`mkdir`

Creates a folder, including any missing parent folders.

Category: Programming > Files and Folders

Syntax

mkdir(folder)

Creates folder.

mkdir(parent, name)

Creates name inside parent.

[status, message, messageid] = mkdir(___)

Returns the outcome instead of only acting.

Description

Creating a folder that already exists is not an error: the call reports success and, if outputs are requested, a message saying that the directory already exists. This makes mkdir safe to call at the top of a script that saves results.

The command form mkdir results works like the function call.

Input arguments

folder: Folder to create, relative or absolute. Intermediate folders are created too.
parent, name: Parent folder and new folder name, as separate arguments.

Output arguments

status: true if the folder exists afterwards.
message: Text such as 'Directory already exists.', empty on a plain success.
messageid: Message identifier, for instance 'MATLAB:MKDIR:DirectoryExists'.

Example

Nested folders and a repeat call

mkdir out/2024/jan
isfolder('out/2024/jan')
[status, msg, id] = mkdir('out/2024/jan')

Output

ans = logical
   1
status = logical
   1
msg = 'Directory already exists.'
id = 'MATLAB:MKDIR:DirectoryExists'

mkdir