Python comes with a simple text editor by default, but for serious development many programmers rely on more fully-featured Integrated Development Environments (IDEs). Here are some of the top Python IDE options to consider:
Visual Studio Code
VS Code is one of the most popular code editors across all languages. It’s free and open source with excellent Python support through extensions. Great for beginners and experienced devs alike.
PyCharm
Made by JetBrains specifically for Python, PyCharm is packed with productivity features like code analysis, debugging, version control and database tools. Highly customizable.
Spyder
Made by long-time Python scientists, Spyder provides an interface resembling MATLAB/Jupyter notebooks. Ideal for data analysis, visualization and scientific computing with Python.
Eclipse
The famous Java IDE works surprisingly well for Python too thanks to plugins. Good for beginners transitioning from Java or C/C++ to Python.
Atom
Created by GitHub, Atom is highly customizable and has quality Python plugins available. Lightweight choice for syntax highlighting and basic coding.
Sublime Text
Lightweight but powerful proprietarily licensed text editor. Robust plugin ecosystem includes Python-friendly extensions for linting, linting etc.
Jupyter Notebook
Best known as an interactive computing environment, Jupyter is also great for Python development with its combination of code, markdown and plots.
NetBeans
Once dominant for Java, NetBeans rebounded with Python support. Feature-rich IDE suited for full-stack web and GUI desktop development.
IDLE
The simple GUI-based IDE that comes bundled with Python installs. Useful for basic Edit-Run workflows with few frills.
Every developer prefers a slightly different tool, so try different IDEs to find your best Python programming environment match.
