Merge Files Side By With Custom Delimiter

Use the paste command to merge two files side by side with a specified delimiter.

Terminal

paste -d <delimiter> <path/to/file1> <path/to/file2>

paste -d <delimiter> <path/to/file1> <path/to/file2>

#!/bin/bash

# Merge Files Side By With Custom Delimiter
paste {{[-d|--delimiters]}} {{delimiter}} {{path/to/file1}} {{path/to/file2}}

import subprocess

# Merge Files Side By With Custom Delimiter
# Make sure to replace <placeholders> with actual values
def run_command():
    cmd = [
        "paste",
        "-d",
        "<delimiter>",
        "<path/to/file1>",
        "<path/to/file2>"
    ]
    
    try:
        print(f"Executing: {' '.join(cmd)}")
        subprocess.run(cmd, check=True)
    except subprocess.CalledProcessError as e:
        print(f"Error: {e}")
    except FileNotFoundError:
        print("Error: paste not found. Please install it first.")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    run_command()

When To Use

Merging two text files side by side with a custom delimiter for better readability.

Command Builder

Tune the command before you copy it

Back to syntax

Generated Command

paste -d <delimiter> <path/to/file1> <path/to/file2>

Terminal Output

Expected runtime feedback

Simulated preview

Output

file1_col1	file2_col1
file1_col2	file2_col2
file1_col3	file2_col3

Command Breakdown

What each part is doing

paste: Base Command; The executable that performs this operation. Here it runs Paste before the shell applies any redirect operators.
-d: d| delimiters; The value supplied for d| delimiters.
<delimiter>: delimiter; The value supplied for delimiter.
<path/to/file1>: Input Files; The file path or paths supplied to this command.
<path/to/file2>: Input Files; The file path or paths supplied to this command.
-d: Command Option; Tool-specific option used by this command invocation.

How To Run

Execution path

Step 1
Use the -d option to specify your custom delimiter.
Step 2
Provide the paths to the two files you want to merge.
Step 3
Run the command to see the output with the specified delimiter.

Alternative Approaches

Comparable commands in other tools

Alternative data processing tools for the same job.

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