How to Run a Python Script

Python scripts are Python code files saved with a .py extension. You can run these files on any device if it has Python installed on it. They are very versatile programs and can perform a variety of tasks like data analysis, web development, etc.

You might get these Python scripts if you are a beginner in Python so in this discussion, we will explore various techniques for executing a Python script.

What is Python Script?

Python is a well-known high-level programming language. The Python script is a file containing Python-written code. The file containing Python script has the extension ‘.py’ or can also have the extension ‘.pyw’ if it is being run on a Windows 10 machine.

To run a Python script, we need a Python interpreter installed on the device. In this article, we will learn how to run a Python script.

Methods to Run a Script in Python

There are various methods to Run a Python script, we will go through some generally used methods for running a Python script:

• Interactive Mode
• Command Line
• Text Editor (VS Code)
• IDE (PyCharm)

How to Run a Python Script?

Let’s go through the basic steps and understand how a script works.

Here is a simple code to print ‘Hello World!’.

Python3

print('Hello World!')

To Execute this program, first we have to save it with the ‘.py’ extension. Then we can execute this file with the help of the terminal.

Here, the print() function is to print out any text written within the parenthesis. We can write the text that we want to be printed using either a single quote as shown in the above script or a double quote.

If you are coming from any other language then you will also notice that there is no semicolon at the end of the statement as, with Python, you do not need to specify a semicolon at the end of the line. And also we don’t need to include or import any files to run a simple Python script.

There are various ways to run a script in Python but before going toward the different ways to run a Python script, we first have to check whether a Python interpreter is installed on the system or not. So in Windows, open ‘cmd’ (Command Prompt) and type the following command.

python -V

This command will give the version number of the Python interpreter installed or will display an error if otherwise.

1. Run Python Script Interactively

In Python Interactive Mode, you can run your script line by line in a sequence. To enter an interactive mode, you will have to open Command Prompt on your Windows machine, type ‘python’ and press Enter.

Example1: Using Print Function

Run the following line in the interactive mode:

print('Hello World !')

Output:

Example 2: Using Interactive Execution

Run the following lines one by one in the interactive mode.

name = "Aakash"
print("My name is " + name)

Output:

Example 3: Interactive Mode Comparison

Run the following lines one by one in the interactive mode.

a = 1
b = 3
if a > b:
    print("a is Greater") 
else:
    print("b is Greater")

Output:

Note: To exit from this mode, press ‘Ctrl+Z’ and then press ‘Enter’ or type ‘exit()’ and then press Enter.

2. Run Python Script by the Command Line

Running Python scripts on Windows via the command line provides a direct and efficient way to execute code. It allows for easy navigation to the script’s directory and initiation, facilitating quick testing and automation.

Example 1: Using Script Filename

To run Python in the terminal, store it in a ‘.py’ file in the command line, we have to write the ‘python’ keyword before the file name in the command prompt. In this way we can run Python programs in cmd.

python hello.py

You can write your own file name in place of ‘hello.py’.

Output:

Example 2: Redirecting output

To run a Python script in Terminal from the command line, navigate to the script’s directory and use the python script_name.py command. Redirecting output involves using the > symbol followed by a file name to capture the script’s output in a file. For example, python script_name.py > output.txt redirects the standard output to a file named “output.txt.”

Output :

Output

3. Run a Script in Python using a Text Editor

To run Python script on a text editor like VS Code (Visual Studio Code) then you will have to do the following:

• Go to the extension section or press ‘Ctrl+Shift+X’ on Windows, then search and install the extension named ‘Python’ and ‘Code Runner’. Restart your vs code after that.
• Now, create a new file with the name ‘hello.py’ and write the below code in it:

print('Hello World!')

• Then, right-click anywhere in the text area and select the option that says ‘Run Code’ or press ‘Ctrl+Alt+N’ to run the code.

Output:

4. Run Python Scripts using an IDE

To run Python script on an IDE (Integrated Development Environment) like PyCharm, you will have to do the following:

• Create a new project.
• Give a name to that project as ‘GfG’ and click on Create.
• Select the root directory with the project name we specified in the last step. Right-click on it, go to New, anto, and click on the ‘Python file’ option. Then give the name of the file as ‘hello’ (you can specify any name as per your project requirement). This will create a ‘hello.py’ file in the project root directory.

Note: You don’t have to specify the extension as it will take it automatically.

• Now write the below Python script to print the message:

print('Hello World !')

• To run this Python script, Right click and select the ‘Run File in Python Console’ option. This will open a console box at the bottom and show the output there. We can also run using the Green Play Button at the top right corner of the IDE.

Output:

We have covered 4 different methods to run Python scripts on your device. You can use any of the above methods depending on your device. Running Python scripts is a very basic and easy task. It helps you in sharing your work and accessing other source work for learning.