docker images: List Images, Filters & Formatting

List the images on the host, with filters and formatting for scripts.

docker images (alias docker image ls) lists images stored locally. This page covers filtering, formatting, and using it to find disk hogs in CI.

What it does

docker images shows the repository, tag, image ID, creation time, and size of each local image. It is the read-only counterpart to docker rmi.

Common usage

Terminal

docker images
docker images -a                       # include intermediate layers
docker images --filter "dangling=true"
docker images --format "{{.Repository}}:{{.Tag}} {{.Size}}"
docker images node --filter "reference=node:20*"

Common errors in CI

docker images rarely errors, but it is the tool you reach for when a build fails with "no space left on device": run docker images and docker system df to see which images dominate disk, then docker image prune -af. A common confusion: --filter "dangling=true" only shows untagged layers; to free space from tagged-but-unused images, prune with docker image prune -a.

Related guides

docker rmi: Remove Images & Reclaim DiskHow docker rmi works: deleting images by name or ID, force removal, untagging, and the conflict errors you hi… docker system df: See Where Docker Disk GoesHow docker system df works: showing disk used by images, containers, volumes, and build cache, with -v for pe… docker image prune: Remove Unused ImagesHow docker image prune works: removing dangling or all unused images, the -a flag, age filters, and reclaimin… Docker "no space left on device" - Causes and FixesWhy Docker builds fail with "no space left on device" in CI, and how to reclaim space, prune layers, and stop…