Python Tooling

Elide runs Python directly with its embedded Python runtime and bundled standard library. You do not need a separate CPython install to run .py files, standard-library scripts, or Python CLIs with Elide.

Running Python

Elide picks Python automatically from the file extension:

elide hello.py
elide run hello.py

Elide also provides a CPython-style python subcommand for users who expect Python’s command-line shape:

elide python hello.py
elide python -c 'print("Hello from Python")'
elide python -m json.tool input.json

When you run a script, trailing tokens become sys.argv values just as they do with CPython:

elide python cli.py --name Elide --count 2

import argparse

parser = argparse.ArgumentParser()
parser.add_argument("--name", default="Python")
parser.add_argument("--count", type=int, default=1)
args = parser.parse_args()

for _ in range(args.count):
  print(f"Hello, {args.name}!")

Python Runtime

The exact Python runtime details are resolved from the Elide binary you run. For compatibility status, see the external Compatibility matrix.

Virtual Environments

When VIRTUAL_ENV is set, Elide appends that environment’s lib/python<version>/site-packages directory to Python’s module search path. Packages already installed into an activated virtual environment are importable when you run .py files with Elide.

Installing Python Dependencies

Elide embeds uv for PyPI dependency installation. Declare packages in elide.pkl:

amends "elide:project.pkl"

dependencies {
  pypi {
    packages {
      "six==1.17.0"
      "requests>=2"
    }
  }
}

Then install dependencies:

elide install

Elide also recognizes requirements.txt and pyproject.toml as Python project markers. Installed packages land in .dev/dependencies/pypi/site-packages, which Elide adds to the Python module search path when running files from the project.

You can call the embedded uv CLI directly when you need uv-specific behavior:

elide uv -- pip --help

PyPI install is available on macOS and Linux; Windows support is in progress. See Dependencies for the unified npm, PyPI, and Maven installer.

Additional Resources

• Elide + Python — Python runtime overview, entrypoints, and interop
• Dependencies — unified npm, PyPI, and Maven installer
• Compatibility — latest reported compliance results from elide-dev/testsuite