Find and Replace in Files

Replace the specified text in a list of files with new text.

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This utility will replace all string matches in the target files with a given string. This is similar to 'Replace all' in the editor, except that it can be used programmatically and on multiple files.
For instance, to replace all occurrences of 'abs' with 'mag':

>> find_and_replace('my_file.m', 'abs', 'mag')

Both the "match" and "replace" inputs can be regular expressions. For instance, we can replace all calls to sqrt(...) with my_sqrt(...), keeping the function's argument by using regular expressions.

>> find_and_replace(file_names, 'sqrt\((.*?)\)', 'my_sqrt\($1\)');

For more examples:

>> help find_and_replace;

Some knowledge of regular expressions is helpful, but not required, to use this tool. See 'Regular Expressions' in MATLAB's documentation.

Cite As

Tucker McClure (2026). Find and Replace in Files (https://uk.mathworks.com/matlabcentral/fileexchange/42877-find-and-replace-in-files), MATLAB Central File Exchange. Retrieved .

Acknowledgements

Inspired: strrepfile

Categories

Find more on Environment and Settings in Help Center and MATLAB Answers

General Information

MATLAB Release Compatibility

  • Compatible with any release

Platform Compatibility

  • Windows
  • macOS
  • Linux
Version Published Release Notes Action
1.1.0.1

Updated license

1.1.0.0

Updated trademarks.

1.0.0.0