How to remove untracked files in Git (git clean) - Rocketeers

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How to remove untracked files in Git (git clean)
================================================

### [\#Development](https://rocketee.rs/index.php/development)

git clean deletes untracked files from your working directory. Always dry-run it first with -n, because unlike most Git operations these deletions cannot be undone.

 Published by [Mark van Eijk](https://rocketee.rs/index.php/author/mark-van-eijk) on June 23, 2026 · 1 minute read

1. [Preview first with a dry run](#content-preview-first-with-a-dry-run)
2. [Remove untracked files](#content-remove-untracked-files)
3. [Including ignored files](#content-including-ignored-files)
4. [Interactive mode](#content-interactive-mode)
5. [clean vs reset](#content-clean-vs-reset)

[\#](#content-preview-first-with-a-dry-run "Permalink")Preview first with a dry run
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

`git clean` permanently deletes files that Git is not tracking. Untracked files were never committed, so there is no history to recover them from. **Always preview** with `-n` (dry run) before deleting anything:

 ```
git clean -n

```

This lists what *would* be removed without touching anything.

[\#](#content-remove-untracked-files "Permalink")Remove untracked files
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

When you are happy with the preview, `-f` (force) actually deletes them. Git requires the flag as a safety measure:

 ```
git clean -f

```

To also remove untracked **directories**, add `-d`:

 ```
git clean -fd

```

[\#](#content-including-ignored-files "Permalink")Including ignored files
-------------------------------------------------------------------------

By default `git clean` leaves files listed in `.gitignore` alone (your `node_modules`, build output, `.env`, and so on). To remove ignored files as well, add `-x`:

 ```
git clean -fdx

```

To remove **only** ignored files and keep other untracked ones, use `-X` (uppercase):

 ```
git clean -fdX

```

[\#](#content-interactive-mode "Permalink")Interactive mode
-----------------------------------------------------------

If you want to choose file by file, use interactive mode:

 ```
git clean -i

```

[\#](#content-clean-vs-reset "Permalink")clean vs reset
-------------------------------------------------------

These two solve different problems:

- `git clean` removes **untracked** files (files Git has never recorded).
- [git reset --hard](/git-reset-hard) discards changes to **tracked** files.

To stop tracking a file that was committed by mistake but keep it on disk, that is a different task again, see [Removing tracked files in Git that should have been ignored](/removing-tracked-files-in-git-that-should-have-been-ignored).

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