Print only lines present in both files.

Section: join and comm

Show common lines between sorted files

bash
bash
comm -12 <(sort file1.txt) <(sort file2.txt)
Explanation

`comm` compares two sorted inputs and can suppress selected columns.

Learn the surrounding workflow

Compare similar commands or jump into common fixes when this command is part of a bigger troubleshooting path.

Related commands

Same sheet · prioritizing join and comm
Show lines only in the first file
List lines unique to the first sorted file.
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Show lines only in the second file
List lines unique to the second sorted file.
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Join two files on a common field
Merge records based on matching first fields.
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Join on a different field number
Specify alternate join fields.
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Extract comma-delimited fields
Print the first and third fields from a CSV-like file.
Sort lines alphabetically
Default lexicographic sort.