Table of Contents

tree — Visualize directory structure as a tree

What is tree?

tree is a small command-line utility that prints a directory listing in a recursive tree format. Rather than reading a long ls output, tree shows the filesystem hierarchy with branches, indentation, and file counts so you can understand folder layout instantly.

Designed for developers, sysadmins, site reliability engineers, and anyone who works with nested directories, tree is especially useful for exploring project structure, documenting repositories, and detecting unexpected files in a folder.

Why Use tree?

  • 🌲 Clear directory visualization — shows nested folders and files with ASCII tree branches.
  • 🔍 Quick structure review — inspect layout without manually walking the filesystem.
  • 📄 Exportable maps — save directory trees to text files for documentation or code reviews.
  • 🚀 Fast recursive view — one command replaces multiple find, ls, and sed steps.
  • 🧹 Filter by extension or depth — focus on the files and folders that matter.
  • 🧭 Useful for auditing — quickly spot hidden files, build output, or unusual directory depths.

Installation

# macOS (Homebrew)
brew install tree

# Ubuntu / Debian
sudo apt update && sudo apt install tree

# Fedora / RHEL
sudo dnf install tree

# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S tree

# Alpine Linux
sudo apk add tree

# Windows (WSL / Git Bash)
# Install via the Linux distribution package manager, then run tree from the shell.

# Verify installation
tree --version

Basic Usage

# Show the current directory tree
tree

# Show the tree for a specific directory
tree src

# Limit output depth to 2 levels
tree -L 2

# Show only directories
tree -d

# Print file sizes with the tree layout
tree -h

💡 Tips & Tricks

Tip 1: Use -L to limit recursion depth

When exploring a large repository, restrict the output to the top levels:

tree -L 2

This is ideal for quickly understanding the project root without scrolling through deep folders.

Tip 2: Filter by file extension

Use the -P option to show only files that match a shell pattern:

tree -P '*.md' -I 'node_modules|.git'

This is great for viewing only documentation, source files, or test files.

Tip 3: Ignore unwanted directories

Combine -I with patterns to hide build artifacts and dependency directories:

tree -I 'node_modules|dist|build|.git'

Tip 4: Output a directory map to a file

Generate a shareable directory listing for README or documentation:

tree -a -I 'node_modules|.git' > tree.txt

Tip 5: Show hidden files

Include dotfiles and hidden directories using -a:

tree -a

This helps verify whether config files like .env, .gitignore, or .dockerignore are present.

Tip 6: Combine with grep for quick searches

Search the tree output with grep when you want to find a path pattern:

tree -a | grep -E 'Dockerfile|README|config'

Tip 7: Use -h for human-readable sizes

Show file sizes in a human-friendly format:

tree -h

This is useful when checking whether one directory is consuming most of the space.

Tip 8: Count directories and files

Use -a with -F and -I for a complete count plus a cleaner summary:

tree -a -I 'node_modules|.git'

The summary at the bottom tells you how many directories and files are included.

Tip 9: Show only directories and file counts

tree -d | tail -n +1

This is a good way to review folder structure without file noise.

Tip 10: Use -f to print full path prefixes

tree -f -P '*.sh'

The output shows absolute or relative file paths, which is helpful when generating a file list for scripts.

Advanced Applications

Generate a documentation-friendly repository map

Add a tree snapshot to a README or docs file for a clean overview of repo contents:

tree -L 3 -I 'node_modules|.git|dist|build' > docs/repo-tree.txt

Use this in PR descriptions or project onboarding guides so reviewers can see the structure before opening files.

Inspect workspace layout in CI

Automate a directory layout check in CI to confirm important folders exist:

if command -v tree > /dev/null; then
  tree -L 2 -I 'node_modules|.git' || true
fi

This is useful for validating build outputs and verifying generated artifacts.

Use tree with jq and ripgrep

Combine tools to inspect file types and search inside directories:

# List markdown files and count them with ripgrep
tree -P '*.md' -f | rg -c '\.md$'

Explore hidden configuration files quickly

tree -a -I 'node_modules|.git' | grep '^\.'

This reveals hidden project files at a glance.

  • ripgrep — fast search through files and directories while tree shows the layout.
  • fzf — interactive file selection after using tree to review the project structure.
  • bat — preview file contents once you locate them with tree.

Real-world Use Cases

  • Reviewing a new project — inspect the repository layout before diving into source code.
  • Documenting an app structure — save a directory map for onboarding or architecture notes.
  • Spotting accidental files — find unwanted build artifacts, temporary files, or .env leaks quickly.
  • Comparing branches — capture tree output from two branches to compare project structure changes.
  • CI log debugging — print a directory tree when tests fail to show what was actually built.
  • Writing tutorials — include a visual tree map in blog posts or docs so readers understand file placement.

When Not To Use tree

  • Large filesystems without filters — raw tree can generate overwhelming output for huge directories.
  • Searching inside files — use ripgrep when you need content search instead of layout inspection.
  • Binary-only file analysis — use du, ncdu, or find for disk usage and file metadata queries.
  • Complex file filtering — find is better when you need fine-grained path logic and advanced predicates.

Practical Examples: Common tree commands

# 1. Show the top 3 directory levels in the current project

tree -L 3 -I 'node_modules|.git|dist|build'

# 2. Output only markdown and text files

tree -P '*.md' -o tree-markdown.txt

# 3. Print a tree that includes hidden files and full paths

tree -a -f

# 4. Generate a directory map while ignoring common dependency folders

tree -L 4 -I 'node_modules|.git|target' > repo-layout.txt

Related Tools

fzf — fuzzy finder
📦 Quick install:brew install tree
🌐 Official site ↗📅 Published: July 26, 2026