sort Command in Linux: Sort Text and Data

Quick take: The sort command orders lines of text. Use -n for numeric sorting, -r to reverse, -k to sort by a specific column, and -u to remove duplicates while sorting.

Introduction

The sort command arranges lines of input into order — alphabetical by default, or numeric, reverse, and by column with the right flags. It is a pipeline staple, used to organise output, prepare data for uniq, and rank results.

This guide covers the common sort modes, sorting by a chosen field, and combining sort with other commands to produce ranked and de-duplicated output.

Syntax

The basic syntax of the sort command is:

sort [OPTIONS] [FILE...]

Common Options and Parameters

The most useful options and parameters for the sort command:

Practical Examples

Real sort commands you can run today:

# Sort lines alphabetically
sort names.txt
# Sort numbers correctly
sort -n scores.txt
# Reverse (largest/last first)
sort -nr scores.txt
# Sort a CSV by the 3rd column
sort -t ',' -k3 -n data.csv
# Sort and remove duplicates
sort -u list.txt
# Sort human-readable sizes (du output)
du -h | sort -h
# Find the top 5 most common lines
sort file | uniq -c | sort -nr | head -5

Tips and Best Practices

• Use -n whenever you sort numbers — alphabetic sort puts 10 before 2, which is rarely what you want.
• sort | uniq -c | sort -nr is the classic recipe for a frequency-ranked list.
• sort -h understands human sizes, so du -h | sort -h ranks directories by real size.

Final Thoughts

sort is the ordering engine of the shell, equally at home alphabetising names, ranking numbers, and organising columns. Master -n, -r, and -k, and pair it with uniq for de-duplication and frequency counts. It turns unordered output into something you can actually read and analyse.