In this chapter, you learn how to install Python on MacOS, Windows, and Linux. We will look at multiple installation methods per platform and discuss what I think is the best option to choose from.
Most of the time, it’s not advisable to use the official installer from the python.org website. Instead, it’s better to go for the version packaged by your operating system. The advantage of OS supplied version, is that you’ll get automatic updates.
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Install Python on Windows
There are three methods you can choose from on Windows.
Using The Microsoft Store
Microsoft hosts a community release of Python 3 in the Microsoft Store. This is the recommended way to install Python on Windows because it handles updates automatically and can be uninstalled easily too.
To use this method:
- open the Microsoft store and search for Python
- Pick the newest version and install it
With the official installer
You can download a Python installer from the official Python download website too. This method does not give you automatic updates, and I would recommend it only if you don’t have access to the Microsoft store. When you use this installer, make sure you mark the checkbox that says ‘Add Python to PATH’.
Inside WSL
If you’re familiar with Windows Subsystem For Linux, you may want to consider that option too. It’s what I use myself, and I’m truly loving it. It offers me the advantages that Windows has to offer (mainly great hardware support), while still enjoying Linux which is, in my opinion, the best platform for Python development.
To install in WSL, you’ll first need to install WSL itself. Go for WSL2 if you can. It’s much better. After that, simply follow the Linux installation instructions below!
Installation on MacOS
On most versions of MacOS before Catalina, a distribution of Python is already included. Unfortunately, it’s almost certainly an old version, Python 2.7. Luckily, there are two ways to install Python 3 on a Mac with ease.
Homebrew
First and foremost, I recommend looking into Homebrew. It allows you to install almost anything easily. The added benefit is that it’s also easy to upgrade to newer versions later on.
Once you are up and running with homebrew, installing Python on MacOS is as easy as:
$ brew install python
Official installer
Alternatively, you can download an installer from the Python download website. The downside to this approach is that you won’t get automatic updates.
Install Python on Linux
There are several ways to install Python on Linux, that is, if you need to install it at all!
Check what’s installed first
Most Linux distributions include Python. Many will include both Python 2 and Python 3.
If you enter python --version on the command line, you’ll see the version number. It’s probably version 2.7:
$ python --version Python 2.7.16
You don’t want Python 2, but some OS’es still ship with it, unfortunately.
Now try python3 --version. If you get a “command not found,” you need to install Python 3. If your output looks similar to this, you’re in luck:
$ python3 --version Python 3.8.5
Using a package manager
Depending on the distribution of Linux you are running, you can install Python with the default package manager: Yum, APT, etcetera. You’ll need to find out for your specific Linux distribution which package manager is used and how to use it.
If you’re on Ubuntu, Linux Mint, or Debian, you can install using apt:
$ apt install python3
Homebrew
Another interesting option for Linux is using Homebrew. That’s right, the package manager for Macs also works on Linux.
The major advantages of using Homebrew:
- You’ll get the latest version of Python, instead of the version your OS shipped with
- You don’t need root access to your system. All the software installed with Homebrew is installed in your home directory
I find myself using Homebrew more and more while working under Linux — give it a try!
Python in your browser
If you don’t feel like installing Python, or you are unable to install it for whatever reason, I’ll offer an alternative too: you can use Python right from your browser; no installation necessary!
Hi Erik,
I installed the latest version from the web page.
But when I open the powershell and try the first command – python – nothing happens more than this
phyton : Die Benennung “phyton” wurde nicht als Name eines Cmdlet, einer Funktion, einer Skriptdatei oder eines
ausführbaren Programms erkannt. Überprüfen Sie die Schreibweise des Namens, oder ob der Pfad korrekt ist (sofern
enthalten), und wiederholen Sie den Vorgang.
But I have an icon in the program list named Phyton 3.9 and when I click it, a black input screen appears.
So why does it not work with the power shell ?The user variable is set.
I´m working on a brand new HP Spectre with Win10. And to my person – I have 40 years experience in Cobol on a mainframe.
Thanks for help
Michael
Hi Michael,
1. First of all, make sure it’s not just a typo. In the error you typed “phyton”.
2. If that doesn’t help, try python3 instead.
3. Also, when installing, make sure you mark the checkbox “Add Python 3.X to PATH” (see the cover image on this article for where to find this checkbox).
Hope that helps!
I installed Python before founding your tutorial. I used the official website one and it was hard to understand why my Python did not work in CMD after installation.
After a couple of ours I found I had to use py –version instead python –version command. I think is a good think to note in your tutorial.
I recommend Michael to try py –version .
From what I understand, py is a Python launcher; a utility that comes with Python installations on Windows. It gets installed into C:\Windows\ so it’s available without requiring PATH modifications. At installation time, you should mark the checkbox “Add Python 3.X to PATH” and the python command should work as explained. So, using py you can at least launch it and get started, but you might want to reinstall and make sure python is added to the PATH.