pretty-errors
Prettifies Python exception output to make it legible.
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you spend time debugging Python in the terminal. It's a low-friction install with no security issues and genuinely improves readability of exception output. The dormant maintenance is not a concern for a stable, focused tool that does one thing well. Install globally via python -m pretty_errors for the best experience, or import it in projects that need custom formatting.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires a terminal capable of color output; Windows users should use PowerShell or cmder rather than cmd.exe.
- Can fall back to monochrome with pretty_errors.mono().
- Low friction install with a single dependency (colorama).
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — MIT license permits free use, modification, and distribution with minimal restrictions—suitable for both open-source and proprietary projects.
last release 2021-11-24 (1724 days) · last repo commit 2024-03-05 · 2,871 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 159,216 downloads/mo, #10,704 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install pretty_errors
python -m pretty_errors
Or in code:
import pretty_errors
pretty_errors.configure(display_locals=True)- Whether the package works reliably with modern Python versions (3.10+) given its dormant maintenance status since 2021.
- Compatibility with recent web frameworks that override sys.excepthook (e.g., uvicorn, FastAPI) beyond the replace_stderr() workaround mentioned.
What it is and what it does
pretty-errors intercepts Python exceptions and reformats their tracebacks with syntax highlighting, context code snippets, and configurable layout options. It works by installing a custom sys.excepthook or by scraping stderr output when frameworks override the default exception handler. The package is designed to be installed globally via the Python startup procedure (python -m pretty_errors) so it activates for all scripts, including those that raise SyntaxError before import statements can run.
You can also import it directly in individual projects and configure its output—controlling separator characters, line numbers, local variable display, code context lines, and color schemes. It respects environment variables to disable itself when redirecting to files or in non-interactive terminals, and supports path-based whitelisting and blacklisting to hide or highlight specific stack frames.
Use it for
- Interactive debugging: Run scripts in the terminal and see colorized, readable tracebacks with surrounding code context.
- Development workflow: Install globally to automatically format all Python exceptions without modifying project code.
- Framework debugging: Use replace_stderr() to capture and reformat exceptions from frameworks like uvicorn that override the default exception handler.
- Local variable inspection: Enable display_locals to see variable values at the point of failure in the top stack frame.
- CI/CD logs: Disable pretty formatting in non-interactive environments using PYTHON_PRETTY_ERRORS_ISATTY_ONLY to keep logs clean.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you spend time debugging Python in the terminal.
It's a low-friction install with no security issues and genuinely improves readability of exception output. The dormant maintenance is not a concern for a stable, focused tool that does one thing well. Install globally via python -m pretty_errors for the best experience, or import it in projects that need custom formatting.
Install
pretty-errors on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction install with a single dependency (colorama). Dormant since late 2021 but stable; last commit was March 2024. No known vulnerabilities.
Requires a terminal capable of color output; Windows users should use PowerShell or cmder rather than cmd.exe. Can fall back to monochrome with pretty_errors.mono().
License in practice
MIT license permits free use, modification, and distribution with minimal restrictions—suitable for both open-source and proprietary projects.
Quickstart
pip install pretty_errors
python -m pretty_errors
Or in code:
import pretty_errors
pretty_errors.configure(display_locals=True)Verify before relying
- Whether the package works reliably with modern Python versions (3.10+) given its dormant maintenance status since 2021.
- Compatibility with recent web frameworks that override sys.excepthook (e.g., uvicorn, FastAPI) beyond the replace_stderr() workaround mentioned.
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Not specified |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packagecolorama |
| Maintenance | Dormant 1,724 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 159,216 / month, #10,704 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | License :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: Python :: 2Programming Language :: Python :: 3 |
Evidence: pretty_errors-1.2.25-py3-none-any.whl
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