python-discovery
Python interpreter discovery
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. The package is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, installs with minimal friction (one dependency), and solves a real problem for tools that manage multiple Python versions. Its permissive MIT license poses no restrictions. Install it if your tool or workflow needs to programmatically discover or verify Python interpreters.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Low install friction with a single lightweight dependency (filelock).
- Actively maintained with a release 2 days ago; repository shows recent activity and is not archived.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — MIT license (permissive) — you may use, modify, and distribute this package freely with minimal restrictions, provided you include the license notice.
last release 2026-08-12 (2 days) · last repo commit 2026-08-13 · 13 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 289,858,660 downloads/mo, #142 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
from pathlib import Path
from python_discovery import DiskCache, get_interpreter
cache = DiskCache(root=Path("~/.cache/python-discovery").expanduser())
result = get_interpreter("python3.12", cache=cache)
if result:
print(result.executable) # e.g. /usr/bin/python3.12- Whether the package successfully discovers interpreters installed via all mentioned sources (pyenv, mise, asdf, uv, Windows registry) in practice
- Performance characteristics when searching across many interpreter locations or with large cached datasets
- Behavior and reliability when interpreters are uninstalled or moved after being cached
What it is and what it does
python-discovery is a library that locates Python interpreters on your machine and returns structured metadata about them. It searches multiple installation sources—system packages, version managers like pyenv/mise/asdf/uv, and the Windows registry—then caches results to disk for fast repeated lookups. You give it a requirement (a version number, a version specifier like `>=3.11,<3.13`, or a path), and it returns the executable path, implementation name, and version info for a matching interpreter.
The library runs on Python 3.8 and newer, and can discover interpreters as old as Python 3.6 (older versions trigger a warning). It's designed for tools that need to programmatically select or verify Python environments—build systems, test runners, and environment managers that must handle multiple Python versions across different installation methods.
Use it for
- Build or test tools that need to locate a specific Python version to run code against
- CI/CD pipelines selecting the right Python interpreter from multiple installed versions
- Version managers or environment tools that must discover interpreters from pyenv, asdf, or other sources
- Development workflows verifying that a required Python version is installed before proceeding
- Cross-platform tools that need to find Python on Windows, macOS, and Linux uniformly
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
The package is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, installs with minimal friction (one dependency), and solves a real problem for tools that manage multiple Python versions. Its permissive MIT license poses no restrictions. Install it if your tool or workflow needs to programmatically discover or verify Python interpreters.
Install
python-discovery on PyPI
Before you install
Low install friction with a single lightweight dependency (filelock). Actively maintained with a release 2 days ago; repository shows recent activity and is not archived.
License in practice
MIT license (permissive) — you may use, modify, and distribute this package freely with minimal restrictions, provided you include the license notice.
Quickstart
from pathlib import Path
from python_discovery import DiskCache, get_interpreter
cache = DiskCache(root=Path("~/.cache/python-discovery").expanduser())
result = get_interpreter("python3.12", cache=cache)
if result:
print(result.executable) # e.g. /usr/bin/python3.12Verify before relying
- Whether the package successfully discovers interpreters installed via all mentioned sources (pyenv, mise, asdf, uv, Windows registry) in practice
- Performance characteristics when searching across many interpreter locations or with large cached datasets
- Behavior and reliability when interpreters are uninstalled or moved after being cached
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.8 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packagefilelock |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 2 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 289,858,660 / month, #142 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/StableIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseOperating System :: MacOS :: MacOS XOperating System :: Microsoft :: WindowsOperating System :: POSIXProgramming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Programming Language :: Python :: 3.14Programming Language :: Python :: 3.15Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9Programming Language :: Python :: Implementation :: CPythonTopic :: Software Development :: LibrariesTopic :: Utilities |
Evidence: python_discovery-1.5.2-py3-none-any.whl
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See also find-libpython · findpython · unifi-discovery · identify · kenbun · relenv · translation-finder · pyrootutils · findlibs · entrypoints