pip

pip is the package installer for Python, serving as the standard tool for installing and managing Python packages from the Python Package Index (PyPI) and other package indexes. Originally created by Ian Bicking in 2008 as a replacement for easy_install, pip has been the recommended package installer for Python since Python 2.7.9 and 3.4 (where it is included by default), and is maintained by the Python Packaging Authority (PyPA). With over 19,000 stars as of 2026, pip is installed alongside every Python distribution and handles billions of package downloads per month. Key commands and features include: pip install (installing packages from PyPI, local directories, VCS repositories, wheel files, or source distributions, with support for version specifiers like >=1.0,<2.0, extras like package[dev,docs], and constraints files), pip uninstall (removing installed packages), pip freeze (listing installed packages in requirements format for reproducibility), pip list (showing all installed packages with versions), pip show (displaying metadata about an installed package including dependencies and location), pip download (downloading packages without installing, for offline installation or caching), pip search (searching PyPI by keyword, deprecated in newer versions in favor of the PyPI website), pip check (verifying that installed packages have compatible dependencies), pip cache (managing the local wheel cache), pip hash (generating hash values for requirements file verification), requirements files (pip install -r requirements.txt with nested includes, environment markers, and hash-checking mode for supply chain security), editable installs (pip install -e . for development with pyproject.toml or setup.py), and build isolation (creating isolated build environments per PEP 517 to prevent build dependencies from polluting the global environment). pip supports Python 3.8+.