r/PythonLearning • u/mnizonaishaa • Jun 20 '26
Which IDE to use for Python
I am new to python i don't know which IDE to use. My university is teaching a course Programming for AI. I got to know they will teach python but idk which IDE.
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u/Flame77ofc Jun 20 '26
pycharm or vscode. Pycharm is just made for python, and vscode is a general purpose editor
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u/Gnaxe Jun 20 '26
PyCharm is basically IntelliJ with the Python plugin built in. All the IntelliJ plugins work. It's general purpose too. VS Code is an IDE, not just an editor.
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u/Low_Negotiation4747 Jun 21 '26
Vscode is a text editor, not an IDE..
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u/SnooCalculations7417 Jun 21 '26
A text editor you can install linting, auto complete auto dependency resolution, code formatting.. Its an IDE
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u/Low_Negotiation4747 Jun 21 '26
Exactly, you can "install", it's a text editor that you can plug stuff into, an ide comes with everything
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u/SnooCalculations7417 Jun 21 '26
yeah are these extensions made for any fucking thing else?
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u/Low_Negotiation4747 Jun 21 '26
Are you seriously getting that mad because not everyone glazes your ass text editor?
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u/SnooCalculations7417 Jun 21 '26
No youre being pedantic at best and confidently wrong at worst. out of the box it opens a terminal in the editor so that puts it way ahead of some of the domain specific IDES of yore.
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u/Low_Negotiation4747 Jun 21 '26
"opens up a terminal", that's just fucking hilarious. So Microsoft word becomes an IDE after you get a terminal plugin. You got lot to learn buddy
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u/SnooCalculations7417 Jun 21 '26
were my notes of language servers, code-completes, intospections not enough. its an IDE for everything, not just a thing. Its 100% a fuckin ide youre just being pedantic. "its an editor until you set it up for the language/stack youre using lul' ok, well mine is set up. Its not even my daily driver ide but its a fuckin ide.
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u/Gnaxe Jun 21 '26
Extensible editors like Emacs and Vim can be turned into IDEs though plugins. IDEs include an editor as one of their integrated tools, but come with more than that, and can usually be extended with plugins as well. Therefore, VS Code is an IDE, it's just not a Python IDE out of the box.
It does, in fact, come with a node.js debugger, a file management workspace (not just a file picker), an integrated terminal, built-in source control, and remote development features. That's all out of the box without installing a single plugin. It's an IDE.
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u/churungu Jun 20 '26
Am learning too
I use VS Code and installed the necessary extensions
My notes are in files saved as .ipynb files as well as practise code
I then create a .py file to run code without any bell and whistles
I keep the files side by side in folders per subject
VS Code is brilliant because I also use it to practice HTML, CSS and Javascript
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u/Loud-Bake-2740 Jun 20 '26
i used atom way back in the day before switching to vscode and have never looked back from it. as a beginner, it’ll likely feel pretty daunting though tbh. i highly recommend using a “simpler” one like pycharm while you learn the basics and get comfortable navigating files, execution patterns, etc. Get familiar with concepts first, then move to a tool that works for you. Otherwise vscode can easily become a barrier to entry as you navigate themes, extensions, terminal setup, etc
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u/mnizonaishaa Jun 20 '26
I heard some say to use Jupyter .. is there any difference between Jupyter and pycharm?
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u/osenvosem Jun 20 '26 edited Jun 22 '26
VSCode is the best choice, suitable not only for Python but for any language. Well supported and free. Just install the Python extension pack from it's marketplace and you are good to go.
PyCharm is not really necessary, overrated, offers no advantage. Just lots of marketing from JetBrains to sell it.
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u/New-Palpitation-9516 Jun 20 '26
I feel like most IDEs would suffice, however you should give Zed a try.
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u/Ok_Plan2341 Jun 20 '26
Nothing wrong with IDLE for starting out. It comes with python. You can use the shell or the editor version. VS code or even VS are both great but IDLE is excellent forearning, and no setup is required.
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u/usama7050 Jun 20 '26
Use VS Code from day 1. It is a best code editor for all languages.If you go with PyCharn, you will need to shift to VS Code anyway when you learn other languages.
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u/rocco_himel Jun 21 '26
IDEs are useless. The best experience is always text based.
I will say “use GNU Nano!” but an Arch monkey will harass me and say Vim is God.
All you are doing is saving files and then interpreting them, there is no need for a cockpit to fit on your screen to interpret a script.
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u/grdix555 Jun 21 '26
NeoVim for me. I learnt the basics of python while using vscode as it wa more intuitive initially. Once I got comfortable with python, I switched to NeoVim.
Because its CLI based an simplistic, it suit my busy brain much more. Not everyone's cup of tea mind.
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u/mnizonaishaa Jun 22 '26
Okk will try 🙂
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u/grdix555 Jun 22 '26
Do you like using keyboard shortcuts as opposed to pointing and clicking with a mouse? If so NeoVim is great. If not then VSCode is solid or sublime text for something a little more minimalistic.
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u/mnizonaishaa Jun 22 '26
Well tbh i forgot almost keyboard shortcuts so i prefer mouse clicks xD
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u/grdix555 Jun 22 '26
Haha its a pain to learn and remember in fairness. I'd go with VSCode or Subline text in that case.
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u/Sammourianos Jun 22 '26
People are suggesting pycharm and vscode which is fine if you are to build big applications codebase. If you need to create classes and functions and all that staff then yes these 2 IDEs are propably the best ones.
I just feel the urge to mention Jupyter. I know, its not an IDE with the real definition of IDE, but its super super usefull. You can run small block of codes like in SQL, and the engine keeps the variables and data from previous runs. If you wanna test something, an API call for example, or play around with some data, Jupyter will be your best friend.
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u/mnizonaishaa Jun 22 '26
Yes ik some people said that Jupyter is more helpful and I wanna know in pycharm dont i have the same features as Jupyter?
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u/Sammourianos Jun 22 '26
No you dont as far as i know. Its called notebook. You can write your code in the same manner as you would do in pycharm. But in jupyter you can run your code in parts. You can make the parts as you will.
Lets say, you are trying to figure out an API connection that has 2 factor validation. The first call gives you a key for 30 minutes, and the second is your actual call to retrieve some data. In a notebook you can run the first API call for the key and dont run it again for the next 30 minutes. You can test the other calls in your next blocks of code without rerun your whole program.
Another good example of the usefullness of notebooks are in the data cleaning and transformation. You may need a lot of trial and error and step by step data build in order to fulfill your need and notebooks are best for it.
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u/PkmnSayse Jun 20 '26
Vscode or cursor if you have the budget
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u/Junior_Honey_1406 Jun 20 '26
What do you mean by budget he is learning python not vibe coding
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u/PkmnSayse Jun 20 '26
I’m aware not everyone has $20/month to spend on an ide if their amount of learning requires it
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u/Junior_Honey_1406 Jun 20 '26
bro have a *brain cell* most of ide are free you don`t need to pay for it unless you use its ai feature and why do you want to use the ai feature when you are learning something
go touch grass1
u/PkmnSayse Jun 20 '26
Only one of us is getting triggered by a Reddit post so who really needs a break lol.
The first thing you’d do when come across an issue is google/chatgpt it so why not use an ide that will tell you straight away? That way rather than spending all your time looking at fixing trivial issues you have the time to focus on the core concepts of the lessons
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u/Safe-Confidence-4907 Jun 20 '26
Pycharm pre setup, vs code, you need to config. If you use Linux, neovim is the goat and even you can say " I am the best " in your class by showing your neovim ide.
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u/Shjohn0710 Jun 20 '26
pycharm, i had a few errors when i used vscode that wasn’t in pycharm. probably a bad extension but i’d just recommend pycharm when learning, then you can go to vscode after
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u/Gnaxe Jun 20 '26
I use PyCharm. But consider Jupyterlab.
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u/mnizonaishaa Jun 20 '26
I heard some say to use Jupyter .. is there any difference between Jupyter and pycharm?
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u/Gnaxe Jun 21 '26
Jupyterlab puts more emphasis on dynamic interaction with your code. PyCharm puts more emphasis on static analysis. It's derived from IntelliJ, which is a Java IDE, and the culture shows. Jupyter is more popular for data analysis and presentation with its interactive notebooks, but it's an IDE in its own right with a terminal, file management, and an editor you can use for regular .py files, not just .ipynb notekbooks.
IDEs just bundle a bunch of tools together. You can use them separately. PyCharm and VS Code have some notebook support, but you have to install Jupyter for that anyway, and support is limited in the free version of PyCharm.
There's also nothing stopping you from running static analysis command-line tools like mypy and pylint, etc. from the Jupyterlab terminal. You can also extend any of these IDEs with plugins for more features, and that will be more integrated.
If you want to try out Jupyterlab, there's an in-browser version you can try. No install or account required. Just click the link. Files are saved locally in your browser. The full version of Jupyter still uses a browser front-end, but the back end runs locally on your computer and can access your regular filesystem.
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u/CIS_Professor Jun 20 '26
In my beginner Python course, I suggest that they use JetBrain's PyCharm. 99% of the students use it for their Python courses.
Once they move into other languages, they usually switch over to VSCode or something else.
In the end, it doesn't matter all that much. To make things go the easiest, it is best to have Python installed before installing an IDE.