For a single file, use Python’s standard-library shutil.copy() function and pass the destination directory. It copies the file’s data and permission mode; use shutil.copy2() if you also want a best-effort attempt to preserve additional metadata. For an entire directory tree, use shutil.copytree().
Copy one file into a directory
Make sure the destination directory exists, then pass it as the second argument to shutil.copy(). The copied file keeps its original filename, and the function returns the destination path.
from pathlib import Path
import shutil
source = Path("reports/summary.csv")
destination_dir = Path("archive")
destination_dir.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
copied_path = shutil.copy(source, destination_dir)
print(copied_path)mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True) creates the directory and any missing parent directories; it does not fail just because the directory already exists. In this example, the resulting file is archive/summary.csv.
Choose the right copy function
| Task | Function | Destination and behavior |
|---|---|---|
| Copy file contents to a specific filename | shutil.copyfile(src, dst) |
dst must be the complete target file path. Copies contents only. |
| Copy a file to a directory or filename | shutil.copy(src, dst) |
If dst is a directory, uses the source filename there. Copies data and permission mode. |
| Copy a file and try to preserve more metadata | shutil.copy2(src, dst) |
Accepts a directory or file path like copy(); makes a best-effort attempt to preserve additional metadata. |
| Copy a directory and its contents recursively | shutil.copytree(src, dst) |
Copies a directory tree; its default file-copy function is copy2(). |
These behaviors are described in the official Python shutil documentation.
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Copy to a different filename
To choose a new name, pass the full destination file path rather than only a directory:
import shutil
shutil.copy("reports/summary.csv", "archive/summary-backup.csv")The parent directory, archive, must already exist. The copied file receives the data and permission mode described for copy().
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Use copy2() when retaining timestamps and other available metadata matters:
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shutil.copy2("reports/summary.csv", "archive/")copy2() attempts to preserve more metadata, including access and modification times, but preservation is best-effort and platform-dependent. Neither copy() nor copy2() guarantees that every metadata field transfers. The Python documentation notes that on POSIX systems owner, group, and ACLs are lost; on Windows, owners, ACLs, and alternate data streams are not copied.
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Copy a directory tree
Use copytree() to recursively copy a folder and its contents:
import shutil
shutil.copytree("project-assets", "backup/project-assets")By default, copytree() uses copy2() for files. The function also provides options for ignoring patterns, handling symbolic links, selecting a different file-copy function, and allowing an existing destination directory. Check the documentation for the exact option behavior relevant to your use case.
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Handle common errors and special cases
- Destination directory does not exist: Create it first with
Path(destination).mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)when copying a file into it. A call usingcopytree()normally creates the destination tree itself; its existing-destination behavior depends on the options used. - Permission or filesystem error: The process needs permission to read the source and write to the destination. An inaccessible source, unwritable destination, or other filesystem problem can stop the copy.
- Source and destination are the same file:
copyfile()raisesSameFileErrorwhen both paths identify the same file. - Symbolic links: If the paths involve symlinks, review the
follow_symlinksoption and platform support. Whether link targets or link metadata are copied can vary.
Python’s copy functions may use platform-specific fast-copy operations starting with Python 3.8. This is an implementation detail, not a guarantee of a particular speed increase on every system.
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