Python UV in 100 seconds

UV is a fast Python package manager that replaces tools like pip, pyenv, virtualenv, etc.

Install uv

# On macOS and Linux.
curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh
# On Windows.
powershell -ExecutionPolicy ByPass -c "irm https://astral.sh/uv/install.ps1 | iex"

Installing Python

uv python list

uv python install 3.13

This makes it easy to install and manage multiple versions of Python on your system without needing of pyenv.

Using UV with existing requirements.txt

uv venv --seed -p 3.13

source .venv/bin/activate

uv pip install -r requirements.txt

This is way faster than using any other tool to create virtual environments.

Managing virtual environments

uv init -p 3.13 --name demo

uv add pandas

This creates a new virtual environment named demo with Python 3.13 and adds the pandas package to it.

Runs scripts with inline dependencies

# /// script
# requires-python = ">=3.13"
# dependencies = [
#     "requests",
# ]
# ///
import requests

print(requests.get("https://avilpage.com"))

uv run script.py

uvx

Similar to pipx, it can install and run Python applications in isolated environments.

uv tool install glances

uv tool run glances

# shortcut
uvx glances

Conclusion

UV speeds up Python development by providing a fast package manager, virtual environment management, and inline dependency management. It is a great alternative to traditional tools like pip, pyenv, and virtualenv.