Python Versions

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• Python Engineering

Overview

This page document how to deal with multiple Python versions on the same system. pyenv is a tool that deals with that.

Python Version Management with Brew

brew install different Python major and minor versions in Cellar using the following naming scheme:

 Cellar
  ├─ ...
  ├─ python@3.8
  ├─ python@3.9
  ├─ python@3.10
  ├─ python@3.11
  ├─ python@3.12
  ├─ ...

The default Cellar location is /usr/local/Cellar but may differ depending on the brew instance. See:

brew Concepts | Cellar

Install a Specific Version

brew install python@3.12

If multiple versions are installed this way, only one is symlinked in /usr/local/bin/python and /usr/local/bin/python3 (which one?, looks like the newest one)

To use a specific version other than the one symlinked, update the PATH:

export PATH="/usr/local/opt/python@3.7/bin:${PATH}"

Update a Specific Version to a Newer Patch Level

brew upgrade python@3.12

Get More Info about a Specific Python Version

brew info python@3.9

pip relationship to Python Version

pip installs the packages in a directory

/opt/brew/lib/python3.9/site-packages ?