devtools
Python's missing debug print command, and more.
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you spend time debugging Python code interactively or in development. It's a low-friction, zero-security-risk utility that genuinely saves keystrokes and improves readability of debug output. The dormant maintenance is not a blocker—the package is stable and has no known vulnerabilities—but compatibility with Python versions beyond 3.11 is unverified.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Low friction: pure Python wheel with three lightweight dependencies (asttokens, executing, pygments).
- Dormant maintenance status—last release was 2023-09-03 and no commits since 2025-01-24—but the package is marked Production/Stable and has seen no security issues.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — MIT license (permissive): you can use, modify, and distribute this package freely in commercial or private projects with minimal restrictions.
last release 2023-09-03 (1076 days) · last repo commit 2025-01-24 · 1,078 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 2,853,323 downloads/mo, #2,859 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install devtools
from devtools import debug
whatever = [1, 2, 3]
debug(whatever)- Whether the package remains compatible with Python 3.12+ given dormant maintenance status.
- Performance impact of debug() calls on large data structures or in tight loops.
- Whether debug() can be injected into __builtins__ via sitecustomize.py as documented.
What it is and what it does
devtools is a debugging utility that replaces bare print statements with a smarter `debug()` function. When you call `debug(variable)`, it outputs the variable name, its value, and its type in a formatted, readable way—including the file and line number where the call was made. It handles complex nested structures (dicts, lists, numpy arrays, generators) with intelligent formatting and syntax highlighting via pygments.
The package works by introspecting the call stack via asttokens and executing to extract the variable name from your source code, so you get both the name and the value without repeating yourself. It can also be injected into Python's `__builtins__` to make `debug()` available globally without an import.
Use it for
- Inspect variable state during development without writing repetitive print statements.
- Debug complex nested data structures with automatic pretty-printing and syntax highlighting.
- Add file and line number context to debug output for faster location of statements in source code.
- Temporarily replace print statements in scripts and notebooks while maintaining readable output.
- Explore generator and iterator contents inline during interactive development.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you spend time debugging Python code interactively or in development.
It's a low-friction, zero-security-risk utility that genuinely saves keystrokes and improves readability of debug output. The dormant maintenance is not a blocker—the package is stable and has no known vulnerabilities—but compatibility with Python versions beyond 3.11 is unverified.
Install
devtools on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction: pure Python wheel with three lightweight dependencies (asttokens, executing, pygments). Dormant maintenance status—last release was 2023-09-03 and no commits since 2025-01-24—but the package is marked Production/Stable and has seen no security issues.
License in practice
MIT license (permissive): you can use, modify, and distribute this package freely in commercial or private projects with minimal restrictions.
Quickstart
pip install devtools
from devtools import debug
whatever = [1, 2, 3]
debug(whatever)Verify before relying
- Whether the package remains compatible with Python 3.12+ given dormant maintenance status.
- Performance impact of debug() calls on large data structures or in tight loops.
- Whether debug() can be injected into __builtins__ via sitecustomize.py as documented.
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.7 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 3 packagesasttokensexecutingpygments |
| Maintenance | Dormant 1,076 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 2,853,323 / month, #2,859 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Development Status :: 5 - Production/StableEnvironment :: ConsoleEnvironment :: MacOS XIntended Audience :: DevelopersIntended Audience :: EducationIntended Audience :: Information TechnologyIntended Audience :: Science/ResearchIntended Audience :: System AdministratorsLicense :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseOperating System :: POSIX :: LinuxOperating System :: UnixProgramming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9Topic :: InternetTopic :: Software Development :: Libraries :: Python ModulesTyping :: Typed |
Evidence: devtools-0.12.2-py3-none-any.whl
Tags
Let your AI agent find packages like this
Example. Real query, live index.
You found this page by searching. An agent finds it by wishing: SkillFed indexes 14,416 PyPI packages by what they can do, searchable in plain language.
wish › “debug print function”
- devtoolsProvides a `debug()` function that prints variables with their names,…
- snoopsnoop adds decorator-based and context-manager tracing to Python…
- icecreamIceCream provides a drop-in replacement for print() debugging that…
Give your agent the search over MCP, or paste the wish link into any chat.
More Python Modules packages
Converts domain names between Unicode and ASCII-compatible encoding (Punycode) according to IDNA 2008 and Unicode Technical Standard 46, with security validation and broader script coverage than the standard library.
Install it if you work with internationalized domain names, need to validate domains, or use HTTP clients that depend on it transitively.
Setuptools is a Python build backend and package management tool that handles building, distributing, and installing Python packages, including support for C/C++ extension modules.
PyYAML parses and emits YAML 1.1 data format, enabling serialization and deserialization of configuration files and Python objects to and from human-readable YAML text.
Pydantic validates Python data structures against type hints, coercing and checking input at runtime to ensure it matches a declared schema.
Provides reusable metadata objects for use with PEP-593 `typing.Annotated` to express common constraints like bounds, collection sizes, and predicates on types.
Install it if you use or build libraries that need to express type constraints in a standardized, inspectable way—or if you want to annotate your own types with…
Provides runtime tools to inspect and introspect Python type annotations, enabling programmatic examination of type hints at execution time.
See also stackprinter · shutils · tracebackturbo3 · PySnooper · prettyprinter · tracerite · tabulate · icecream · mando · inflect