Introduction

Poetry is a tool for dependency management and packaging in Python. It allows you to declare the libraries your project depends on and it will manage (install/update) them for you. Poetry offers a lockfile to ensure repeatable installs, and can build your project for distribution.

System requirements

Poetry requires Python 3.10+. It is multi-platform and the goal is to make it work equally well on Linux, macOS and Windows.

Installation

{{% note %}} If you are viewing documentation for the development branch, you may wish to install a preview or development version of Poetry. See the advanced installation instructions to use a preview or alternate version of Poetry. {{% /note %}}

{{< tabs tabTotal="4" tabID1="installing-with-pipx" tabID2="installing-with-the-official-installer" tabID3="installing-manually" tabID4="ci-recommendations" tabName1="With pipx" tabName2="With the official installer" tabName3="Manually (advanced)" tabName4="CI recommendations">}}

pipx is used to install Python CLI applications globally while still isolating them in virtual environments. pipx will manage upgrades and uninstalls when used to install Poetry.

{{< steps >}} {{< step >}} Install pipx

If pipx is not already installed, you can follow any of the options in the official pipx installation instructions. Any non-ancient version of pipx will do.

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Install Poetry

bash

pipx install poetry

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Install Poetry (advanced)

{{% note %}} You can skip this step, if you simply want the latest version and already installed Poetry as described in the previous step. This step details advanced usages of this installation method. For example, installing Poetry from source, having multiple versions installed at the same time etc. {{% /note %}}

pipx can install different versions of Poetry, using the same syntax as pip:

bash

pipx install poetry==1.8.4

pipx can also install versions of Poetry in parallel, which allows for easy testing of alternate or prerelease versions. Each version is given a unique, user-specified suffix, which will be used to create a unique binary name:

bash

pipx install [email protected] poetry==1.8.4
[email protected] --version

bash

pipx install --suffix=@preview --pip-args=--pre poetry
poetry@preview --version

Finally, pipx can install any valid pip requirement spec, which allows for installations of the development version from git, or even for local testing of pull requests:

bash

pipx install --suffix @main git+https://github.com/python-poetry/poetry.git@main
pipx install --suffix @pr1234 git+https://github.com/python-poetry/poetry.git@refs/pull/1234/head

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Update Poetry

bash

pipx upgrade poetry

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Uninstall Poetry

bash

pipx uninstall poetry

We provide a custom installer that will install Poetry in a new virtual environment and allows Poetry to manage its own environment.

{{< steps >}} {{< step >}} Install Poetry

The installer script is available directly at install.python-poetry.org, and is developed in its own repository. The script can be executed directly (i.e. 'curl python') or downloaded and then executed from disk (e.g. in a CI environment).

Linux, macOS, Windows (WSL)

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | python3 -

Windows (Powershell)

powershell

(Invoke-WebRequest -Uri https://install.python-poetry.org -UseBasicParsing).Content | py -

{{% note %}} If you have installed Python through the Microsoft Store, replace py with python in the command above. {{% /note %}}

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Install Poetry (advanced)

{{% note %}} You can skip this step, if you simply want the latest version and already installed Poetry as described in the previous step. This step details advanced usages of this installation method. For example, installing Poetry from source, using a pre-release build, configuring a different installation location etc. {{% /note %}}

By default, Poetry is installed into a platform and user-specific directory:

~/Library/Application Support/pypoetry on macOS.
~/.local/share/pypoetry on Linux/Unix.
%APPDATA%\pypoetry on Windows.

If you wish to change this, you may define the $POETRY_HOME environment variable:

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | POETRY_HOME=/etc/poetry python3 -

If you want to install prerelease versions, you can do so by passing the --preview option to the installation script or by using the $POETRY_PREVIEW environment variable:

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | python3 - --preview
curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | POETRY_PREVIEW=1 python3 -

Similarly, if you want to install a specific version, you can use --version option or the $POETRY_VERSION environment variable:

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | python3 - --version 1.8.4
curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | POETRY_VERSION=1.8.4 python3 -

You can also install Poetry from a git repository by using the --git option:

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | python3 - --git https://github.com/python-poetry/poetry.git@main

If you want to install different versions of Poetry in parallel, a good approach is the installation with pipx and suffix.

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Add Poetry to your PATH

The installer creates a poetry wrapper in a well-known, platform-specific directory:

$HOME/.local/bin on Unix.
%APPDATA%\Python\Scripts on Windows.
$POETRY_HOME/bin if $POETRY_HOME is set.

{{% note %}} If you have installed Python through the Microsoft Store, the poetry binary will be installed to a different location, for example:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\Packages\PythonSoftwareFoundation.Python.3.12_qbz5n2kfra8p0
\LocalCache\Roaming\Python\Scripts

Replace 3.12 with your installed Python version and qbz5n2kfra8p0 with your suffix. {{% /note %}}

If this directory is not present in your $PATH, you can add it in order to invoke Poetry as poetry.

Alternatively, the full path to the poetry binary can always be used:

~/Library/Application Support/pypoetry/venv/bin/poetry on macOS.
~/.local/share/pypoetry/venv/bin/poetry on Linux/Unix.
%APPDATA%\pypoetry\venv\Scripts\poetry on Windows.
$POETRY_HOME/venv/bin/poetry if $POETRY_HOME is set.

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Use Poetry

Once Poetry is installed and in your $PATH, you can execute the following:

bash

poetry --version

If you see something like Poetry (version 2.0.0), your installation is ready to use! {{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Update Poetry

Poetry is able to update itself when installed using the official installer.

{{% warning %}} Especially on Windows, self update may be problematic so that a re-install with the installer should be preferred. {{% /warning %}}

bash

poetry self update

If you want to install pre-release versions, you can use the --preview option.

bash

poetry self update --preview

And finally, if you want to install a specific version, you can pass it as an argument to self update.

bash

poetry self update 1.8.4

{{< /step >}} {{< step >}} Uninstall Poetry

If you decide Poetry isn't your thing, you can completely remove it from your system by running the installer again with the --uninstall option or by setting the POETRY_UNINSTALL environment variable before executing the installer.

bash

curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | python3 - --uninstall
curl -sSL https://install.python-poetry.org | POETRY_UNINSTALL=1 python3 -

Poetry can be installed manually using pip and the venv module. By doing so you will essentially perform the steps carried out by the official installer. As this is an advanced installation method, these instructions are Unix-only and omit specific examples such as installing from git.

The variable $VENV_PATH will be used to indicate the path at which the virtual environment was created.

bash

python3 -m venv $VENV_PATH
$VENV_PATH/bin/pip install -U pip setuptools
$VENV_PATH/bin/pip install poetry

Poetry will be available at $VENV_PATH/bin/poetry and can be invoked directly or symlinked elsewhere.

To uninstall Poetry, simply delete the entire $VENV_PATH directory.

{{< /tab >}} {{< tab tabID="ci-recommendations" >}} Unlike development environments, where making use of the latest tools is desirable, in a CI environment reproducibility should be made the priority. Here are some suggestions for installing Poetry in such an environment.

Version pinning

Whatever method you use, it is highly recommended to explicitly control the version of Poetry used, so that you are able to upgrade after performing your own validation. Each install method has a different syntax for setting the version that is used in the following examples.

Using pipx

Just as pipx is a powerful tool for development use, it is equally useful in a CI environment and should be one of your top choices for use of Poetry in CI.

bash

pipx install poetry==2.0.0

Using install.python-poetry.org

{{% note %}} The official installer script (install.python-poetry.org) offers a streamlined and simplified installation of Poetry, sufficient for developer use or for simple pipelines. However, in a CI environment the other two supported installation methods (pipx and manual) should be seriously considered. {{% /note %}}

Downloading a copy of the installer script to a place accessible by your CI pipelines (or maintaining a copy of the repository) is strongly suggested, to ensure your pipeline's stability and to maintain control over what code is executed.

By default, the installer will install to a user-specific directory. In more complex pipelines that may make accessing Poetry difficult (especially in cases like multi-stage container builds). It is highly suggested to make use of $POETRY_HOME when using the official installer in CI, as that way the exact paths can be controlled.

bash

export POETRY_HOME=/opt/poetry
python3 install-poetry.py --version 2.0.0
$POETRY_HOME/bin/poetry --version

Using pip (aka manually)

For maximum control in your CI environment, installation with pip is fully supported and something you should consider. While this requires more explicit commands and knowledge of Python packaging from you, it in return offers the best debugging experience, and leaves you subject to the fewest external tools.

bash

export POETRY_HOME=/opt/poetry
python3 -m venv $POETRY_HOME
$POETRY_HOME/bin/pip install poetry==2.0.0
$POETRY_HOME/bin/poetry --version

{{% note %}} If you install Poetry via pip, ensure you have Poetry installed into an isolated environment that is not the same as the target environment managed by Poetry. If Poetry and your project are installed into the same environment, Poetry is likely to upgrade or uninstall its own dependencies (causing hard-to-debug and understand errors). {{% /note %}}

{{% warning %}} Poetry should always be installed in a dedicated virtual environment to isolate it from the rest of your system. Each of the above described installation methods ensures that. It should in no case be installed in the environment of the project that is to be managed by Poetry. This ensures that Poetry's own dependencies will not be accidentally upgraded or uninstalled. In addition, the isolated virtual environment in which poetry is installed should not be activated for running poetry commands. {{% /warning %}}

Enable tab completion for Bash, Fish, or Zsh

poetry supports generating completion scripts for Bash, Fish, and Zsh.

{{% note %}} You may need to restart your shell in order for these changes to take effect. {{% /note %}}

See poetry help completions for full details, but the gist is as simple as using one of the following:

Bash

Auto-loaded (recommended)

bash

poetry completions bash >> ~/.bash_completion

Lazy-loaded

bash

poetry completions bash > ${XDG_DATA_HOME:-~/.local/share}/bash-completion/completions/poetry

Fish

fish

poetry completions fish > ~/.config/fish/completions/poetry.fish

Zsh

zsh

poetry completions zsh > ~/.zfunc/_poetry

You must then add the following lines in your ~/.zshrc, if they do not already exist:

bash

fpath+=~/.zfunc
autoload -Uz compinit && compinit

Oh My Zsh

zsh

mkdir $ZSH_CUSTOM/plugins/poetry
poetry completions zsh > $ZSH_CUSTOM/plugins/poetry/_poetry

You must then add poetry to your plugins array in ~/.zshrc:

text

plugins(
	poetry
	...
	)

Prezto

zsh

poetry completions zsh > ~/.zprezto/modules/completion/external/src/_poetry

If completions still don't work, try removing ~/.cache/prezto/zcompcache and starting a new shell.