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Best Free Python IDEs 2026: 7 Options Compared
Best free Python IDEs compared: PyCharm, Visual Studio Code, Thonny, Spyder and 3 more, with free-plan limits, platforms and prices from official pages checked October 23, 2026.
•3 min read•Code Editors, IDEs & Playgrounds
Quick comparison
| Tool | Price | Platforms | Best for | Tested |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PyCharm | Free (Core features are free forever for commercial and non-commercial use per the FAQ; Pro adds Django, Flask, FastAPI, full Jupyter, remote development and database tools, with a 30-day trial) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Large Python projects | Docs only |
| Visual Studio Code | Free (for private or commercial use per Microsoft's FAQ) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Web | Developers who use several languages | Docs only |
| Thonny | Free (Free open-source software) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Learners and teachers | Docs only |
| Spyder | Free (Free open-source software) | Windows, macOS, Linux | Data analysis and research | Docs only |
| JupyterLab | Free (Free and open source) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted | Notebook-based exploration | Docs only |
| Google Colab | Free (Free tier has no guaranteed compute units; usage limits are not published, notebooks run up to 12 hours depending on availability, T4 GPUs subject to quota); paid from $9.99 per month (Colab Pro, flexible plan, 100 compute units) | Web | Running notebooks without a local setup | Docs only |
| marimo | Free (Free and open source; hosted service molab exists) | Windows, macOS, Linux, Web | Reproducible notebooks | Docs only |
Independent comparison. Paid placements are labelled separately; editorial links earn no affiliate commissions. Learn more.
See the tools in action
Explore the interface and watch a workflow before choosing.
Good fit if
- You are learning Python (Thonny is the pick)
- You do scientific computing (Spyder is the pick)
- You build a large application (PyCharm is the pick)
- You want to run notebooks with no install (Google Colab is the pick)
Not ideal if
- You need paid-tier features, uptime guarantees or support that these free plans leave out
The best free Python IDE depends on whether you are learning, doing data analysis or shipping software. Thonny is built for beginners and ships with Python built in, so one installer is enough. Spyder targets scientific work with a variable explorer and an IPython console. PyCharm's core features are free forever, and it gives a full IDE with strong refactoring, while Pro adds web frameworks like Django and Flask. Visual Studio Code is lighter and works for many languages, with Python support added through extensions. JupyterLab and marimo are notebook environments suited to exploring data step by step, and Google Colab runs notebooks in the browser, so you need no local install, though its free tier has no guaranteed compute and usage limits are not published. Notebook tools are good for exploration and teaching but less comfortable for building large applications. If you only write scripts, a plain editor is fine. If your project grows to many files, an IDE with a debugger and a test runner pays off. Check that your chosen tool picks up your virtual environment, since confusion over which Python is running causes many beginner problems.
PyCharm
Core features are free forever for commercial and non-commercial use; Pro adds Django, Flask and FastAPI support. A full IDE with refactoring and a debugger, heavier than an editor.
Price: Free (Core features are free forever for commercial and non-commercial use per the FAQ; Pro adds Django, Flask, FastAPI, full Jupyter, remote development and database tools, with a 30-day trial) (PyCharm pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. Proprietary (JetBrains).
Best for: Large Python projects.
Compare: PyCharm alternatives
Visual Studio Code
Free for private or commercial use per Microsoft's FAQ. Lighter than a full IDE; Python support comes via extensions, which you install and configure yourself.
Price: Free (for private or commercial use per Microsoft's FAQ) (Visual Studio Code pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Web. Microsoft product license (source in the MIT-licensed Code - OSS repository).
Best for: Developers who use several languages.
Worth knowing: The downloadable product is under a Microsoft license; the MIT license covers the separate Code - OSS repository.
Compare: Visual Studio Code alternatives
Thonny
MIT-licensed Python IDE for beginners that ships with Python built in. A simple debugger and variables view; too basic for large projects.
Price: Free (Free open-source software) (Thonny pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 4k GitHub stars · latest release v5.0.0 (Apr 25, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Learners and teachers.
Worth knowing: Python IDE for beginners per the repo; ships with Python built in per the site.
Spyder
MIT-licensed scientific Python environment with the interface laid out for data work. Suits analysis scripts more than web development.
Price: Free (Free open-source software) (Spyder pricing, checked 2026-10-23).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux. MIT (open source).
Project activity: 9.4k GitHub stars · latest release v6.1.8 (Oct 24, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Data analysis and research.
Worth knowing: The Scientific Python Development Environment per the repo description.
JupyterLab
BSD-3-Clause notebook environment. Free and open source, good for exploring data in cells, but not a full application IDE.
Price: Free (Free and open source) (JupyterLab pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Self-hosted. BSD-3-Clause (open source).
Project activity: 15.4k GitHub stars · latest release v4.6.4 (Sep 21, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Notebook-based exploration.
Worth knowing: You supply the compute; no GPUs come with it.
Google Colab
Hosted notebooks in the browser. The free tier has no guaranteed compute units and unpublished usage limits; Colab Pro is $9.99 a month. No local install.
Price: Free (Free tier has no guaranteed compute units; usage limits are not published, notebooks run up to 12 hours depending on availability, T4 GPUs subject to quota); paid from $9.99 per month (Colab Pro, flexible plan, 100 compute units) (Google Colab pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Web. Proprietary hosted service.
Best for: Running notebooks without a local setup.
Compare: Google Colab alternatives
marimo
Apache-2.0 reactive notebook for Python, free and open source. Notebooks are stored as Python files, which works better with version control than the older notebook format.
Price: Free (Free and open source; hosted service molab exists) (marimo pricing, checked 2026-10-22).
Platforms and license: Windows, macOS, Linux, Web. Apache-2.0 (open source).
Project activity: 23.3k GitHub stars · latest release 0.25.2 (Oct 19, 2026) · last commit Oct 27, 2026
Best for: Reproducible notebooks.
Worth knowing: Notebooks are stored as plain Python files and run reactively.
Which one to pick
- You are learning Python: Thonny
- You do scientific computing: Spyder
- You build a large application: PyCharm
- You want to run notebooks with no install: Google Colab
Limits of this review
Docs-only for PyCharm, Visual Studio Code, Thonny, Spyder, JupyterLab, Google Colab, marimo: we did not install or run them, so feature claims come from vendor pages. Vendor prices and free limits change; confirm on the linked pricing page before you commit.
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Kevin Fan
Kevin Fan is a SaaS founder. He runs Free Instead Of, which tracks free and open-source alternatives to paid software and checks each price and free-plan limit against the vendor's own pages.
Methodology
Based on official pricing, license and product pages checked between 2026-10-22 and 2026-10-23: PyCharm, Visual Studio Code, Thonny, Spyder, JupyterLab, Google Colab, marimo. Prices, free limits and licenses are the figures shown on those pages on those dates. No tool on this page was installed or run. No accounts were created.