How do I open a .py file?

On Windows use Visual Studio Code; on macOS use Visual Studio Code; on Linux use Visual Studio Code. A Python program in plain text — needs the Python interpreter to run.

Can I convert a .py file?

Yes. It is usually converted to .ipynb, .exe or .txt, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.

.py files

.py file

Python Source

A Python program in plain text — needs the Python interpreter to run.

What opens a .py file

Windows: Visual Studio Code, IDLE (with Python), PyCharm, Notepad (built in)
macOS: Visual Studio Code, IDLE (with Python), PyCharm, TextEdit (built in)
Linux: Visual Studio Code, Text Editor (built in), PyCharm
In a browser: Google Colab, Replit

What a .py file is

Python is the language of data science, scripting and much of modern automation. A .py file is readable text; running it needs Python installed, which macOS and Linux usually have and Windows does not by default — the Microsoft Store version is the simplest fix. Double-clicking on Windows runs the script in a console window that closes instantly when it finishes, which is why beginners think nothing happened.

Converting it

A .py file is commonly converted to .ipynb, .exe or .txt. It is a plain text format, so any text editor can open and edit it directly.

Details

Extension: .py
Full name: Python Source
Category: Code and scripts
MIME type: text/x-python
Created by: Python Software Foundation
Format: Plain text

Common questions

How do I open a .py file?: On Windows use Visual Studio Code; on macOS use Visual Studio Code; on Linux use Visual Studio Code. A Python program in plain text — needs the Python interpreter to run.
What is a .py file?: Python Source. Python is the language of data science, scripting and much of modern automation. A .py file is readable text; running it needs Python installed, which macOS and Linux usually have and Windows does not by default — the Microsoft Store version is the simplest fix.
Can I convert a .py file?: Yes. It is usually converted to .ipynb, .exe or .txt, either by exporting from one of the programs listed above or with a format converter.

.html — HyperText Markup Language A web page — plain text marked up with tags, rendered by any browser.
.js — JavaScript Source The programming language of the web, in a plain-text file.
.css — Cascading Style Sheet The text file that tells a web page how to look.
.java — Java Source Java source code in plain text, compiled to .class files before it runs.
.tsx — TypeScript Source (JSX) TypeScript with embedded JSX markup — the standard file type for React component
.cpp — C++ Source Source code in C++, the language of games, browsers and performance-critical sof
.php — PHP Source Server-side web code — it runs on the server, so browsers never see the source.
.c — C Source Source code in C, the language most operating systems are written in.
.cs — C# Source Source code in C#, Microsoft's language for .NET and Unity games.
.go — Go Source Source code in Go, Google's language for servers and command-line tools.
.rs — Rust Source Source code in Rust, a systems language with memory safety enforced at compile t
.rb — Ruby Source Source code in Ruby, the language behind Rails and Homebrew.

Sources

Media Types Registry — IANA
Official vendor product documentation — At One Place

How these figures are compiled and checked