How to Install Python on Windows 11 (pyenv-win Version Management, python Command Fix)

Install Python on Windows 11 with pyenv-win, then fix the issue where typing python opens the Microsoft Store, switch versions, check pip and virtual environments (venv), and remove everything cleanly. This guide also covers installing the latest Python 3.15 with the official Python Install Manager.

1. Requirements

• A Windows 11 PC (x64)
• A user account signed in to Windows — the steps in this guide do not need administrator rights
• An internet connection

Every step in this guide was tested on a Windows 11 Pro 25H2 (build 26200, x64) virtual machine with 2 vCPUs and 4 GB of memory. We signed in with a regular account in the Administrators group, and the PowerShell script execution policy was left at the Windows 11 default (Restricted).

2. Choosing an installation method

• Install with pyenv-win: you can keep several Python versions installed and set a default version for the whole PC and a different version for each project folder. This works the way pyenv does on Linux and macOS. Covered in steps 3–9.
• Install with the official Python Install Manager: the Windows installation manager from python.org (the py command). It installs new Python releases right away and also manages several versions. Covered in step 10.

On the day this guide was tested (October 12, 2026), the newest Python was 3.15.0. The pyenv-win version list only went up to 3.14.5, so 3.15 could not be installed with it (step 7). If you need the newest version, use the official install manager. If you use both methods on the same PC, it becomes unclear which python runs, so choose one.

3. Check the current state

Search for PowerShell in the Start menu and open it. You do not need to run it as administrator. On Windows 11 without Python installed, running python shows a message telling you to install it from the Microsoft Store.

python --version

Python was not found; run without arguments to install from the Microsoft Store, or disable this shortcut from Settings > Apps > Advanced app settings > App execution aliases.

The python command exists even though Python is not installed, because Windows 11 creates shortcuts (app execution aliases) that point to the Microsoft Store.

Get-Command python, python3, py -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Format-Table Name, Source -AutoSize

Name        Source
----        ------
python.exe  C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps\python.exe
python3.exe C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps\python3.exe

4. Turn off the Microsoft Store shortcuts (app execution aliases)

While these shortcuts are on, the Store shortcut can run instead of the Python you install with pyenv-win. Open Settings. The command below opens Settings › Apps › Advanced app settings directly.

Start-Process ms-settings:advanced-apps

Click App execution aliases.

Near the bottom of the list there are two App Installer entries: one for python.exe and one for python3.exe.

Click the switches of both entries to turn them off. They are off when Off appears on the right.

Close Settings and run the command again in PowerShell. You now get an error saying the python command cannot be found. This means the shortcuts are off.

python --version

python : The term 'python' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program.
Check the spelling of the name, or if a path was included, verify that the path is correct and try again.

5. Install pyenv-win

Download the official pyenv-win install script and run it. Invoke-WebRequest is the PowerShell command that downloads a file, and -OutFile sets the file name to save. The & after it runs the downloaded script.

Invoke-WebRequest -UseBasicParsing -Uri "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/pyenv-win/pyenv-win/master/pyenv-win/install-pyenv-win.ps1" -OutFile "./install-pyenv-win.ps1"; &"./install-pyenv-win.ps1"

& : File C:\Users\devuser\install-pyenv-win.ps1 cannot be loaded because running scripts is disabled on this system.
For more information, see about_Execution_Policies at https:/go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=135170.

The install script did not run because the default PowerShell script execution policy on Windows 11 is Restricted, which does not run scripts. The file was downloaded. Apply the RemoteSigned policy for the current user only. RemoteSigned runs scripts that are on this PC and runs scripts downloaded from the internet only if they are signed. With -Scope CurrentUser, you do not need administrator rights and other users are not affected.

Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope CurrentUser -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned
Get-ExecutionPolicy -List

        Scope ExecutionPolicy
        ----- ---------------
MachinePolicy       Undefined
   UserPolicy       Undefined
      Process       Undefined
  CurrentUser    RemoteSigned
 LocalMachine      Restricted

Run the downloaded install script again. A .pyenv folder is created in your user folder and the installation finishes.

&"./install-pyenv-win.ps1"

    Directory: C:\Users\devuser


Mode                 LastWriteTime         Length Name
----                 -------------         ------ ----
d-----        10/12/2026  12:07 AM                .pyenv
pyenv-win is successfully installed. You may need to close and reopen your terminal before using it.

6. Check the pyenv installation

As the message says, close the PowerShell window and open a new one. A window opened before installation cannot read the updated environment variable (PATH). Check the version in the new window.

pyenv --version

pyenv 3.1.1

Get-Command pyenv | Format-Table Name, CommandType, Source -AutoSize

Name      CommandType    Source
----      -----------    ------
pyenv.ps1 ExternalScript C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\bin\pyenv.ps1

pyenv also runs as a PowerShell script (pyenv.ps1). If you did not change the execution policy in step 5, you get the same error here.

7. Check which versions you can install

pyenv install --list shows every version you can install. The list is long, so Select-String picks out only 3.14 and 3.15. ^3\.1[45]\.\d+$ means a line that is exactly "3.14.number" or "3.15.number".

pyenv install --list | Select-String "^3\.1[45]\.\d+$"

3.14.0
3.14.1
3.14.2
3.14.3
3.14.4
3.14.5

Python 3.14.8 and 3.15.0 have already been released, but the list only goes up to 3.14.5. pyenv-win keeps a saved copy of the version list, and pyenv update, which refreshes that list, fails on Windows 11 with the error below. The problem has been reported in the pyenv-win repository and was not fixed as of the day this guide was tested. This guide therefore continues with 3.14.5 and 3.13.13, which are in the list. If you need 3.15, use the official install manager in step 10.

pyenv update

:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://www.python.org/ftp/python
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://downloads.python.org/pypy/versions.json
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://api.github.com/repos/oracle/graalpython/releases
C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\libexec\pyenv-update.vbs(172, 13) htmlfile: This command is not supported.

8. Install Python and set the default version

Install Python 3.14.5. pyenv-win downloads the official installer from python.org and installs Python inside your user folder. No administrator prompt appears.

pyenv install 3.14.5

:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://www.python.org/ftp/python
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://downloads.python.org/pypy/versions.json
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://api.github.com/repos/oracle/graalpython/releases
:: [Downloading] ::  3.14.5 ...
:: [Downloading] ::  From https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.14.5/python-3.14.5-amd64.exe
:: [Downloading] ::  To   C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\install_cache\python-3.14.5-amd64.exe
:: [Installing] ::  3.14.5 ...
:: [Info] :: completed! 3.14.5

Installing alone does not create a python command. Set the default version for the whole PC with pyenv global.

pyenv global 3.14.5

Check that python and pip run. pip is the tool that installs Python packages and is installed together with Python.

python --version

Python 3.14.5

pip --version

pip 26.1.1 from C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\versions\3.14.5\Lib\site-packages\pip (python 3.14)

In the list of installed versions, the one marked with * is the version in use, and the text in parentheses is the file that set it.

pyenv versions

* 3.14.5 (set by C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\version)

python and pip run through launcher files in the pyenv-win shims folder. These files find and run the selected Python version.

Get-Command python, pip | Format-Table Name, CommandType, Source -AutoSize

Name       CommandType Source
----       ----------- ------
python.bat Application C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\shims\python.bat
pip.bat    Application C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\shims\pip.bat

9. Use a different version for each project folder

Install Python 3.13 as well. The newest 3.13 release in the list was 3.13.13.

pyenv install 3.13.13

:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://www.python.org/ftp/python
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://downloads.python.org/pypy/versions.json
:: [Info] ::  Mirror: https://api.github.com/repos/oracle/graalpython/releases
:: [Downloading] ::  3.13.13 ...
:: [Downloading] ::  From https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.13.13/python-3.13.13-amd64.exe
:: [Downloading] ::  To   C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv\pyenv-win\install_cache\python-3.13.13-amd64.exe
:: [Installing] ::  3.13.13 ...
:: [Info] :: completed! 3.13.13

Create a project folder named hello-py and move into it. | Out-Null hides the folder details that would otherwise be printed.

mkdir hello-py | Out-Null; cd hello-py

pyenv local sets the version for the current folder only. In this folder (and the folders under it), 3.13.13 runs; everywhere else, the default 3.14.5 runs.

pyenv local 3.13.13
python --version

Python 3.13.13

The version is saved in the .python-version file in the folder. If you share this file with the project, other people use the same version.

Get-Content .python-version

3.13.13

pyenv versions

* 3.13.13 (set by C:\Users\devuser\hello-py\.python-version)
  3.14.5

Create a virtual environment (venv)

To install packages separately for each project, create a virtual environment. python -m venv .venv creates a virtual environment named .venv in the current folder. Then turn the virtual environment on. When it is on, (.venv) appears in front of the prompt.

python -m venv .venv
.\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1

Install the requests package inside the virtual environment. Running it as python -m pip makes sure the pip of the current virtual environment is used.

python -m pip install requests

Collecting requests
  Downloading requests-2.34.2-py3-none-any.whl.metadata (4.8 kB)
Collecting charset_normalizer<4,>=2 (from requests)
  Downloading charset_normalizer-3.5.2-cp313-cp313-win_amd64.whl.metadata (47 kB)
Collecting idna<4,>=2.5 (from requests)
  Downloading idna-3.20-py3-none-any.whl.metadata (7.2 kB)
Collecting urllib3<3,>=1.26 (from requests)
  Downloading urllib3-2.8.0-py3-none-any.whl.metadata (7.4 kB)
Collecting certifi>=2023.5.7 (from requests)
  Downloading certifi-2026.7.22-py3-none-any.whl.metadata (2.5 kB)
Downloading requests-2.34.2-py3-none-any.whl (73 kB)
Downloading charset_normalizer-3.5.2-cp313-cp313-win_amd64.whl (206 kB)
Downloading idna-3.20-py3-none-any.whl (69 kB)
Downloading urllib3-2.8.0-py3-none-any.whl (135 kB)
Downloading certifi-2026.7.22-py3-none-any.whl (136 kB)
Installing collected packages: urllib3, idna, charset_normalizer, certifi, requests
Successfully installed certifi-2026.7.22 charset_normalizer-3.5.2 idna-3.20 requests-2.34.2 urllib3-2.8.0

[notice] A new release of pip is available: 26.0.1 -> 26.2.1
[notice] To update, run: python.exe -m pip install --upgrade pip

Import the installed package and print its version.

python -c "import sys, requests; print('Python', sys.version.split()[0], '/ requests', requests.__version__)"

Python 3.13.13 / requests 2.34.2

If the Python and requests versions appear, Python, pip, and the virtual environment all work. To leave the virtual environment, run deactivate.

deactivate

10. (Alternative) Install with the official Python Install Manager

python.org provides an official installation manager for Windows, Python Install Manager. You use the py command to download and install the versions you want, and it manages several versions together. New Python releases can be installed right away. When you use this method, also turn off the Microsoft Store shortcuts as in step 4.

Search for the install manager with winget. The first time you use winget, it asks you to accept the terms of the Microsoft Store source. Type Y and press Enter.

winget search Python.PythonInstallManager

The `msstore` source requires that you view the following agreements before using.
Terms of Transaction: https://aka.ms/microsoft-store-terms-of-transaction
The source requires the current machine's 2-letter geographic region to be sent to the backend service to function properly (ex. "US").

Do you agree to all the source agreements terms?
[Y] Yes  [N] No:

Install the install manager. No administrator prompt appears.

winget install Python.PythonInstallManager

Found Python Install Manager [Python.PythonInstallManager] Version 26.4.240.0
This application is licensed to you by its owner.
Microsoft is not responsible for, nor does it grant any licenses to, third-party packages.
Successfully verified installer hash
Starting package install...
  ██████████████████████████████  100%
Successfully installed

When you give a version after py install, the newest release of that version is installed. Install 3.15. The first time it runs, the install manager updates itself to the newest version.

py install 3.15

Python install manager was successfully updated to 26.4.

Please see https://github.com/python/pymanager/releases/tag/26.4 for all changes.

The signature for https://www.python.org/ftp/python/index-windows.json was successfully verified.
Installing Python 3.15.0.
Extracting: ...............................................................✅

Global shortcuts directory is not on PATH. Add it for easy access to global Python aliases.
Directory to add: C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\bin

py runs right away, but there is no python command yet. As the last two lines say, the folder that contains the python command is not on PATH.

py --version

Python 3.15.0

python --version

python : The term 'python' is not recognized as the name of a cmdlet, function, script file, or operable program.
Check the spelling of the name, or if a path was included, verify that the path is correct and try again.

Install 3.14 as well, and check the list of installed versions. The one marked with * is the default.

py install 3.14

The signature for https://www.python.org/ftp/python/index-windows.json was successfully verified.
Installing Python 3.14.8.
Downloading: ...............................................................✅
Extracting: ...............................................................✅

Global shortcuts directory is not on PATH. Add it for easy access to global Python aliases.
Directory to add: C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\bin

py list

Tag          Name          Managed By  Version  Alias
3.15[-64]  * Python 3.15.0 PythonCore  3.15.0   python3[-64].exe, python3.15[-64].exe
3.14[-64]    Python 3.14.8 PythonCore  3.14.8   python3.14[-64].exe

To run a specific version, write the version after -V:.

py -V:3.14 --version

Python 3.14.8

To run Python with the python command as well, add the folder from the message to your user PATH. This command appends ; and the folder path to the current user PATH and saves it. It prints nothing.

[Environment]::SetEnvironmentVariable("Path", [Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("Path", "User") + ";$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Python\bin", "User")

Close the PowerShell window, open a new one, and check. python runs the default version (3.15.0), and python3.14 runs 3.14.

python --version

Python 3.15.0

python3.14 --version

Python 3.14.8

pip --version

pip 26.2.1 from C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\pythoncore-3.15-64\Lib\site-packages\pip (python 3.15)

11. Troubleshooting

12. Uninstall

Uninstall pyenv-win

Running the pyenv-win install script with -Uninstall removes the .pyenv folder (including the Python versions you installed) and the environment variables. Run it from your user folder, where install-pyenv-win.ps1 was downloaded during installation.

&"./install-pyenv-win.ps1" -Uninstall

Removing C:\Users\devuser\.pyenv...
Removing environment variables...
pyenv-win successfully uninstalled.

Check that no pyenv entries remain in the user PATH.

[Environment]::GetEnvironmentVariable("Path", "User") -split ";"

C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Microsoft\WindowsApps

Variables such as PYENV may still appear in the PowerShell window that is open now. These are values the window read when it opened, and they are gone when you open a new window.

Remove the official install manager and Python

py uninstall --yes --purge removes the installed Python versions, the shortcuts, and the downloaded files without asking for confirmation. Then remove the install manager itself with winget.

py uninstall --yes --purge

Purging Python 3.15.0 from C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\pythoncore-3.15-64
Purging Python 3.14.8 from C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\pythoncore-3.14-64
Purging saved downloads from C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\_cache
Removing global commands directory from PATH
Purging global commands from C:\Users\devuser\AppData\Local\Python\bin
Purging all shortcuts

winget uninstall Python.PythonInstallManager

Found Python Install Manager [Python.PythonInstallManager]
Starting package uninstall...
  ██████████████████████████████  100%
Successfully uninstalled

An empty Python folder remains after removal. Delete it and check. If False appears, everything has been removed.

Remove-Item "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Python" -Recurse -Force
Test-Path "$env:LOCALAPPDATA\Python"

False

Turn the Microsoft Store shortcuts back on

If you want to use the app execution aliases you turned off in step 4 again, turn App Installer's python.exe and python3.exe switches back on in the same screen.