[image] Rieidi : default path is something like C:\Python39 on Windows The default is in c:\program files\python something these days. Answer from barry-scott on discuss.python.org
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/python › python and the path variable in windows 10
r/Python on Reddit: Python and the PATH variable in Windows 10
August 20, 2021 -

Do you remember checking the box in the image shown below to add your Python installation to PATH in Windows 10?

Adding Python to PATH

Well, I was curious! What if someone accidentally forgot to check that little radio button? What would be the possible recovery steps?

So I spent my evening yesterday uninstalling Python and re-installing to figure out a way to add Python to the PATH post-installation.

If you forget to add Python to the PATH variable, you won't be able to run Python in your command line.

You will get a message saying,

‘python' is not recognized as an internal or external command.

Here are the steps I used to add Python to the PATH variable in Windows 10.

  1. Copy the directory to which Python is being installed.

  2. Search for System Properties in the Search Bar.

  3. Click on the "Environment Variables" button in System Properties.

  4. Click on the "Path" variable and then click on "Edit".

  5. Now here's the deal. Paste the directory path from Step 1 at the top of the list. You can use the "Move up" button to get it to the top. Now click on "Ok".

I found out that if you paste the path at the end, it still doesn't work. Can someone tell me why?

Anyways, if the steps are not clear to anyone, here is a visual guide containing images of every step, on my blog for achieving the above objective. If you are interested, do take a look.

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If you type python and the store opens, Turn off the python alias in the Alias List in settings ( https://www.tenforums.com/tutorials/102096-manage-app-execution-aliases-windows-10-a.html )
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In Windows 10 there is a version of "python" in your path under one of the user directories that is intended in open the store and let the user install python as a Windows 10 app. If would then be auto updated as new versions are released to the store. As path is searched from start to end and the first match is used, if you append rather as prepend it'll pick up this dodgy python first They meant well, as it would help security to not default to an out of date version, but I've yet to see an instance where it was anything but a pain.
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Real Python
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How to Add Python to PATH – Real Python
January 30, 2023 - Another window will pop up showing a list of paths. Click the New button and paste the path to your Python executable there. Once that’s inserted, select your newly added path and click the Move Up button until it’s at the top.
Discussions
python - How to add to the PYTHONPATH in Windows, so it finds my modules/packages? - Stack Overflow
Directories for libraries (that aren't installed to site-packages or the per-user site-packages) go in PYTHONPATH. 2014-10-20T03:49:08.477Z+00:00 ... I had to include %PYTHONPATH% in my PATH as well. 2016-07-05T08:35:49.68Z+00:00 ... Windows 7 Professional I Modified @mongoose_za's answer to ... More on stackoverflow.com
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How do I "set Python to PATH" without reinstalling Python?
So, my question is: Is there a way to set python to PATH without reinstalling it? If not, I'll just make sure my python scripts are saved somewhere safe and reinstall python. ... Sorry I took so long to reply. I'm using Windows 10. More on teamtreehouse.com
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The absolute maze that is installing python and path variables
The official python (python.org) on Windows? The modern standard install on Windows does not use PATH at all anymore. Anyone telling you to use that is trying to make the modern install backwards compatible with the old-school way of doing things. Instead, python comes with the " python launcher ", which is the command "py". To run a file: py myfile.py To install a module: py -m pip install Etc. py is automatically associated with .py and .pyw files, so you can just doubleclick them to run as well. BUT WAIT, THERE'S A CATCH! The normal, proper way to develop python code is to make an isolated virtual environment for each project. If you do this it will activeate the old-school python and pip commands. So if you are working in a virtual environment To run a file: python myfile.py To install a module: pip install Note most good IDEs have the virtual environment management built in and often enabled by default. More on reddit.com
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December 7, 2023 - Hello, I recently got python downloaded in my system. able to open all terminals, Idle windows able to access Pycharm. but really not sure where is the exact location of Python installed when i try to check from Command…
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Stack Overflow
stackoverflow.com › questions › 3701646 › how-to-add-to-the-pythonpath-in-windows-so-it-finds-my-modules-packages
python - How to add to the PYTHONPATH in Windows, so it finds my modules/packages? - Stack Overflow
Top answer
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You know what has worked for me really well on windows.

My Computer > Properties > Advanced System Settings > Environment Variables >

Just add the path as C:\Python27 (or wherever you installed python)

OR

Then under system variables I create a new Variable called PythonPath. In this variable I have C:\Python27\Lib;C:\Python27\DLLs;C:\Python27\Lib\lib-tk;C:\other-folders-on-the-path

This is the best way that has worked for me which I hadn't found in any of the docs offered.

EDIT: For those who are not able to get it, Please add

C:\Python27;

along with it. Else it will never work.

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Windows 7 Professional I Modified @mongoose_za's answer to make it easier to change the python version:

  1. [Right Click]Computer > Properties >Advanced System Settings > Environment Variables
  2. Click [New] under "System Variable"
  3. Variable Name: PY_HOME, Variable Value:C:\path\to\python\version
  4. Click [OK]
  5. Locate the "Path" System variable and click [Edit]

  6. Add the following to the existing variable:

    %PY_HOME%;%PY_HOME%\Lib;%PY_HOME%\DLLs;%PY_HOME%\Lib\lib-tk;

  7. Click [OK] to close all of the windows.

As a final sanity check open a command prompt and enter python. You should see 

>python [whatever version you are using]

If you need to switch between versions, you only need to modify the PY_HOME variable to point to the proper directory. This is bit easier to manage if you need multiple python versions installed.

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Microsoft Learn
learn.microsoft.com › en-us › windows › dev-environment › python
Python on Windows for beginners | Microsoft Learn
If you install Python using the installers from python.org and select the "add to PATH" option, the new python command will take priority over the shortcut.
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Super User
superuser.com › questions › 143119 › how-do-i-add-python-to-the-windows-path
How do I add Python to the Windows PATH? - Super User
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For Windows 10/8/7:

  1. Open System Properties (Right click Computer in the start menu, or use the keyboard shortcut Win+Pause)
  2. Click Advanced system settings in the sidebar.
  3. Click Environment Variables...
  4. Select PATH in the System variables section
  5. Click Edit

  6. Add Python's path to the end of the list (the paths are separated by semicolons). For example:

    C:\Windows;C:\Windows\System32;C:\Python27

For Windows XP:

  1. Open System Properties (Type it in the start menu, or use the keyboard shortcut Win+Pause)
  2. Switch to the Advanced tab
  3. Click Environment Variables...
  4. Select PATH in the System variables section
  5. Click Edit

  6. Add Python's path to the end of the list (the paths are separated by semicolons). For example:

    C:\Windows;C:\Windows\System32;C:\Python27

  7. Test on a new terminal window or if using an integrated terminal within a text editor, close and restart your editor or the changes won't be applied.

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For anyone trying to achieve this with Python 3.3+, the Windows installer now includes an option to add python.exe to the system search path. Read more in the docs.

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December 15, 2025 - Properly configure Python on your Windows machine by adding the Python path to the Windows 10 / 11 PATH environment variable, allowing your system to recognize and execute Python commands regardless of the current directory.Windows Operating System environment variable specifies the location of Python libraries, allowing Python to be readily accessible from any location within your system.
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Mimo
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Under User variables (recommended), select Path → Edit. Click New and add the folder that contains python.exe. ... What to look for: in where python, the first result is what runs when you type python. ... Windows can route python to the Microsoft Store even when you installed Python elsewhere.
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Hi @Wesley Trayer (https://teamtreehouse.com/wesleytrayer) To do this you will need administrator access. The way I am going to show you, is the system-wide way. My installation directory probably will differ from yours, so you will have to figure out where Python is installed on your hard drive. Usually it defaults to C:\ drive. WARNING: In step 4: DO NOT modify or edit existing entries, if you aren't sure what they are. You are better off leaving them alone. Especially those that have to do with C:\Windows. You will cause yourself a bigger headache if you mess with these and it may cause you to have to reset/reinstall your OS to fix it. Find your Python Installation Directory (https://imgur.com/AQiotAd) Get to your Advanced System Settings (https://imgur.com/QmsGajY) Here are where your Environment Variables (https://imgur.com/VHEZz9U) are stored for specific User or entire System. If you have installed Python without the set PATH selected, then you shouldnt have entries for Python or Python\Scripts. You can manually add them in but you will need to know what the exact INSTALLATION path is in my case it is. Once you know the path you can Set the environmental variables for it (https://imgur.com/bNL0UJV). NOTE: You will have to add the both Python PATHs to the environment variables. One is the ROOT folder (or the folder that has the python.exe file in it. The other is ROOT folder including the Scripts folder. You will see mine in step 4.
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July 12, 2025 - Click on open file location and you will be in a location where Python is installed, Copy the location path from the top by clicking over it. Now, we have to add the above-copied path as a variable so that windows can recognize.
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Add Python to the Windows Path | Python#
June 25, 2022 - In the System variable window, find the Path variable and click Edit: Position your cursor at the end of the Variable value line and add the path to the python.exe file, preceeded with the semicolon character (;).
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November 3, 2021 - Workspace ├── Python Project: backend/ │ └── Environment: .venv (Python 3.12) │ └── Manager: venv │ ├── Python Project: frontend-utils/ │ └── Environment: .venv (Python 3.10) │ └── Manager: venv │ └── Python Project: ml-pipeline/ └── Environment: ml-env (Python 3.11) └── Manager: conda ... Test Explorer: each project gets its own test tree with its own interpreter (see Multi-Project Testing) ... Pylance and Jupyter currently use a single interpreter per workspace, not per-project environments. See Known Limitations. ... When you add a project, its folder is automatically added to the environment search path.
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December 12, 2025 - When a user types a terminal command ... any of the directories, the system executes it. Use Windows System Properties to add Python's installation directory to the PATH variable....
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July 17, 2025 - Once Python is installed, it will be used by uv commands automatically. uv also adds the installed version to your PATH:
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November 15, 2024 - Here's a step-by-step guide on how to add Python to the system path: First, locate where Python is installed on your computer. This varies depending on your operating system. For example: Windows: Typically installed in C:PythonXX (where XX is the version number).
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MakeUseOf
makeuseof.com › home › programming › how to add python to the windows path variable
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October 13, 2020 - Learn how to access Python from anywhere on the command line by adding it to your Windows PATH variable.
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Reddit
reddit.com › r/learnpython › how to add python to path and how to use it in commandline/powershell?
r/learnpython on Reddit: How to add python to path and how to use it in commandline/powershell?
October 25, 2025 -

So the answer I've been getting is add python to environment variables which I have done

But I still get the error when running from user/downloads

python -c "from pdf2docx import Converter"

The system cannot execute the specified program.

p.s why are we banning images makes things so much more complicated?

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Reinstall Python from https://python.org . During the first step in setup, there'll be an option to add Python to PATH. Select it
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Images are banned so you post code blocks instead of screenshots/picture of your code, I'm assuming. It's much easier to diagnose and troubleshoot from a code block than a picture.
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Educative
educative.io › answers › how-to-add-python-to-path-variable-in-windows
How to add Python to PATH variable in Windows
A typical installation would have the following path, C:\Users\MyUserName\AppData\Local\Programs\Python\Python310 · Now, we will need to add this to the PATH variable, we right click on "This PC" and go to "Properties".
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