11 Best IDEs for Python in 2022
Looking for an IDE for your first Python project? Not satisfied with your current IDE for developing in Python? Then this ranking of the best Python IDEs is for you!
Created by Guido van Rossum in 1991, Python is one of the most popular languages for developers of all levels. This programming language is extremely versatile and allows you to code simple scripts or complex web applications through to data science and much more.
Together, we will see which IDEs are the most popular for Python according to different criteria:
- Automatic formatting
- linting with respect to pep8
- Useful debugging
- Integration with Python packages
- Management of Python virtual environments
- The ability to run our scripts from the IDE
Let’s find out together what are the best Python IDEs in 2022!
1. PyCharm
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Type: IDE
Price: Free or €8.90/month
Pycharm is an integrated development environment developed by JetBrains. This IDE excels thanks to all its tools that will help you in code completion, debugging and execution of your scripts, applications and Python programs.
How much does PyCharm cost?
To use PyCharm professionally, you need to pay a license fee of 8.90€/month for individual use. Annual licenses also exist, at a more competitive rate, the first year being 89€, the second 71€ and then 53€ for the following years.
Download PyCharm for Mac/Windows/Linux
2. Visual Studio Code
Operating systems : Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://code.visualstudio.com/
Type: IDE
Price: Free
Visual Studio Code is an IDE developed by Microsoft and used by more and more developers.
On VSCode you will find plugins to use almost all programming languages including Python.
In addition to the plugins, you can also configure VSCode using VSCode themes developed by the community.
This is without a doubt the best free IDE for developing in 2022 and the one I would recommend for your Python projects if you don’t want to use PyCharm.
3. Jupyter
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://jupyter.org/
Type: IDE in the web interface
Price: Free
If you don’t know Jupyter yet, you’ll be glad you came across this article!
Jupyter is a fantastic tool that allows you to run Python code (and other languages) in a web browser in an interactive and intuitive way.
It’s also what I recommend to beginners so that they can get a direct rendering without having to go through the terminal which can be intimidating.
With Jupyter, you will be able to view directly in the browser the HTML rendering of the pages you scrape or the graphics you generate with packages like Matplotlib.
Perfect for data visualization, you can also easily share your “notebooks” (the development sessions you create with Jupyter).
4. Atom
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://atom.io/
Type: IDE
Price: Free
Atom was developed by GitHub, it was for a long time the most popular IDE before VS Code naturally took the lead. It is the worthy successor to Sublime Text, it is very configurable and will do perfectly well for code you write in Python as well as other programming languages.
Some people still like it and Atom is still a very good IDE for Python too.
5. SublimeText
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://www.sublimetext.com/
Type: Text editor
Price: Free
You can see SublimeText as the predecessor of Atom which is itself the predecessor of VSCode in popularity.
SublimeText is also a very good IDE and can be a good option if you want something simple.
6. PyDev
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://www.pydev.org/
Type: IDE
Price: Free
Developed by the Eclipse Foundation, PyDev allows you to code in Python as if you were in Eclipse (thanks to LiClipse)!
It is a complete Eclipse-based IDE that will suit you if you come from Java or have experience with Eclipse.
Like PyCharm and VSCode, PyDev offers an interactive console and tools for code completion, code analysis etc.
7. IDLE
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://docs.python.org/3/library/idle.html
Type: IDE
Price: Free
IDLE or Integrated Development and Learning Environment is an IDE developed in 1998 by the creator of Python, Guido Van Rossum.
It is an interactive text editor that will allow you to interpret code in Python in a simple and efficient way.
If you have Python installed on your machine, you can run IDLE and window mode and you can also run python in your terminal to open an interactive Python Shell.
8. Spyder
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://github.com/spyder-ide/spyder
Type: IDE
Price: Free
Formerly Pydee, Spyder was developed by Pierre Raybaut in 2008. Since 2012, it is the Python community that maintains Spyder with its open-source contributions.
Spyder is particularly appreciated for its integration of many scientific Python libraries such as Matplotlib, Numpy or Scipy.
9. Thonny
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://thonny.org/
Type: IDE
Price: Free
Thonny is an IDE developed by the University of Tartu in Estonia 🇪🇪. It was designed with the aim of making life easier for Python beginners by providing a simple and lightweight IDE.
It can be seen as a well thought out educational path for beginners who want to develop in Python quickly, easily and simply.
10. Vim
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://www.vim.org/download.php
Type: Terminal IDE
Price: Free
Vim is an IDE that lives in the terminal and is completely configurable.
It may have scared you the first time you used it to edit a file on a Linux installation or server without a GUI, but Vim is an excellent IDE for Python. You may even have gotten stuck in it without knowing how to quit vim?
Once configured with syntax highlighting, pep8 compliant Python linting, autocompletion, file management and all the rest, you will develop faster and more efficiently with Vim than any other IDE for one simple reason: you won’t use the mouse.
Here are some of the Vim plugins for Python:
11. Emacs
Operating systems: Windows/macOS/Linux
Website: https://www.gnu.org/software/emacs/download.html
Type: Terminal IDE
Price: Free
As I have proposed Vim, I have to talk about its competitor, Emacs. Emacs also lives in the terminal and you can also with a powerful Python development environment with Elpy.
The IDE developed by Richard Stallman and his GNU foundation can therefore be a viable option if you already know Emacs.
So now you know which IDE is right for you! No matter what your budget, operating system or Python skills are.
Python being one of the most popular languages, it’s normal that there are many options when it comes to Integrated Development Environments (IDE). If you’re still unsure, consider trying several.
What is your favourite IDE and why? Tell us in the comments!