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Python Code Samples

Copy-ready Python snippets by topic and difficulty — short, focused, and runnable in the browser editor.

424 matches
Files & data easy

Automatically Detect Corrupted Files Using SHA-256 Checksums in Python

Compute SHA-256 checksums of files and compare them to detect corruption in Python.

checksum file-integrity hashlib
Python
import hashlib
import os

def compute_sha256(filepath: str) -> str:
    """Compute SHA-256 checksum of a file."""
    sha256 = hashlib.sha256()
    with open(filepath, 'rb') as f:
        for chunk in iter(lambda: f.read(4096), b''):
            sha256.update(chunk)
    return sha256.hexdigest()

def validate_file_int…
58 1 Open
Files & data easy

Automatically Highlight Data Validation Errors Inside Excel Files in Python

Load an Excel file with openpyxl, iterate over cells, and highlight invalid data (empty, negative) with a red fill and error message.

excel validation openpyxl
Python
import openpyxl
from openpyxl.styles import PatternFill
from pathlib import Path

def highlight_validation_errors(filepath: str, output_path: str = None):
    wb = openpyxl.load_workbook(filepath)
    red_fill = PatternFill(start_color="FF0000", end_color="FF0000", fill_type="solid")
    
    for sheet in wb.worksheet…
61 0 Open
Files & data easy

Build a Python Script That Detects and Deletes Empty Files Across Folders

A Python script that recursively finds and removes all zero-byte files across nested directories, returning a list of deleted paths.

filesystem cleanup pathlib
Python
import os
from pathlib import Path

def find_and_delete_empty_files(root_dir: str) -> list:
    """Find and delete all empty files under root_dir. Returns list of deleted paths."""
    deleted = []
    for file_path in Path(root_dir).rglob('*'):
        if file_path.is_file() and file_path.stat().st_size == 0:
       …
57 0 Open
Files & data easy

Compress and Extract ZIP Files Programmatically in Python

Create a ZIP archive with in-memory files and extract its contents to a directory using Python's stdlib zipfile and pathlib modules.

zip compression file-io
Python
import zipfile
from pathlib import Path
import tempfile
import os

def create_sample_zip(zip_path: str, files: dict) -> None:
    """Create a ZIP file containing the given files (name -> content mapping)."""
    with zipfile.ZipFile(zip_path, 'w', zipfile.ZIP_DEFLATED) as zf:
        for filename, content in files.ite…
100 0 Open
Files & data easy

Convert All Markdown Files in a Folder to HTML in Python

Batch convert every .md file in a folder to .html using the `markdown` library with the 'extra' extensions.

markdown html batch-conversion
Python
import os
import markdown
from pathlib import Path

def convert_md_folder_to_html(input_folder="markdown_files", output_folder="html_pages"):
    input_path = Path(input_folder)
    output_path = Path(output_folder)
    output_path.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
    
    for md_file in input_path.glob("*.md"):
        with open…
55 0 Open
Files & data medium

Create a Local File Versioning System Using Pure Python

Track file changes locally by copying versions with SHA-256 hashes and JSON metadata using only the Python standard library.

file-versioning files backup
Python
import os
import shutil
import hashlib
import json
import time
from pathlib import Path

class LocalFileVersioning:
    def __init__(self, target_dir="versioned_files", versions_dir="versions"):
        self.target_dir = Path(target_dir)
        self.versions_dir = Path(versions_dir)
        self.metadata_file = self.…
54 0 Open
Files & data medium

Create a ZIP Archive of a Folder in Python

Recursively zip all files in a folder into a single archive using the standard library zipfile and pathlib modules.

zipfile pathlib archives
Python
import zipfile
from pathlib import Path

def zip_folder(source_dir: str, archive_path: str) -> None:
    """Zip all files in source_dir recursively into archive_path."""
    source = Path(source_dir)
    with zipfile.ZipFile(archive_path, "w", zipfile.ZIP_DEFLATED) as archive:
        for file_path in source.rglob("*"…
17 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Atomically Write Files in Python with Temp File and Rename

Write a file atomically using a temporary file and os.replace so readers never see partial writes even if the process crashes mid-write.

atomic-write tempfile fsync
Python
import os
import tempfile
from pathlib import Path

def atomic_write(path: str | Path, content: str) -> None:
    """Write content to path atomically using a temp file and rename."""
    path = Path(path)
    path.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)

    fd, temp_path = tempfile.mkstemp(
        dir=str(path.par…
17 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Automatically Extract Every Archive in a Folder with Python

Walk through a folder and extract all ZIP, RAR, and 7Z archives into separate subdirectories using Python.

zipfile rarfile py7zr
Python
import zipfile
import rarfile
import py7zr
import pathlib

def extract_archives(folder: str):
    """Extract every ZIP, RAR, and 7Z archive in the given folder."""
    folder_path = pathlib.Path(folder)
    for archive_file in folder_path.iterdir():
        suffix = archive_file.suffix.lower()
        try:
           …
40 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Automatically Merge Hundreds of Excel Files Without Losing Formatting in Python

Merge all .xlsx files in a folder into a single Excel workbook, preserving individual sheet structures with sheet name prefixes.

excel pandas merge
Python
import pandas as pd
from pathlib import Path

def merge_excel_files(folder_path: str, output_path: str) -> None:
    """
    Merge all .xlsx files in a folder into a single Excel file,
    preserving individual sheet structures.
    """
    folder = Path(folder_path)
    excel_files = list(folder.glob("*.xlsx"))
    
…
47 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Bulk Insert Rows into SQLite in Python

Insert many rows into an SQLite table in one call with cursor.executemany, then verify them with a SELECT query.

sqlite bulk-insert database
Python
import sqlite3

# Create an in-memory database and a table
conn = sqlite3.connect(":memory:")
cursor = conn.cursor()
cursor.execute("CREATE TABLE products (name TEXT, price REAL, quantity INTEGER)")

# Data to insert in bulk
products = [
    ("Laptop", 999.99, 5),
    ("Mouse", 19.99, 50),
    ("Keyboard", 49.99, 30),…
13 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Convert CSV Column Types While Reading in Python

Read a CSV file and automatically convert column values to int, float, str, or bool based on type suffixes in the header names.

csv type-conversion file-io
Python
import csv
from pathlib import Path
from typing import Any

def read_csv_with_types(filepath: str) -> list[dict[str, Any]]:
    """Read CSV and convert column types based on header suffixes."""
    converters = {
        "int": int,
        "float": float,
        "str": str,
        "bool": lambda v: v.strip().lower(…
13 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Detect File Encoding: UTF-8 vs Latin-1 in Python

Detect whether a file is UTF-8 or Latin-1 encoded by attempting a UTF-8 decode and falling back to Latin-1.

file-encoding utf-8 latin-1
Python
import sys

def detect_encoding(file_path):
    with open(file_path, 'rb') as f:
        raw = f.read()
    
    try:
        raw.decode('utf-8')
        return 'UTF-8'
    except UnicodeDecodeError:
        return 'latin1'

if __name__ == "__main__":
    file_path = sys.argv[1] if len(sys.argv) > 1 else 'sample.txt'
…
13 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Extract Text from PDF Files in Python

Extract all readable text from a PDF file using PyPDF2, iterating over each page and concatenating the content.

pdf text-extraction pypdf2
Python
import PyPDF2

def extract_text_from_pdf(pdf_path):
    text = ""
    with open(pdf_path, "rb") as file:
        reader = PyPDF2.PdfReader(file)
        for page in reader.pages:
            text += page.extract_text() + "\n"
    return text.strip()

if __name__ == "__main__":
    pdf_path = "sample.pdf"
    extracted…
53 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Find Files by Extension in Python

This code walks a directory tree with pathlib, collects all file paths, and counts them by extension to summarize a project's contents.

pathlib file-system recursion
Python
from pathlib import Path

def get_project_files(base_path="."):
    """Return a sorted list of all file paths under base_path."""
    base = Path(base_path)
    files = [p for p in base.rglob("*") if p.is_file()]
    return sorted(files)

def count_by_extension(files):
    """Return a dict mapping extension (lowercase…
12 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Generate an Inventory Report of All Files in Python

Walk a directory tree, collect metadata for every file, and write a CSV inventory report using Python's os, pathlib, and csv modules.

os.walk pathlib csv
Python
import os
import csv
from pathlib import Path
from datetime import datetime

def generate_inventory_report(root_dir: str = "/", output_file: str = "inventory_report.csv"):
    headers = ["File Path", "Size (bytes)", "Last Modified", "File Type"]
    rows = []
    start_time = datetime.now()
    
    for dirpath, dirna…
49 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to List Files Matching a Glob Pattern in Python

Uses pathlib.Path.glob to find and sort all files matching a glob pattern like *.py in a directory.

glob pathlib filesystem
Python
from pathlib import Path

def list_files_matching(pattern: str, directory: str = ".") -> list[str]:
    """Return sorted list of file paths matching the glob pattern in a directory."""
    return sorted(Path(directory).glob(pattern))

if __name__ == "__main__":
    # Example: list all .py files in current directory
  …
12 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Load Pickle Files Safely in Python

This code demonstrates how to load pickle files safely in Python by using a restricted unpickler that only allows specific, trusted classes, preventing arbitrary code execution from untrusted pickles.

pickle security serialization
Python
import pickle

# Default pickle.load is unsafe: it executes arbitrary code when unpickling.
class Unsafe:
    def __reduce__(self):
        return (eval, ("open('/tmp/pickle_demo.txt', 'w').write('pwned')",))

# Create a malicious payload (simulating untrusted source)
malicious_data = pickle.dumps(Unsafe())

# Safe ap…
14 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Prune Empty Directories in Python with os.walk

Remove all empty subdirectories bottom-up using os.walk with topdown=False and os.rmdir, safely ignoring non-empty folders.

os.walk filesystem cleanup
Python
import os

def prune_empty_dirs(root):
    """Remove all empty subdirectories under root, bottom-up."""
    for dirpath, dirnames, filenames in os.walk(root, topdown=False):
        if dirpath == root:
            continue
        try:
            os.rmdir(dirpath)
            print(f"Removed: {dirpath}")
        exce…
15 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Strip BOM When Reading UTF-8 Files in Python

Read a UTF-8 text file with Python's pathlib while automatically stripping the Byte Order Mark (BOM) so the first character isn't a hidden glyph.

bom utf8 pathlib
Python
from pathlib import Path

def read_text_without_bom(file_path):
    """Read a UTF-8 text file, stripping the BOM if present."""
    return Path(file_path).read_text(encoding='utf-8-sig')

if __name__ == "__main__":
    # Create a sample file with BOM for demonstration
    sample_path = Path("sample_with_bom.txt")
    …
13 0 Open
Files & data medium

How to Write a List of Lines to a Text File Safely in Python

This code atomically writes a list of strings as lines to a text file using a temporary file and os.replace to prevent corruption.

files atomic-write pathlib
Python
from pathlib import Path
import tempfile
import os

def write_lines_safely(lines: list[str], filepath: str | Path) -> None:
    """Write lines to a text file atomically to avoid corruption."""
    path = Path(filepath)
    path.parent.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
    
    fd, temp_path = tempfile.mkstemp(dir=str…
13 0 Open
Files & data easy

Split CSV Files into Smaller Chunks in Python

Splits a large CSV file into multiple smaller chunk files, preserving the header row in each chunk.

csv file-splitting batch-processing
Python
import csv
import os

def split_csv(input_file, chunk_size=1000, output_prefix="chunk"):
    """Split a large CSV file into smaller chunks."""
    with open(input_file, 'r', newline='') as infile:
        reader = csv.reader(infile)
        header = next(reader)
        
        file_count = 1
        row_count = 0
  …
44 0 Open
Dictionaries & sets easy

Count Words in Python with Dictionaries and Sets

Text analysis example that counts total words, finds unique words with a set, and tallies character frequencies with a dictionary.

dictionaries sets text-processing
Python
def analyze_text(text: str) -> dict:
    """Count words, find unique words, and show common characters."""
    words = text.lower().split()
    word_count = len(words)
    unique_words = set(words)
    char_counts = {}
    
    for word in words:
        for char in word:
            if char.isalpha():
               …
13 0 Open
Dictionaries & sets easy

Count word frequency in Python with dict and Counter

Count how often each word appears in a string using Counter, converted to a plain dict, and print results alphabetically.

counter dictionary word-frequency
Python
from collections import Counter
import re

def count_word_frequency(text):
    words = re.findall(r'\b\w+\b', text.lower())
    return dict(Counter(words))

if __name__ == "__main__":
    sample_text = "The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. The dog barks, and the fox runs."
    frequency = count_word_frequency(…
12 0 Open

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Each section groups closely related Python snippets.

Guide: free Python code samples library

Copy-ready Python snippets for learners and developers

PythonSkillset code samples are short, focused examples organised by topic and difficulty. Every snippet is server-rendered HTML — readable by search engines and easy to copy. Open any sample, read the notes, copy the code, then press Try in editor to run it in the browser with Pyodide.

How to use this library

  1. Pick a topic section — strings, lists, files, functions, and more
  2. Open a sample, read How it works, and copy the code block
  3. Run it in the IDE, tweak values, then take a related quiz or tutorial lesson

Samples vs tutorials and challenges

Samples are quick reference — one concept per page. For step-by-step teaching, use our Python tutorials. To test yourself, try quizzes or coding challenges. Clean up style with the Python formatter.