How do I install Python on a Mac?

Install uv with `curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh`, then run `uv python install`. uv downloads a prebuilt CPython into a user-owned directory without `sudo` and without touching the system `python3` or Homebrew. Launch it with `uv run`. This avoids the `externally-managed-environment` error that `brew install python` plus `pip install` produces.

Why does my Mac say `python3` not `python`?

macOS ships a `python3` command at `/usr/bin/python3` but no bare `python`, so typing `python` returns `command not found`. That `/usr/bin/python3` is Apple's frozen Python 3.9.6 build, meant for system tools rather than development. Install uv and run `uv python install` to get a current interpreter you launch with `uv run`.

Is the macOS system Python OK to use?

No. The system interpreter at `/usr/bin/python3` is Python 3.9.6, frozen by Apple for its own tools, and installing packages into it can break OS utilities. Use a uv-managed Python instead, which stays current and keeps each project isolated.

How to Install Python on macOS

by Tim Hopper · Markdown

uv Virtual Environments

macOS makes Python confusing before you write a line of code. Type python and the shell answers command not found. Type python3 and you get Python 3.9.6, a version Apple froze years ago. Run brew install python, then pip install, and the first install fails with externally-managed-environment.

Skip all of it. Install one tool, uv, and let it download and manage Python for you. The same steps work whether you have never installed Python or already have three copies fighting over your PATH.

Install uv, then let it manage Python

Install uv first. The standalone installer needs no existing Python:

curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

Open a new terminal window afterward so the updated PATH takes effect. For the Homebrew and pip install methods, see how to install uv on macOS.

Install a Python version

Ask uv for the latest CPython:

$ uv python install
Installed Python 3.14.6 in 871ms
 + cpython-3.14.6-macos-aarch64-none

uv pulls a prebuilt binary into its own user-owned directory. It needs no sudo, and it leaves /usr/bin/python3 and anything Homebrew installed untouched. Pass a version to pin one: uv python install 3.12. For patch pinning, PyPy, and free-threaded builds, see how to install Python with uv.

Run Python without activating anything

Use uv run to launch the interpreter with its virtual environment wiring already in place:

$ uv run --python 3.13 python -c "import sys; print(sys.version)"
3.13.13 (main, Apr 14 2026, 14:32:41) [Clang 22.1.3 ]

Inside a project, uv run python picks up the version recorded for that project, so different projects run different Pythons without conflict.

Skip these three install paths

Three Pythons a beginner tends to reach for on macOS, and why to leave each alone:

The system python3 at /usr/bin/python3. It exists for Apple’s own tools and stays frozen at an old version (3.9.6 on current macOS). Installing packages into it can break OS utilities. See why you should avoid the system Python.
brew install python. Homebrew’s Python runs Homebrew formulae fine, but it ships marked as externally managed, so pip install outside a virtual environment fails with externally-managed-environment. It also upgrades on Homebrew’s schedule, not yours. See should I use Homebrew to install Python?.
pyenv. pyenv compiles each version from source, which is slower and needs a build toolchain. uv downloads prebuilt binaries and manages project dependencies in the same step, so a separate version manager is redundant.

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Last updated on July 11, 2026

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