Quick Answer

# List running containers
docker ps

# List all containers, including stopped ones
docker ps -a

What You’re Trying to Do

You want to check which containers are currently running, remember the name of a container you stopped earlier, or narrow the list down to containers started from a specific image. docker ps is the command you reach for first in all of these cases.

By default it only shows running containers, which trips a lot of people up into thinking a container has “disappeared” when it’s simply stopped. Knowing the right combination of options makes container management much smoother.

Environment

  • Docker: verified on 20.10 and later
  • OS: Linux / macOS / Windows (WSL2)

Solution

1. List Running Containers

docker ps
CONTAINER ID   IMAGE     COMMAND                  STATUS         PORTS                    NAMES
a1b2c3d4e5f6   nginx     "/docker-entrypoint.…"   Up 2 hours     0.0.0.0:80->80/tcp       my-nginx

By default, only containers in the Up state are shown.

2. Include Stopped Containers

docker ps -a

This also lists containers in the Exited state. If a container seems to have vanished, check with -a first.

3. Limit the Number of Results

# Show only the most recently created container
docker ps -l

# Show the 3 most recently created containers
docker ps -n 3

4. Get Only Container IDs

docker ps -aq

This is commonly used in scripts for bulk operations, like removing or stopping multiple containers at once.

# Remove all stopped containers
docker rm $(docker ps -aq -f status=exited)

5. Filter With --filter

# Only containers started from a specific image
docker ps -a --filter "ancestor=nginx"

# Filter by name
docker ps -a --filter "name=my-nginx"

# Filter by status
docker ps -a --filter "status=exited"

6. Customize Output With --format

docker ps --format "table {{.Names}}\t{{.Status}}\t{{.Ports}}"
NAMES       STATUS         PORTS
my-nginx    Up 2 hours     0.0.0.0:80->80/tcp

Using a Go template lets you show only the columns you need, which keeps the often-too-wide docker ps output readable.

7. Show Container Disk Size

docker ps -s

This adds a SIZE column showing how much disk space each container is using — handy when you’re tracking down disk usage.

Common Errors

The Container Doesn’t Show Up in the List

docker ps only lists running containers by default. If it’s stopped, add -a:

docker ps -a

docker: command not found

Docker isn’t installed, or it isn’t on your PATH. Check the install:

docker --version

Cannot connect to the Docker daemon

The Docker daemon isn’t running. Start it based on your OS:

# Linux (systemd)
sudo systemctl start docker

# macOS / Windows
# Start Docker Desktop

--filter Returns Zero Results

This is usually a typo in the filter key or value. ancestor expects an image name, name expects a container name, and status expects a value like running, exited, or paused. Double-check the value you passed.

FAQ

Q: What’s the difference between docker ps and docker container ls? They return identical results. docker container ls is the newer subcommand naming, while docker ps is the original, still-supported alias.

Q: How do I show only stopped containers? Use docker ps -a --filter "status=exited".

Q: How can I list just the container names? Run docker ps --format "{{.Names}}" to print one name per line.

Q: The docker ps output is too wide to read — what can I do? Use the --format option with a table template to show only the columns you actually need.

Q: Can I combine multiple filters? Yes, repeating --filter combines them with AND logic. For example: docker ps -a --filter "status=exited" --filter "ancestor=nginx"

Q: Does this also show containers started with docker compose? Yes, docker ps shows them too, but docker compose ps groups them by project, which is easier to read.

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