wrap it in try/except the same way as .unlink().

Common mistakes and how to fix them

Mistake 1: Deleting the wrong file because your path is relative

What you might do:

from pathlib import Path

Path("report.txt").unlink()

Why it breaks: A relative path deletes report.txt in your current working folder, which may not be your script’s folder.

Correct approach: Anchor to the script location

from pathlib import Path

base = Path(__file__).parent
path = base / "report.txt"
path.unlink()

Mistake 2: Trying to delete a folder with file deletion APIs

What you might do:

from pathlib import Path

Path("logs").unlink()

Why it breaks: .unlink() deletes files, not directories. Python raises IsADirectoryError.

Correct approach: Delete an empty folder

from pathlib import Path

Path("logs").rmdir()

If you need to delete a folder and everything inside it:

import shutil

shutil.rmtree("logs")

Use shutil.rmtree() with care because it removes the folder contents too.

Mistake 3: Assuming “missing file” is always an error

What you might do:

from pathlib import Path

Path("old_report.txt").unlink()

Why it breaks: The file might already be gone, which raises FileNotFoundError.

Correct approach:

from pathlib import Path

Path("old_report.txt").unlink(missing_ok=True)

Or check first:

from pathlib import Path

p = Path("old_report.txt")
if p.exists():
    p.unlink()

Troubleshooting

If you see FileNotFoundError, confirm the path points to the file you expect, then decide if “already deleted” should count as success.

If you see PermissionError, close programs that might have the file open, then try again. On Windows, editors and terminals can hold locks.

If you see IsADirectoryError, you passed a folder path. Use .rmdir() for empty folders or shutil.rmtree() for a folder tree.

If nothing gets deleted in a cleanup loop, print the matched paths to confirm your glob pattern:

from pathlib import Path

for p in Path("logs").glob("*.log"):
    print(p)

Quick recap

• Delete a file with Path("name").unlink().
• Use missing_ok=True or .exists() when “missing” should not fail the script.
• Catch PermissionError and IsADirectoryError for common issues.
• Use glob() for folder cleanup and rglob() for recursive cleanup.
• Anchor paths to Path(__file__).parent when you need predictable targets.