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Comments on Why does Pip display "error: externally-managed-environment", and what can I do about it?
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Why does Pip display "error: externally-managed-environment", and what can I do about it?
My (non-Windows) operating system came with Python, but that Python didn't include Pip. I followed instructions to install Pip for the included Python, using my system's package manager.
But now when I try to use Pip, I[1] get errors like:
error: externally-managed-environment
× This environment is externally managed
╰─> To install Python packages system-wide, try apt install
python3-xyz, where xyz is the package you are trying to
install.
If you wish to install a non-Debian-packaged Python package,
create a virtual environment using python3 -m venv path/to/venv.
Then use path/to/venv/bin/python and path/to/venv/bin/pip. Make
sure you have python3-full installed.
If you wish to install a non-Debian packaged Python application,
it may be easiest to use pipx install xyz, which will manage a
virtual environment for you. Make sure you have pipx installed.
See /usr/share/doc/python3.11/README.venv for more information.
note: If you believe this is a mistake, please contact your Python installation or OS distribution provider. You can override this, at the risk of breaking your Python installation or OS, by passing --break-system-packages.
hint: See PEP 668 for the detailed specification.
What's going on here? What does it mean by "externally managed", and why should I have to jump through the hoops described?
-
In reality, my system doesn't actually work this way - and I haven't actually installed Pip for my system Python, because I personally recommend against doing so. The error message shown here is copied from the corresponding Stack Overflow question (alternately). ↩︎
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The following users marked this post as Dangerous:
| User | Comment | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Karl Knechtel |
Thread: Dangerous While technically correct and functional in themselves, any bypass of this sort must be carefully considered, as it has the potential to interfere with... |
Dec 14, 2025 at 18:45 |
tl;dr: There's a few ways to bypass this:
- For all users on the machine: Get rid of
/usr/lib/python3.foo/EXTERNALLY-MANAGED. To prevent your package manager from adding it back, replace it with a dummy/empty file. (you'll have to do this again for every minor Python version) - For your user only: Create or edit
~/.config/pip/pip.confso that it contains:[global] break-system-packages = true - For one shell session: Set the environment variable
PIP_BREAK_SYSTEM_PACKAGES=1(you can configure your shell to always set this) - For one command only: Pass
--break-system-packagesto pip.
(there used to be some thoughts here on why this has become necessary in recent years, but it proved controversial and I removed it)
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