editables

Editable installations

editables Permissive license Active ★ 43 v0.6 released 2026-04-14

Install

editables on PyPI

pip

pip install editables

uv

uv add editables

poetry

poetry add editables

Package facts

License	not declared (permissive)
Python support	supports the current Python release (>=3.7)
Install friction	low — pure-Python wheel
Runtime dependencies	none
Maintenance	actively maintained — 121 days since the last release
Last repo commit	2026-07-23
First released	2020-06-15
Popularity	one of the top 1,000 most-downloaded packages on PyPI (30-day window, as of 2026-08-13)
Known vulnerabilities	none known (OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-13)

Evidence: editables-0.6-py3-none-any.whl

Development Status :: 5 - Production/StableIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9Programming Language :: Python :: Implementation :: CPythonProgramming Language :: Python :: Implementation :: PyPyTopic :: Software Development :: LibrariesTopic :: UtilitiesTyping :: Typed

About editables

from the package's own PyPI description — quoted content, verbatim

A Python library for creating "editable wheels"

This library supports the building of wheels which, when installed, will expose packages in a local directory on sys.path in "editable mode". In other words, changes to the package source will be reflected in the package visible to Python, without needing a reinstall.

Usage

Suppose you want to build a wheel for your project foo. Your project is located in the directory /path/to/foo. Under that directory, you have a src directory containing your project, which is a package called foo and a Python module called bar.py. So your directory structure looks like this:

/path/to/foo
|
+-- src
|   +-- foo
|   |   +-- __init__.py
|   +-- bar.py
|
+-- setup.py
+-- other files

Build your wheel as follows:

```python from editables import EditableProject

my_project = EditableProject("foo", "/path/to/foo") my_project.add_to_path("src")

Build a wheel however you prefer...

wheel = BuildAWheel()

Add files to the wheel

for name, content in my_project.files(): wheel.add_file(name, content)

Record any runtime dependencies

for dep in my_project.dependencies():...

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AI-generated interpretation of the package facts above; every digit, version, license, or vulnerability id it cites is grounded in the facts already shown on this page

Builds editable wheels that expose local package source on sys.path, allowing live code changes without reinstall during development.

Low friction: zero runtime dependencies, pure Python wheel distribution, and active maintenance with recent commits.

MIT license permits commercial and private use with minimal restrictions; permissive treatment means straightforward adoption in most projects.

Usage

from editables import EditableProject

project = EditableProject("mypackage", "/path/to/project")
project.add_to_path("src")
for name, content in project.files():
    # Add to wheel
    pass

Python 3.7 or later required; intended for use within wheel-building toolchains, not standalone installation.

Verdict: Production-ready library for wheel builders needing editable installation support. No dependencies, MIT license, active maintenance, and zero known vulnerabilities make it a low-risk choice for build tooling.

Needs verification

Whether the package is actively maintained by the original author or has transferred to a new maintainer
Real-world adoption rate among major build backends (setuptools, hatch, flit, etc.)

editable wheel builderdevelopment mode installationlive code reloadingeditable package installationsys.path manipulationwheel building librarylocal package development