diff --git a/file_utils.py b/file_utils.py
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..3f1c415
--- /dev/null
+++ b/file_utils.py
@@ -0,0 +1,31 @@
+"""File utility helpers."""
+import os
+
+
+def read_file(path: str) -> str:
+    with open(path) as f:
+        return f.read()
+
+
+def write_file(path: str, content: str) -> None:
+    with open(path, 'w') as f:
+        f.write(content)
+
+
+def file_exists(path: str) -> bool:
+    return os.path.isfile(path)
+
+
+def get_extension(path: str) -> str:
+    _, ext = os.path.splitext(path)
+    return ext.lstrip('.')
+
+
+def list_files(directory: str, extension: str = None) -> list[str]:
+    files = []
+    for entry in os.listdir(directory):
+        full_path = os.path.join(directory, entry)
+        if os.path.isfile(full_path):
+            if extension is None or entry.endswith(f'.{extension}'):
+                files.append(full_path)
+    return sorted(files)