`cut` command

Cut out columns or characters from each line.

Text processing
Package coreutils
5 options · 5 examples

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Syntax
Common options
Examples
Tips
Guides
Related commands

Syntax

cut [options] [file…]

Provided by the coreutils package. Run man cut for the full manual.

Common options

Option	What it does
`-d SEP`	Field delimiter (default tab)
`-f LIST`	Fields to keep, e.g. 1,3 or 2-4
`-c LIST`	Characters to keep
`--complement`	Keep everything except the selected fields
`--output-delimiter=STR`	Delimiter in the output

Examples

Usernames from /etc/passwd
```
cut -d: -f1 /etc/passwd
```
Columns 1 and 3 of a CSV
```
cut -d, -f1,3 data.csv
```
First 8 characters of each line
```
cut -c1-8 file.txt
```
Everything except column 2
```
cut -d, -f2 --complement data.csv
```
Hostname part of a FQDN
```
echo "web1.example.com" | cut -d. -f1
```

Tips

cut can't handle runs of spaces; use awk for space-separated output.

cut guides

Cut Command in Linux with Examples Linux Commands · Updated Apr 2025

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