Mac Update Python

Python is a widely-used general-purpose, high-level programming language. This article will serve as a complete tutorial on How to download and install Python latest version on macOS / Mac OS X. Like Linux, macOS also comes with Python pre-installed on the system. It might be Python version 2 or some similar outdated version. To update to the latest version, we will use the Homebrew Package manager. It is one of the best and convenient methods to install Python on macOS.
To know more about Homebrew Package manager, visit here.

Mac Update Python From 2 To 3
Mac Update Python 2.7 To 3.8
Mac Update Python To 3.8

Doing it Right¶. Let’s install a real version of Python. Before installing Python, you’ll need to install GCC. GCC can be obtained by downloading Xcode, the smaller Command Line Tools (must have an Apple account) or the even smaller OSX-GCC-Installer package. Installing Python 3 on Mac OS X. The version of Python that ships with OS X is great for learning, but it’s not good for development. The version shipped with OS X may be out of date from the official current Python release, which is considered the stable production version. Python's website has a macOS Python 3 installer we can download and use. If we use the package installation, a python3 fill will be available in /usr/local/bin/. Aliasing is a must since the Python binary stored in /usr/bin/ can't be changed. What's nice about an alias is that it's specific to our command-line shell. Download the latest version of PyCharm for Windows, macOS or Linux.

Download and install Homebrew Package Manager
If you don’t have homebrew installed on your system, follow the steps below
Open the Terminal Application of macOS from Application -> Utilities. Bash terminal will open where you can enter commands
Enter following command in macOS terminal
Enter system password if prompted. This will install the Homebrew package Manager on your OS.
After you see a message called “Installation Successful”. You are ready to install python version 3 on your macOS.
Install Python Latest Version on macOS / macOS X
To install python simple open Terminal app from Application -> Utilities
and enter following command

After command processing is complete, Python’s version 3 would be installed on your mac.
To verify the installation enter following commands in your Terminal app
Bingo..!! Python is installed on your computer. You can explore more about python here

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How to check the python version?

To check which version of Python you have installed in your Macbook, you need to type a single line code in your terminal. So, let me guide you on you can do that:

Open the Terminal on your Mac.

Now, enter the command python --version and press the Enter key.

You can see the result in the next line itself, displaying the version of python installed on your Mac pc.

But, if that command doesn’t work for you then you may trypython3 --version and then press the Enter key. If this command works then you already have the python version 3 installed. But still, if you have a version lower then 37.4 then you can follow the methods below and get the latest version installed.

How to Install/Update python on Mac?

So, there are various methods using which python can be installed and not updated. I will tell you why not updated, because there are many apps in Mac still running on python 2 and not Python 3. Also, installing python 3 won’t remove python 2 and all your apps would work fine with it. That’s why you can follow the below methods to install python 3.

1. Using Python.org

Download the latest version of python from this link.

Click on the Latest Python 3 Release to start the download.
Open the file and click on Continue to start the install.

And done, python is installed successfully.

The latest version of python is installed in your Mac and now you can use it for whatever programming needs you have.

2. Using HomeBrew & XCode

The HomeBrew is a package manager required in Mac or other Linux based OS to install other applications on Mac. So, we will be using HomeBrew to install the latest version of python on your Mac pc but you need to have installed HomeBrew on your Mac already. If you do not have it installed then you would have to follow the method below to install HomeBrew first, we will be installing HomeBrew using XCode. So, let’s begin with installing XCode first and then HomeBrew using the below mentioned commands:

Open the terminal on your Mac pc.
Now, type the command xcode-select --install and press the Enter key.

Wait till the system installs the XCode and press Install if asked.
Now, it is time to install HomeBrew and to do so, just copy and paste the following command /usr/bin/ruby -e '$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/master/install)'and press Enter.

This will install HomeBrew on your system.

To confirm the installation, you can check by entering the command brew doctor and press Enter.
If you see the result of the above command a Your system is ready to brew. then you have installed HomeBrew successfully.
Now, you are ready to install python3 on your Mac.
It is easy to install python3 on Mac using HomeBrew, just enter the command $ brew install python3 and wait till the installation is complete.
Done.

So, you have successfully installed XCode, HomeBrew & Python3 finally and now you can use python for all your programming needs. Also, if you have an interest in making apps for iOS then you may use XCode for that.

Since python3 is installed already on your Mac, though if you feel like checking and confirming the installation or check the version then you may refer the How to check the python version? section above. Or just simply enter the command $ python3 --version in the terminal and you would know.

How to run Python with Python3?

Now, if you have previously installed the older version of python like python2 and now you have installed python3 using this article, let me tell you that you can run both the python on your Mac device now. So, previously while running or opening python2 you might have to enter a command. The same command would help you with running python3 too.

Open the terminal, type python and press the Enter key.

This command would open the python2 installed on your Mac and also show you the version of python installed.
You can write programs or python commands if you want to. Else you can type exit() and press the Enter key to close the python2.
Similarly, type python3 and press the Enter key.

This would open the latest version of python3 installed on your Mac. Again you can exit python3 using the exit() command.