What is the difference between pip and conda?

Question

I know pip is a package manager for python packages. However, I saw the installation on IPython\'s website use conda to install IPython.

Ca

Answer 1

To answer the original question,
For installing packages, PIP and Conda are different ways to accomplish the same thing. Both are standard applications to install packages. The main difference is the source of the package files.

• PIP/PyPI will have more "experimental" packages, or newer, less common, versions of packages
• Conda will typically have more well established packages or versions

An important cautionary side note: If you use both sources (pip and conda) to install packages in the same environment, this may cause issues later.

• Recreate the environment will be more difficult
• Fix package incompatibilities becomes more complicated

Best practice is to select one application, PIP or Conda, to install packages, and use that application to install any packages you need. However, there are many exceptions or reasons to still use pip from within a conda environment, and vice versa. For example:

• When there are packages you need that only exist on one, and the other doesn't have them.
• You need a certain version that is only available in one environment