Essential Commands

Navigation

Command	What It Does	Example
pwd	Print current directory	pwd → /Users/fabiocorrea
ls	List files in current directory	ls
ls -la	List all files with details (including hidden)	ls -la
cd	Change directory	cd Documents
cd ..	Go up one directory	cd ..
cd ~	Go to home directory	cd ~
cd -	Go to previous directory	cd -

Files and Folders

Command	What It Does	Example
mkdir	Create a directory	mkdir my-project
touch	Create an empty file	touch notes.txt
cp	Copy a file	cp notes.txt backup.txt
cp -r	Copy a directory	cp -r project project-backup
mv	Move or rename	mv old.txt new.txt
rm	Delete a file	rm unwanted.txt
rm -r	Delete a directory	rm -r old-folder
cat	Display file contents	cat notes.txt
open	Open file with default app	open photo.jpg
open .	Open current folder in Finder	open .

Warning: rm deletes permanently: files don't go to the Trash. Be careful with rm -r.

Searching

Command	What It Does	Example
find	Find files by name	find ~/Documents -name "*.pdf"
grep	Search inside files	grep "password" config.txt

System

Command	What It Does	Example
whoami	Show current username	whoami
date	Show current date/time	date
uptime	How long Mac has been running	uptime
df -h	Show disk space	df -h
top	Live system monitor (press q to quit)	top
clear	Clear the terminal screen	clear