Python Visual Studio Code Download | Other Popular Python Extensions

Install Python and the Python extension

The tutorial guides you through installing Python and using the extension. You must install a Python interpreter yourself separately from the extension. For a quick install, use Python from python.org and install the extension from the VS Code Marketplace.

Note: To help get you started with Python development, you can use the Python profile template that includes useful extensions, settings, and Python code snippets.

Once you have a version of Python installed, select it using the Python: Select Interpreter command. If VS Code doesn’t automatically locate the interpreter you’re looking for, refer to Environments – Manually specify an interpreter.

You can configure the Python extension through settings. Learn more in the Python Settings reference.

Windows Subsystem for Linux: If you are on Windows, WSL is a great way to do Python development. You can run Linux distributions on Windows and Python is often already installed. When coupled with the WSL extension, you get full VS Code editing and debugging support while running in the context of WSL. To learn more, go to Developing in WSL or try the Working in WSL tutorial.

Autocomplete and IntelliSense

The Python extension supports code completion and IntelliSense using the currently selected interpreter. IntelliSense is a general term for a number of features, including intelligent code completion (in-context method and variable suggestions) across all your files and for built-in and third-party modules.

IntelliSense quickly shows methods, class members, and documentation as you type. You can also trigger completions at any time with ⌃Space (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Space). Hovering over identifiers will show more information about them.

HƯỚNG DẪN CÀI ĐẶT PYTHON & VISUAL STUDIO CODE CHI TIẾT!

Create a virtual environment

A best practice among Python developers is to use a project-specific
virtual environment
. Once you activate that environment, any packages you then install are isolated from other environments, including the global interpreter environment, reducing many complications that can arise from conflicting package versions. You can create non-global environments in VS Code using Venv or Anaconda with Python: Create Environment.

Open the Command Palette (⇧⌘P (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+P)), start typing the Python: Create Environment command to search, and then select the command.

The command presents a list of environment types, Venv or Conda. For this example, select Venv.

The command then presents a list of interpreters that can be used for your project. Select the interpreter you installed at the beginning of the tutorial.

After selecting the interpreter, a notification will show the progress of the environment creation and the environment folder (
/.venv
) will appear in your workspace.

Ensure your new environment is selected by using the Python: Select Interpreter command from the Command Palette.

Note: For additional information about virtual environments, or if you run into an error in the environment creation process, see Environments.

Download and install the Python workload

Complete the following steps to download and install the Python workload.

Download and run the latest Visual Studio Installer for Windows. Python support is present in release 15.2 and later. If you have Visual Studio installed already, open Visual Studio and run the installer by selecting Tools > Get Tools and Features.

Tip

The Community edition is for individual developers, classroom learning, academic research, and open source development. For other uses, install Visual Studio Professional or Visual Studio Enterprise.
The installer provides a list of workloads that are groups of related options for specific development areas. For Python, select the Python development workload and select Install:
Python installation options Description Python distributions Choose any combination of Python distribution that you plan to work with. Common options include 32-bit and 64-bit variants of Python 2, Python 3, Miniconda, Anaconda 2, and Anaconda 3. Each option includes the distribution’s interpreter, runtime, and libraries. Anaconda, specifically, is an open data science platform that includes a wide range of preinstalled packages. Visual Studio automatically detects existing Python installations. For more information, see The Python Environments window. Also, if a newer version of Python is available than the version shown in the installer, you can install the new version separately and Visual Studio detects it. Cookiecutter template support Install the Cookiecutter graphical UI to discover templates, input template options, and create projects and files. For more information, see Use the Cookiecutter extension. Python web support Install tools for web development including HTML, CSS, and JavaScript editing support, along with templates for projects using the Bottle, Flask, and Django frameworks. For more information, see Python web project templates. Python native development tools Install the C++ compiler and other necessary components to develop native extensions for Python. For more information, see Create a C++ extension for Python. Also install the Desktop development with C++ workload for full C++ support.
By default, the Python workload installs for all users on a computer under:

%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Visual Studio\

\

Common7\IDE\Extensions\Microsoft\Python

where

is 2022 and

is Community, Professional, or Enterprise.

%ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Visual Studio\

\

Common7\IDE\Extensions\Microsoft\Python

where

is 2019 or 2017 and

is Community, Professional, or Enterprise.

How to set up Python on Visual Studio Code

Python in Visual Studio Code

Working with Python in Visual Studio Code, using the Microsoft Python extension, is simple, fun, and productive. The extension makes VS Code an excellent Python editor, and works on any operating system with a variety of Python interpreters. It leverages all of VS Code’s power to provide auto complete and IntelliSense, linting, debugging, and unit testing, along with the ability to easily switch between Python environments, including virtual and conda environments.

This article provides only an overview of the different capabilities of the Python extension for VS Code. For a walkthrough of editing, running, and debugging code, use the button below.

Environments

The Python extension automatically detects Python interpreters that are installed in standard locations. It also detects conda environments as well as virtual environments in the workspace folder. See Configuring Python environments.

The current environment is shown on the right side of the VS Code Status Bar:

The Status Bar also indicates if no interpreter is selected:

The selected environment is used for IntelliSense, auto-completions, linting, formatting, and any other language-related feature. It is also activated when you run or debug Python in a terminal, or when you create a new terminal with the Terminal: Create New Terminal command.

To change the current interpreter, which includes switching to conda or virtual environments, select the interpreter name on the Status Bar or use the Python: Select Interpreter command.

VS Code prompts you with a list of detected environments as well as any you’ve added manually to your user settings (see Configuring Python environments).

Hướng dẫn cài đặt Python và Visual Studio Code trên Windows

Start VS Code in a workspace folder

By starting VS Code in a folder, that folder becomes your “workspace”.

Using a command prompt or terminal, create an empty folder called “hello”, navigate into it, and open VS Code (
code
) in that folder () by entering the following commands:

mkdir hello cd hello code .

Note: If you’re using an Anaconda distribution, be sure to use an Anaconda command prompt.

Alternately, you can create a folder through the operating system UI, then use VS Code’s File > Open Folder to open the project folder.

Python Extension Pack

Unsure which extensions to recommend to your students? You can point your students to the Python Education Extension Pack that contains essential and helpful extensions for the classroom. You can download the extension pack from the VS Code Marketplace:

The extension pack contains:

Python for basic Python functionality like compiling, debugging support, linting, Jupyter Notebooks, unit tests, and more.
Live Share to enable real-time collaboration.
Remote – SSH to work on remote projects (for example, to access lab machines) through SSH with full VS Code functionality.
Markdown+Math for full LaTeX support in Markdown.
Python Test Explorer for Visual Studio Code to visualize and run Python tests in the side bar.
Code Runner to run snippets (selected code) and single files of any code with a single click.

How to setup Python for VSCode in 2023 in 5mins! | Install Python and Setup VSCode for Windows 10

Questions, issues, feature requests, and contributions

If you have a question about how to accomplish something with the extension, please ask on Stack Overflow
If you come across a problem with the extension, please file an issue
Contributions are always welcome! Please see our contributing guide for more details
Any and all feedback is appreciated and welcome!
- If someone has already filed an issue that encompasses your feedback, please leave a 👍/👎 reaction on the issue
- Otherwise please start a new discussion
If you’re interested in the development of the extension, you can read about our development process

Useful commands

Open the Command Palette (Command+Shift+P on macOS and Ctrl+Shift+P on Windows/Linux) and type in one of the following commands:

Command	Description
`Python: Select Interpreter`	Switch between Python interpreters, versions, and environments.
`Python: Start REPL`	Start an interactive Python REPL using the selected interpreter in the VS Code terminal.
`Python: Run Python File in Terminal`	Runs the active Python file in the VS Code terminal. You can also run a Python file by right-clicking on the file and selecting `Run Python File in Terminal` .
`Format Document`	Formats code using the provided formatter in the `settings.json` file.
`Python: Configure Tests`	Select a test framework and configure it to display the Test Explorer.

To see all available Python commands, open the Command Palette and type
Python
. For Jupyter extension commands, just type
Jupyter
.

Python and Visual Studio Code Installation

Intro to CS at Harvey Mudd College

Professor Zachary Dodds is a Computer Science professor at Harvey Mudd College who teaches several introductory classes both for students new to Computer Science and students from a non-Computer Science background. He co-created the popular introduction to Computer Science class CS5, which attracts students from all backgrounds to develop programming and problem-solving skills and to build “a coherent, intellectually compelling picture of Computer Science”. The class is taught with Python and uses VS Code as the recommended editor.

Why Visual Studio Code?

Professor Dodds has been recommending and using Visual Studio Code in his classes since it debuted in 2015.

“Visual Studio Code is the best balance of authenticity and accessibility… Visual Studio Code doesn’t feel ‘fake’, it’s what real software developers use. Plus, Visual Studio Code works on every OS!”

VS Code runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, and even Chromebooks.

Classroom settings

Since VS Code is easy to customize, Professor Dodds is able to tailor the editor for his students, preferring to hide IntelliSense, or code completion suggestions, so they can learn from what they type and reinforce the conceptual models being built.

Here are the settings his students use:

"editor.quickSuggestions": false, "editor.acceptSuggestionOnCommitCharacter": false, "editor.suggest.filterGraceful": true, "editor.suggestOnTriggerCharacters": false, "editor.acceptSuggestionOnEnter": "on", "editor.suggest.showIcons": false, "editor.suggest.maxVisibleSuggestions": 7, "editor.hover.enabled": false, "editor.hover.sticky": false, "editor.suggest.snippetsPreventQuickSuggestions": false, "editor.parameterHints.enabled": false, "editor.wordBasedSuggestions": "matchingDocuments", "editor.tabCompletion": "on", "extensions.ignoreRecommendations": true, "files.autoSave": "afterDelay",

You can find the most up-to-date settings on his course website: CS5 – Python Tips.

Integrated Terminal

Professor Dodds also utilizes the built-in terminal heavily in his class as an introduction to running programs from the command line and navigating around their machine all within Visual Studio Code. He appreciates how “the built-in terminal panel does not try to automate too much (which, if it did, would deprive newcomers of the experience of the information-flow that’s going on).”

In the video below, the student does all of their command line and coding work in one place, such as installing Python libraries, while working on Lab 3 from the CS5 class:

Thank you, Professor Dodds, for sharing your story! If you’re interested in using VS Code to teach Python in your classes, you can get started with the Python Education Extension Pack below!

Next steps

To learn how to build web apps with popular Python web frameworks, see the following tutorials:

There is then much more to explore with Python in Visual Studio Code:

Python profile template – Create a new profile with a curated set of extensions, settings, and snippets
Editing code – Learn about autocomplete, IntelliSense, formatting, and refactoring for Python.
Linting – Enable, configure, and apply a variety of Python linters.
Debugging – Learn to debug Python both locally and remotely.
Testing – Configure test environments and discover, run, and debug tests.
Settings reference – Explore the full range of Python-related settings in VS Code.
Deploy Python to Azure App Service
Deploy Python to Container Apps

Python in Visual Studio Code

Visual Studio Code is a free source code editor that fully supports Python and useful features such as real-time collaboration. It’s highly customizable to support your classroom the way you like to teach.

“Visual Studio Code is the best balance of authenticity and accessibility… Visual Studio Code doesn’t feel ‘fake’, it’s what real software developers use. Plus, Visual Studio Code works on every OS!” – Professor Zachary Dodds from Harvey Mudd College

Read below for recommendations for extensions, settings, and links to free lessons that you can use in your classes.

How to run Python in Visual Studio Code on Windows 10/11 [ 2024 Update ] Python Developers

Debugging

No more

For more specific information on debugging in Python, such as configuring your
launch.json
settings and implementing remote debugging, see Debugging. General VS Code debugging information is found in the debugging document.

Additionally, the Django and Flask tutorials provide examples of how to implement debugging in the context of web applications, including debugging Django templates.

Create a Python source code file

From the File Explorer toolbar, select the New File button on the
hello
folder:

Name the file
hello.py
, and VS Code will automatically open it in the editor:

By using the
.py
file extension, you tell VS Code to interpret this file as a Python program, so that it evaluates the contents with the Python extension and the selected interpreter.

Note: The File Explorer toolbar also allows you to create folders within your workspace to better organize your code. You can use the New folder button to quickly create a folder.

Now that you have a code file in your Workspace, enter the following source code in
hello.py
:

msg = "Roll a dice" print(msg)

When you start typing

IntelliSense and auto-completions work for standard Python modules as well as other packages you’ve installed into the environment of the selected Python interpreter. It also provides completions for methods available on object types. For example, because the
msg
variable contains a string, IntelliSense provides string methods when you type
msg.
:

Finally, save the file (⌘S (Windows, Linux Ctrl+S)). At this point, you’re ready to run your first Python file in VS Code.

For full details on editing, formatting, and refactoring, see Editing code. The Python extension also has full support for Linting.

Hướng dẫn cài đặt Python và sử dụng Visual Studio Code

Next steps

Python Hello World tutorial – Get started with Python in VS Code.
Editing Python – Learn about auto-completion, formatting, and refactoring for Python.
Basic Editing – Learn about the powerful VS Code editor.
Code Navigation – Move quickly through your source code.
Django tutorial
Flask tutorial

Python extension for Visual Studio Code

A Visual Studio Code extension with rich support for the Python language (for all actively supported versions of the language: >=3.7), including features such as IntelliSense (Pylance), linting, debugging (Python Debugger), code navigation, code formatting, refactoring, variable explorer, test explorer, and more!

The Python extension does offer some support when running on vscode.dev (which includes github.dev). This includes partial IntelliSense for open files in the editor.

Test your install

Quickly check your installation of Python support:

Launch Visual Studio.
Select Alt + I to open the Python Interactive window.
In the window, enter the statement

2+2
.

The statement output

displays in the window. If you don’t see the correct output, recheck your steps.

How to Setup Python in Visual Studio Code on Windows 11

Jupyter notebooks

To enable Python support for Jupyter notebook files (
.ipynb
) in VS Code, you can install the Jupyter extension. The Python and Jupyter extensions work together to give you a great Notebook experience in VS Code, providing you the ability to directly view and modify code cells with IntelliSense support, as well as run and debug them.

You can also convert and open the notebook as a Python code file through the Jupyter: Export to Python Script command. The notebook’s cells are delimited in the Python file with
#%%
comments, and the Jupyter extension shows Run Cell or Run Below CodeLens. Selecting either CodeLens starts the Jupyter server and runs the cell(s) in the Python interactive window:

You can also connect to a remote Jupyter server to run your notebooks. For more information, see Jupyter support.

Install a Python interpreter

Along with the Python extension, you need to install a Python interpreter. Which interpreter you use is dependent on your specific needs, but some guidance is provided below.

Windows

Install Python from python.org. Use the Download Python button that appears first on the page to download the latest version.

Note: If you don’t have admin access, an additional option for installing Python on Windows is to use the Microsoft Store. The Microsoft Store provides installs of supported Python versions.

For additional information about using Python on Windows, see Using Python on Windows at Python.org

macOS

The system install of Python on macOS is not supported. Instead, a package management system like Homebrew is recommended. To install Python using Homebrew on macOS use
brew install python3
at the Terminal prompt.

Note: On macOS, make sure the location of your VS Code installation is included in your PATH environment variable. See these setup instructions for more information.

Linux

The built-in Python 3 installation on Linux works well, but to install other Python packages you must install
pip
with get-pip.py.

Other options

Data Science: If your primary purpose for using Python is Data Science, then you might consider a download from Anaconda. Anaconda provides not just a Python interpreter, but many useful libraries and tools for data science.
Windows Subsystem for Linux: If you are working on Windows and want a Linux environment for working with Python, the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) is an option for you. If you choose this option, you’ll also want to install the WSL extension. For more information about using WSL with VS Code, see VS Code Remote Development or try the Working in WSL tutorial, which will walk you through setting up WSL, installing Python, and creating a Hello World application running in WSL.

Note: To verify that you’ve installed Python successfully on your machine, run one of the following commands (depending on your operating system):

Linux/macOS: open a Terminal Window and type the following command:

python3 --version

Windows: open a command prompt and run the following command:

py -3 --version

If the installation was successful, the output window should show the version of Python that you installed. Alternatively, you can use the

py -0
command in the VS Code integrated terminal to view the versions of python installed on your machine. The default interpreter is identified by an asterisk (*).

How to install Visual Studio Code on Windows 10/11 [ 2024 Update ] Complete Guide

Supported locales

The extension is available in multiple languages:
de
,
en
,
es
,
fa
,
fr
,
it
,
ja
,
ko-kr
,
nl
,
pl
,
pt-br
,
ru
,
tr
,
zh-cn
,
zh-tw

Enhance completions with AI

GitHub Copilot is an AI-powered code completion tool that helps you write code faster and smarter. You can use the GitHub Copilot extension in VS Code to generate code, or to learn from the code it generates.

GitHub Copilot provides suggestions for languages beyond Python and a wide variety of frameworks, including JavaScript, TypeScript, Ruby, Go, C# and C++.

You can learn more about how to get started with Copilot in the Copilot documentation.

How to install Python 3.12.0 on Windows 11

Configure and run the debugger

Let’s now try debugging our Python program. Debugging support is provided by the Python Debugger extension, which is automatically installed with the Python extension. To ensure it has been installed correctly, open the Extensions view (⇧⌘X (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+X)) and search for
@installed python debugger
. You should see the Python Debugger extension listed in the results.

Next, set a breakpoint on line 2 of
hello.py
by placing the cursor on the

Next, to initialize the debugger, press F5. Since this is your first time debugging this file, a configuration menu will open from the Command Palette allowing you to select the type of debug configuration you would like for the opened file.

Note: VS Code uses JSON files for all of its various configurations;

launch.json
is the standard name for a file containing debugging configurations.

Select Python File, which is the configuration that runs the current file shown in the editor using the currently selected Python interpreter.

The debugger will start, and then stop at the first line of the file breakpoint. The current line is indicated with a yellow arrow in the left margin. If you examine the Local variables window at this point, you can see that the
msg
variable appears in the Local pane.

A debug toolbar appears along the top with the following commands from left to right: continue (F5), step over (F10), step into (F11), step out (⇧F11 (Windows, Linux Shift+F11)), restart (⇧⌘F5 (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+F5)), and stop (⇧F5 (Windows, Linux Shift+F5)).

The Status Bar also changes color (orange in many themes) to indicate that you’re in debug mode. The Python Debug Console also appears automatically in the lower right panel to show the commands being run, along with the program output.

To continue running the program, select the continue command on the debug toolbar (F5). The debugger runs the program to the end.

Tip Debugging information can also be seen by hovering over code, such as variables. In the case of

msg
, hovering over the variable will display the string
Roll a dice!
in a box above the variable.

You can also work with variables in the Debug Console (If you don’t see it, select Debug Console in the lower right area of VS Code, or select it from the … menu.) Then try entering the following lines, one by one, at the > prompt at the bottom of the console:

msg msg.capitalize() msg.split()

Select the blue Continue button on the toolbar again (or press F5) to run the program to completion. “Roll a dice!” appears in the Python Debug Console if you switch back to it, and VS Code exits debugging mode once the program is complete.

If you restart the debugger, the debugger again stops on the first breakpoint.

To stop running a program before it’s complete, use the red square stop button on the debug toolbar (⇧F5 (Windows, Linux Shift+F5)), or use the Run > Stop debugging menu command.

For full details, see Debugging configurations, which includes notes on how to use a specific Python interpreter for debugging.

Tip: Use Logpoints instead of print statements: Developers often litter source code with

Install and use packages

Let’s build upon the previous example by using packages.

In Python, packages are how you obtain any number of useful code libraries, typically from PyPI, that provide additional functionality to your program. For this example, you use the
numpy
package to generate a random number.

Return to the Explorer view (the top-most icon on the left side, which shows files), open
hello.py
, and paste in the following source code:

import numpy as np msg = "Roll a dice" print(msg) print(np.random.randint(1,9))

Tip: If you enter the above code by hand, you may find that auto-completions change the names after the

as
keywords when you press Enter at the end of a line. To avoid this, type a space, then Enter.

Next, run the file in the debugger using the “Python: Current file” configuration as described in the last section.

You should see the message, “ModuleNotFoundError: No module named ‘numpy'”. This message indicates that the required package isn’t available in your interpreter. If you’re using an Anaconda distribution or have previously installed the
numpy
package you may not see this message.

To install the
numpy
package, stop the debugger and use the Command Palette to run Terminal: Create New Terminal (⌃⇧` (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+`)). This command opens a command prompt for your selected interpreter.

To install the required packages in your virtual environment, enter the following commands as appropriate for your operating system:

Install the packages

# Don't use with Anaconda distributions because they include matplotlib already. # macOS python3 -m pip install numpy # Windows (may require elevation) py -m pip install numpy # Linux (Debian) apt-get install python3-tk python3 -m pip install numpy
Now, rerun the program, with or without the debugger, to view the output!

Congrats on completing the Python tutorial! During the course of this tutorial, you learned how to create a Python project, create a virtual environment, run and debug your Python code, and install Python packages. Explore additional resources to learn how to get the most out of Python in Visual Studio Code!

How to create Virtual Environment for Python in Visual Studio Code (2023)

Free Python and Data Science lessons

NASA-inspired lessons

This learning path enables students to use Python to explore doing analyses and projects inspired from real-world problems faced by National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) scientists. View full details of the lessons under NASA-inspired Lessons.

Learn Python with Over The Moon

These space-themed lessons were inspired by the Netflix film, Over the Moon, and will introduce students to data science, machine learning, and artificial intelligence using Python and Azure. View full details on Learn Python with Over The Moon.

Wonder Woman-inspired lessons

Give an introduction to Python with “Wonder Woman 1984”-inspired lessons that help students learn about the basics like conditionals and variables. Get full lesson details under Learn Python with Wonder Woman.

Python in Notebooks

Learn the basics of Python. View the full lesson at Write basic Python in Notebooks in Visual Studio Code.

Set up your Python beginner development environment

A step-by-step guide to installing and setting up your Python and VS Code environment. View the full lesson at Set up your Python beginner development environment with Visual Studio Code.

Install Python support in Visual Studio

Python support is available only on Visual Studio for Windows. On Mac and Linux, Python support is available through Visual Studio Code.

Data and telemetry

The Microsoft Python Extension for Visual Studio Code collects usage
data and sends it to Microsoft to help improve our products and
services. Read our
privacy statement to
learn more. This extension respects the
telemetry.enableTelemetry
setting which you can learn more about at
https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/supporting/faq#_how-to-disable-telemetry-reporting.

Getting Started with Python in VS Code

In this tutorial, you will learn how to use Python 3 in Visual Studio Code to create, run, and debug a Python “Roll a dice” application, work with virtual environments, use packages, and more! By using the Python extension, you turn VS Code into a great, lightweight Python editor.

If you are new to programming, check out the Visual Studio Code for Education – Introduction to Python course. This course offers a comprehensive introduction to Python, featuring structured modules in a ready-to-code browser-based development environment.

To gain a deeper understanding of the Python language, you can explore any of the programming tutorials listed on python.org within the context of VS Code.

For a Data Science focused tutorial with Python, check out our Data Science section.

Testing

The Python extension supports testing with Python’s built-in unittest framework and pytest.

In order to run tests, you must enable one of the supported testing frameworks in the settings of your project. Each framework has its own specific settings, such as arguments for identifying the paths and patterns for test discovery.

Once the tests have been discovered, VS Code provides a variety of commands (on the Status Bar, the Command Palette, and elsewhere) to run and debug tests. These commands also allow you to run individual test files and methods

Run Python code

To experience Python, create a file (using the File Explorer) named
hello.py
and paste in the following code:

print("Hello World")

The Python extension then provides shortcuts to run Python code using the currently selected interpreter (Python: Select Interpreter in the Command Palette). To run the active Python file, click the Run Python File in Terminal play button in the top-right side of the editor.

You can also run individual lines or a selection of code with the Python: Run Selection/Line in Python Terminal command (Shift+Enter). If there isn’t a selection, the line with your cursor will be run in the Python Terminal. An identical Run Selection/Line in Python Terminal command is available on the context menu for a selection in the editor. The same terminal will be used every time you run a selection or a line in the terminal/REPL, until that terminal is closed. The same terminal is also used for Run Python File in Terminal. If that terminal is still running the REPL, you should exit the REPL (
exit()
) or switch to a different terminal before running a Python file.

The Python extension automatically removes indents based on the first non-empty line of the selection, shifting all other lines left as needed.

The command opens the Python Terminal if necessary; you can also open the interactive REPL environment directly using the Python: Start REPL command that activates a terminal with the currently selected interpreter and then runs the Python REPL.

For a more specific walkthrough and other ways of running code, see the run code tutorial.

PyScript | Run Python in your HTML | Write your first PyScript Program in VSCode | PYTHON in BROWSER

Installed extensions

The Python extension will automatically install the following extensions by default to provide the best Python development experience in VS Code:

Pylance – to provide performant Python language support
Python Debugger – to provide a seamless debug experience with debugpy

These extensions are optional dependencies, meaning the Python extension will remain fully functional if they fail to be installed. Any or all of these extensions can be disabled or uninstalled at the expense of some features. Extensions installed through the marketplace are subject to the Marketplace Terms of Use.

Feature details

Learn more about the rich features of the Python extension:

IntelliSense: Edit your code with auto-completion, code navigation, syntax checking and more
Linting: Get additional code analysis with Pylint, Flake8 and more
Code formatting: Format your code with black, autopep or yapf
Debugging: Debug your Python scripts, web apps, remote or multi-threaded processes
Testing: Run and debug tests through the Test Explorer with unittest or pytest.
Jupyter Notebooks: Create and edit Jupyter Notebooks, add and run code cells, render plots, visualize variables through the variable explorer, visualize dataframes with the data viewer, and more
Environments: Automatically activate and switch between virtualenv, venv, pipenv, conda and pyenv environments
Refactoring: Restructure your Python code with variable extraction and method extraction. Additionally, there is componentized support to enable additional refactoring, such as import sorting, through extensions including isort and Ruff.

How to Setup Python on Microsoft Visual Studio 2022 | Amit Thinks

Run Python code

Click the Run Python File in Terminal play button in the top-right side of the editor.

The button opens a terminal panel in which your Python interpreter is automatically activated, then runs
python3 hello.py
(macOS/Linux) or
python hello.py
(Windows):

There are three other ways you can run Python code within VS Code:

Right-click anywhere in the editor window and select Run > Python File in Terminal (which saves the file automatically):
Select one or more lines, then press Shift+Enter or right-click and select Run Selection/Line in Python Terminal. This command is convenient for testing just a part of a file.
From the Command Palette (⇧⌘P (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+P)), select the Python: Start REPL command to open a REPL terminal for the currently selected Python interpreter. In the REPL, you can then enter and run lines of code one at a time.

Congrats, you just ran your first Python code in Visual Studio Code!

Python profile template

Profiles let you quickly switch your extensions, settings, and UI layout depending on your current project or task. To help you get started with Python development, you can use the Python profile template, which is a curated profile with useful extensions, settings, and snippets. You can use the profile template as is or use it as a starting point to customize further for you own workflows.

You select a profile template through the Profiles > Create Profile… dropdown:

Once you select a profile template, you can review the settings and extensions, and remove individual items if you don’t want to include them in your new Profile. After creating the new profile based on the template, changes made to settings, extensions, or UI are persisted in your profile.

You MUST WATCH THIS before installing PYTHON. PLEASE DON'T MAKE this MISTAKE. — You MUST WATCH THIS before installing PYTHON. PLEASE DON’T MAKE this MISTAKE.

Other popular Python extensions

The Microsoft Python extension provides all of the features described previously in this article. Additional Python language support can be added to VS Code by installing other popular Python extensions.

Open the Extensions view (⇧⌘X (Windows, Linux Ctrl+Shift+X)).
Filter the extension list by typing ‘python’.

The extensions shown above are dynamically queried. Click on an extension tile above to read the description and reviews to decide which extension is best for you. See more in the Marketplace.