How to get file name from a path in PHP ?

In this article, we will see how to get the file name from the path in PHP, along with understanding its implementation through the examples. We have given the full path & we need to find the file name from the file path. For this, we will following below 2 methods:

• Using the basename() function
• Using the pathinfo( ) Function

Input : path = /testweb/var/www/mywebsite/htdocs/home.php
Output : home.php

Input : path = /testweb/var/www/mywebsite/htdocs/abc.txt
Output : abc.txt

We will understand both functions with the help of examples.

Method 1: Using basename() function:

The basename() function is an inbuilt function that returns the base name of a file if the path of the file is provided as a parameter to the basename() function. 

Syntax:

$filename = basename(path, suffix);

The path is a required field that specifies the path which is to be checked. The suffix is an optional field that specifies a file extension. If the filename has this file extension, the file extension will not show.

Example: This example describes the use of the basename() function that returns the base name of the file.

PHP

<?php
  $path = "/testweb/var/www/mywebsite/htdocs/home.php";

  $file1 = basename($path);
  $file2 = basename($path, ".php");

  // Show filename with file extension
  echo $file1 . "\n";

  // Show filename without file extension
  echo $file2;
?>

Output:

home.php
home

Method 2: Using pathinfo() function:

The pathinfo() is an inbuilt function that is used to return information about a path using an associative array or a string ie., It will create an array with the parts of the path we want to use.

Syntax:

$filename = pathinfo(path);

Example: This example explains the pathinfo() function that will return information about a path. Here, we will use $filename[‘basename’], when we want to access the file name.

PHP

<?php
  // Path of the file stored under pathinfo
  $myFile = pathinfo('/usr/admin/config/test.php');

  // Show the file name
  echo $myFile['basename'], "\n";
?>

Output:

test.php