A Python script that sorts a cluttered folder into subfolders by type, date or name, by your rules

Example result

python merge_sales.py --month 2026-10

2026-11-02 09:14:03 INFO  Folder: sales/2026-10, 9 files found
2026-11-02 09:14:03 INFO  shop-01.csv: 1,284 rows
2026-11-02 09:14:04 INFO  shop-02.xlsx: 967 rows
2026-11-02 09:14:04 WARN  shop-07.csv: 3 rows without a price skipped (lines 88, 412, 913)
2026-11-02 09:14:05 INFO  Done: 10,412 rows -> report-2026-10.xlsx (sheets "Sales" and "Totals")

[columns]
date = Date, Sale date, Day
product = Product, Item, Name
quantity = Qty, Quantity, Pcs
price = Price, Unit price

def read_shop_file(path: Path, columns: dict[str, list[str]]) -> pd.DataFrame:
    """Reads one shop's file and gives it the report's column names."""
    table = pd.read_excel(path) if path.suffix == ".xlsx" else pd.read_csv(path, encoding="utf-8-sig")
    renamed = {}
    for name, variants in columns.items():
        found = next((c for c in table.columns if c.strip() in variants), None)
        if found is None:
            raise ReportError(f"{path.name}: no column for '{name}' (looked for {', '.join(variants)})")
        renamed[found] = name
    table = table.rename(columns=renamed)[list(columns)]
    table["shop"] = path.stem
    return table

About this service

A Downloads folder, a shared scans folder or a camera card soon turns into thousands of mixed files. This Python script puts them where they belong by your rules: by type (PDFs to Documents, photos to Pictures), by date into year and month folders, or by words in the name, such as a client name or an invoice number. It can copy files or move them, makes the folders it needs and, when a file with the same name is already there, adds a number instead of replacing it. Send us the folder layout you want and the rules. You run it yourself on your computer, so try it on a copy first. Nothing is deleted: files only change place, and only inside the folders you name.

What is included

• What you getA ZIP archive with the Python script, a README with step-by-step instructions and, from Standard, a settings file with your folders and rules; the code is also shown on the order page.
• By type, date or nameThe rules you set, in the order you set
• Copy or moveYou choose; the originals can stay where they are
• Safe with namesA file with a taken name gets a number, nothing is replaced
• Check runFrom Standard, a run that only lists what would go where
• Readable codeWith comments, easy to add a rule later

How it works

1. 1
   RulesYou describe the folders you want and how files go into them
2. 2
   CodeWe write the script and the guide to running it
3. 3
   Try itYou run it on a copy of the folder
4. 4
   ChangesYou ask for changes within your package and send any error message

What we need from you

Which folder to sort and roughly how many files are in it, the folders you want to end up with and the rule for each: file types, date (taken from the file or from its name) or words in the name. Whether files should be copied or moved, what to do with files no rule fits, and your system: Windows, macOS or Linux. A screenshot of the folder or a list of 10-20 file names helps a lot.

We will ask you:

• Which folder needs sorting?
• Which folders should it make, and what goes where?
• Copy or move?
• Where will it run?

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Questions and answers

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