How can I import a csv from another folder in python?

Question:

I have a script in python, I want to import a csv from another folder. how can I do this? (for example, my .py is in a folder and I want to reach the data from the desktop)

Asked By: boxertrain

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Answers:

First of all, you need to understand how relative and absolute paths work.

I write an example using relative paths. I have two folders in desktop called scripts which includes python files and csvs which includes csv files. So, the code would be:

df = pd.read_csv('../csvs/file.csv)

The path means:

.. (previous folder, in this case, desktop folder).

/csvs (csvs folder).

/file.csv (the csv file).

If you are on Windows:

  • Right-click on the file on your desktop, and go to its properties.
  • You should see a Location: tag that has a structure similar to this: C:Users<user_name>Desktop
  • Then you can define the file path as a variable in Python as:
file_path = r'C:Users<your_user_name>Desktop<your_file_name>.csv'
  • To read it:
df = pd.read_csv(file_path)

Obviously, always try to use relative paths instead of absolute paths like this in your code. Investing some time into learning the Pathlib module would greatly help you.

Answered By: Akın
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