pip Cheat Sheet

Table of contents

1. 🔹 What is pip?
2. 🔹 pip Command Structure
   1. Example:
3. 🔹 Core pip Commands Overview
4. 🔹 pip Install Syntax
   1. Basic Install
   2. Version-Specific
   3. Editable Mode (for local development)
   4. Install from URLs or VCS
5. 🔹 pip Requirements Files
   1. Create
   2. Use
   3. Best Practices
6. 🔹 pip Configuration Management
   1. Configuration Locations
   2. Commands
7. 🔹 pip Caching and Performance
8. 🔹 pip Environment & Permissions
9. 🔹 Common Errors & Fixes
10. 🔹 Best Practices
11. 🔹 Useful Commands at a Glance
12. 📌 Basic pip Commands
13. 📦 Installing Packages
14. ❌ Uninstalling Packages
15. 🔍 Searching & Showing Packages
16. 📁 Requirements Files
17. 🌍 Using Indexes and Sources
18. 🧪 Installing from Other Sources
19. ⚙️ Configuration & Environment
20. 🔒 Proxy and Trusted Hosts
21. 🛠️ Common Flags
22. 🔄 Upgrading pip
23. 📦 Wheel Support

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🔹 What is pip?

pip is the Python package installer, used to install and manage packages from PyPI and other indexes.

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🔹 pip Command Structure

pip [global-options] <command> [command-options] [arguments]

Example:

pip install --upgrade numpy

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🔹 Core pip Commands Overview

Command	Purpose
install	Install packages
uninstall	Uninstall packages
list	List installed packages
show	Show info about a package
freeze	Output packages in requirements.txt format
check	Check for broken dependencies
download	Download packages without installing
wheel	Build wheels from source
search	🔴 Deprecated
config	Manage pip config settings
cache	Inspect pip’s cache
debug	Show diagnostic info
help	Help with pip or a command

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🔹 pip Install Syntax

Basic Install

pip install <package-name>

Version-Specific

pip install <package-name>==1.0.4
pip install <package-name>~=1.4.2
pip install '<package-name>>=1.2,<2.0'

Editable Mode (for local development)

pip install -e .

Install from URLs or VCS

pip install git+https://github.com/user/repo.git
pip install https://example.com/packages/package.whl

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🔹 pip Requirements Files

Create

pip freeze > requirements.txt

Use

pip install -r requirements.txt

Best Practices

• Pin versions for consistency:

  numpy==1.25.0
  pandas==2.2.0
  

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🔹 pip Configuration Management

Configuration Locations

Scope	Location
Global	/etc/pip/pip.conf (Unix) or %PROGRAMDATA%\pip\pip.ini (Windows)
User	~/.pip/pip.conf (Unix) or %APPDATA%\pip\pip.ini (Windows)
Virtualenv	<venv>/pip.conf

Commands

pip config list
pip config get global.index-url
pip config set global.index-url https://pypi.org/simple
pip config unset global.index-url

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🔹 pip Caching and Performance

• pip uses a cache directory (typically ~/.cache/pip) to avoid re-downloading packages.
• Use --no-cache-dir to avoid using the cache.

pip install <package> --no-cache-dir

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🔹 pip Environment & Permissions

Option	Description
--user	Install to user site-packages
--root	Install under custom root
--prefix	Specify installation prefix
--target	Install to custom directory

Example:

pip install --user requests

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🔹 Common Errors & Fixes

Issue	Fix
Permission denied	Use --user or sudo
SSL: CERTIFICATE_VERIFY_FAILED	Use --trusted-host
No module named pip	Reinstall via get-pip.py or ensure pip is in PATH

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🔹 Best Practices

✅ Always use a virtual environment (e.g., venv, virtualenv)

✅ Pin versions in requirements.txt

✅ Use pip install --upgrade pip regularly

✅ Use pip list --outdated to monitor updates

✅ Avoid using pip and conda together in the same environment (unless you know what you’re doing)

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🔹 Useful Commands at a Glance

# Create virtual environment
python -m venv env
source env/bin/activate  # or .\env\Scripts\activate (Windows)

# Install a package
pip install requests

# Save dependencies
pip freeze > requirements.txt

# Install from file
pip install -r requirements.txt

# Check for outdated packages
pip list --outdated

# Upgrade pip itself
python -m pip install --upgrade pip

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📌 Basic pip Commands

Command	Description
pip --version	Show pip version
pip help	Display help for pip
pip <command> --help	Help for a specific command (e.g., pip install --help)

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📦 Installing Packages

Command	Description
pip install <package>	Install latest version of a package
pip install <package>==1.2.3	Install specific version
pip install '<package>>=1.2,<2.0'	Install version range
pip install -r requirements.txt	Install all from a requirements file
pip install .	Install a local package (from current directory)
pip install -e .	Install in “editable” mode (useful for development)
pip install --upgrade <package>	Upgrade to latest version
pip install --pre <package>	Include pre-release versions

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❌ Uninstalling Packages

Command	Description
pip uninstall <package>	Uninstall a package
pip uninstall -r requirements.txt	Uninstall all in file

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🔍 Searching & Showing Packages

Command	Description
pip search <package>	🔴 Deprecated in recent versions
pip show <package>	Show details (version, dependencies, location, etc.)
pip list	List all installed packages
pip list --outdated	List outdated packages
pip list --uptodate	List up-to-date packages
pip check	Check for broken dependencies

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📁 Requirements Files

Command	Description
pip freeze	Output installed packages in requirements.txt format
pip freeze > requirements.txt	Save all installed packages to file
pip install -r requirements.txt	Install all packages from file
pip uninstall -r requirements.txt	Uninstall all packages in file

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🌍 Using Indexes and Sources

Command	Description
pip install <package> -i <index_url>	Use a custom package index
pip install <package> --extra-index-url <url>	Add an extra index (e.g. private PyPI)
pip install <package> --no-index --find-links <dir_or_url>	Install from a local directory or URL without using PyPI

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🧪 Installing from Other Sources

Command	Description
pip install git+https://github.com/user/repo.git	Install from a GitHub repo
pip install https://example.com/pkg.whl	Install from a wheel file URL
pip install ./package.whl	Install from a local wheel
pip install <package>.tar.gz	Install from a tarball source distribution

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⚙️ Configuration & Environment

Command	Description
pip config list	Show current config
pip config get <key>	Get a config value
pip config set <key> <value>	Set config (e.g. proxy, index-url)
pip config unset <key>	Remove a config setting

📝 Config scopes:

• --global: System-wide
• --user: Per-user
• --site: Per-virtualenv

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🔒 Proxy and Trusted Hosts

Command	Description
pip install <package> --proxy http://user:pass@proxy:port	Install using a proxy
pip install <package> --trusted-host <hostname>	Bypass SSL verification for a host

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🛠️ Common Flags

Flag	Description
--quiet or -q	Reduce output verbosity
--verbose or -v	Increase output verbosity
--no-cache-dir	Don’t use cache
--user	Install to user site directory (not system-wide)
--upgrade-strategy eager	Upgrade all dependencies eagerly

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🔄 Upgrading pip

python -m pip install --upgrade pip

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📦 Wheel Support

Command	Description
pip wheel <package>	Build a wheel
pip install <package>.whl	Install a wheel file
pip install wheel	Install wheel tool support

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