How to Install Python on Windows With the Python Install Manager

The recommended way to install Python on Windows is now the Python install manager, a small tool from the Python Software Foundation that you get from the Microsoft Store or python.org and then use to add, update and remove Python versions with the py command. The current release is Python 3.14.7, and the old one-click installer is deprecated: Python’s documentation says it “will not be produced for Python 3.16 or later.” With Python 3.15.0 scheduled for Thursday, October 1, 2026, this guide walks through a clean setup that will pick up the new version with one command.

What is the Python install manager?

Windows does not ship with Python, so you have to get it from somewhere. According to the official Using Python on Windows documentation, the CPython team’s answer is the Python install manager: “a standalone tool that makes Python available as global commands on your Windows machine, integrates with the system, and supports updates over time.”

Once it is installed, three commands become available in any terminal:

• python launches your default Python, which is the latest stable release unless you change it.
• py does the same by default, but also lets you pick a specific version and manage installs with subcommands such as py install, py list and py uninstall.
• pymanager is an unambiguous alias for py, useful in scripts where an older py.exe launcher might already exist.

The install manager updates itself automatically, and that does not touch the Python runtimes you have installed. Uninstalling the manager does not remove runtimes either.

Before you start

Three quick checks will save time:

• Windows version. Python’s docs say Python 3.14 supports Windows 10 and newer, following PEP 11’s rule that Python only supports Windows versions still under Microsoft’s extended support. If you are planning a Windows upgrade anyway, our guide to moving from Windows 11 24H2 to 25H2 covers that first.
• Old Python installs. If you already installed Python with the classic installer or edited your PATH by hand, the docs warn you “may need to remove them or undo the modifications.” An old “Python launcher” entry in Installed apps is the most common cause of conflicts.
• Architecture. The install manager handles 64-bit, 32-bit and ARM64 builds, so it works on Snapdragon-based Windows laptops too.

How to install Python on Windows: step by step

Step 1: Install the Python install manager

You have three equivalent routes. The documentation says the Store and python.org versions “are identical.”

1. Microsoft Store: open the Python Install Manager listing in the Microsoft Store, published by the Python Software Foundation, and click Install.
2. python.org: download the MSIX installer from the Python Releases for Windows page, then double-click it and select Install. The page lists install manager 26.3, released June 30, 2026.
3. WinGet: in PowerShell or Windows Terminal, run winget install 9NQ7512CXL7T -e --accept-package-agreements --disable-interactivity. Python’s docs recommend this for scripted installs.

Windows Server 2019 cannot install MSIX packages, so Python provides a separate MSI there; the docs note it has no user interface and performs per-machine installs only.

Step 2: Open a terminal and install Python

Open Windows Terminal or PowerShell and type python. The docs explain that if no runtimes are installed at all, “the current latest release will be installed automatically.” To be explicit instead, run:

py install 3.14

To see what is available online before installing, use py list --online. The docs say the result of py list --online --one <TAG> matches what py install <TAG> would install.

Step 3: Decide whether to add the aliases folder to PATH

The first time you install a runtime, you will probably be asked to add a directory to your PATH. This is optional. It makes version-specific commands such as python3.14.exe work anywhere. The folder is %LocalAppData%\Python\bin by default. To add it yourself, click Start, search for “Edit environment variables for your account”, and add that path to your user PATH. Alternatively, run py install --configure -y, which the docs describe as running the configuration checker and accepting all of its changes.

Step 4: Check which versions are installed

Run py list. It prints every installed runtime with its tag, version and aliases, and marks the default. Adding -1 shows just the one that python would launch. For compatibility with the old launcher, py -0p still works.

Step 5: Create a virtual environment for each project

Python’s documentation recommends a virtual environment per project for isolation and consistency. In your project folder, run:

python -m venv .venv

Then activate it with .venv\Scripts\Activate. While it is active, python and pip refer to that environment. The docs also recommend installing packages with python -m pip install <package> rather than relying on a global pip command.

Step 6: Run a specific Python version

To launch a particular version, pass -V: with its tag before any other options, for example py -V:3.14 script.py or py -V:3-arm64. For official releases the docs say you can drop the V:, so py -3.14 also works. Scripts can request a version with a shebang line such as #! /usr/bin/python3.14, which py reads when no version is given on the command line.

Step 7: Keep Python up to date

Run py install --update to replace every managed install with a newer build where one exists. The docs warn that updates remove modifications made inside the install, including globally installed packages, but existing virtual environments keep working. That is another reason to install packages into a venv, not the base interpreter.

Step 8: Remove versions you no longer need

Use py uninstall 3.13 to remove a runtime, adding --yes to skip the prompt. py uninstall --purge removes every runtime the manager installed and cleans up Start menu entries, registry keys and download caches. Runtimes installed by other means are left alone.

Python install manager command cheat sheet

How to get Python 3.15 when it is released

Python 3.15 is in its final stretch. The official Python 3.15 release schedule (PEP 790) lists release candidate 2 on September 1, 2026 and the 3.15.0 final release as expected on Thursday, October 1, 2026, with bugfix releases roughly every two months after that and security fixes until about October 2031.

Because py install installs whatever matches a tag in the online index, py install 3.15 should fetch the new version once it is published there, and py list --online 3.15 will show whether it has arrived. Keep 3.14 installed alongside it until the packages you depend on support 3.15; you can switch between them per project with py -V:.

According to the What’s New in Python 3.15 page, the headline features include:

• Explicit lazy imports (PEP 810).
• A built-in frozendict type (PEP 814) and a built-in sentinel type (PEP 661).
• A dedicated profiling package (PEP 799), including “Tachyon,” a high-frequency statistical sampling profiler.
• Frame pointers enabled by default (PEP 831) and unpacking in comprehensions (PEP 798).
• A stable ABI for free-threaded builds (PEP 803) and an upgraded experimental JIT compiler.

Installing free-threaded Python

Free-threaded builds, which run without the global interpreter lock, are installed with a t suffix on the tag: py install 3.14t, py install 3.14t-arm64 or py install 3.14t-32. If other runtimes are installed, launch it with py -V:3.14t or, if the aliases folder is on your PATH, python3.14t.exe. Check that the packages you rely on support free-threading before making it your default.

Troubleshooting common Python install problems on Windows

The Python docs include a troubleshooting table. These are the fixes for the problems people hit most:

• Typing python opens the Microsoft Store or says “command not found”. Click Start, open Manage app execution aliases, and make sure the “Python (default)” aliases are on. If they already are, turn them off and on again. Also check that your PATH still contains %UserProfile%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps.
• py gives a “can’t open file” error. This usually means the legacy Python launcher is installed and takes priority. Open Installed apps, search for “Python launcher” and uninstall it.
• python and py launch different versions. Remove older Python installs from Installed apps, or modify them to disable their PATH options, and check the python.exe alias is set to “Python (default).”
• pip is not found. Activate your virtual environment, or use python -m pip. Running py install --refresh recreates global shortcuts for packages you installed.
• Long file paths fail. Windows limits paths to 260 characters unless an administrator enables the “Enable Win32 long paths” policy or sets LongPathsEnabled to 1 in the registry, then reboots.

Install manager vs the old installer

If you have installed Python on Windows before, the new approach works differently in a few ways worth knowing:

The per-user limitation matters on shared PCs. Python’s docs say the install manager “does not support installing runtimes per-machine,” and suggest administrators emulate it with py install --target=<shared location> plus their own PATH and Start menu changes.

Should you switch from the old installer?

Yes, if you are setting up a new PC or planning to try Python 3.15. The classic installer still exists for 3.14 and 3.13, but it is deprecated and will not be built for 3.16 or later, so the install manager is where Windows Python is heading. It also makes running several versions side by side far simpler than juggling separate installers and PATH edits. Existing runtimes from the classic installer are not managed by the new tool: py uninstall --purge leaves them untouched and py list --only-managed hides them, so remove them through Installed apps if you want a clean start. Install the manager, run py install 3.14 today, and py install 3.15 once the new release lands.

Written byFelix Moreau

Felix Moreau writes Pandromeda's software coverage and how-to guides. He covers Windows, macOS and Linux updates, the apps people rely on, emulators and developer tools, and turns official documentation into clear, numbered steps that work on the current version.

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