Managing Python#

Conda treats Python the same as any other package, so it is easy to manage and update multiple installations.

Conda supports Python 3.8, 3.9, 3.10, 3.11 and 3.12.

Viewing a list of available Python versions#

To list the versions of Python that are available to install, in your terminal window, run:

conda search python

This lists all packages whose names contain the text python.

To list only the packages whose full name is exactly python, add the --full-name option. In your terminal window, run:

conda search --full-name python

Installing a different version of Python#

To install a different version of Python without overwriting the current version, create a new environment and install the second Python version into it:

Create the new environment:
- To create the new environment for Python 3.9, in your terminal window run:
```
conda create -n py39 python=3.9
```
  Note
  
  Replace py39 with the name of the environment you want to create. python=3.9 is the package and version you want to install in this new environment. This could be any package, such as numpy=1.19, or multiple packages.
Activate the new environment.
Verify that the new environment is your current environment.
To verify that the current environment uses the new Python version, in your terminal window, run:
```
python --version
```

Installing PyPy#

To use the PyPy builds you can do the following:

conda config --add channels conda-forge
conda config --set channel_priority strict
conda create -n pypy pypy
conda activate pypy

Using a different version of Python#

To switch to an environment that has different version of Python, activate the environment.

Updating Python#

To update Python to the latest version in your environment, run:

conda update python

This command will update you to the latest major release (e.g. from python=3.10 to python=3.12).

If you would like to remain on a minor release, use the conda install command instead:

conda install python=3.10