How to Fix “ImportError: No module named pandas” [Mac/Linux/Windows/PyCharm]

Quick Fix: Python throws the “ImportError: No module named pandas” when it cannot find the Pandas installation. The most frequent source of this error is that you haven’t installed Pandas explicitly with pip install pandas. Alternatively, you may have different Python versions on your computer and Pandas is not installed for the particular version you’re using. To fix it, run pip install pandas in your Linux/MacOS/Windows terminal.

Problem: You’ve just learned about the awesome capabilities of the Pandas library and you want to try it out, so you start with the following import statement you found on the web:

import pandas as pd

This is supposed to import the Pandas library into your (virtual) environment. However, it only throws the following import error: no module named pandas!

>>> import pandas as pd
ImportError: No module named pandas on line 1 in main.py

You can reproduce this error in the following interactive Python shell:

Why did this error occur?

The reason is that Python doesn’t provide Pandas in its standard library. You need to install Python first!

Before being able to import the Pandas module, you need to install it using Python’s package manager pip. You can run the following command in your Windows shell:

$ pip install pandas

Here’s the screenshot on my Windows machine:

This simple command installs Pandas in your virtual environment on Windows, Linux, and MacOS. It assumes that you know that your pip version is updated. If it isn’t, use the following two commands (there’s no harm in doing it anyways):

$ python -m pip install --upgrade pip
...
$ pip install pandas

Here’s how this plays out on my Windows command line:

The warning message disappeared!

If you need to refresh your Pandas skills, check out the following Pandas cheat sheets—I’ve compiled the best 5 in this article.

Related article: Top 5 Pandas Cheat Sheets

How to Fix “ImportError: No module named pandas” in PyCharm

If you create a new Python project in PyCharm and try to import the Pandas library, it’ll throw the following error:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:/Users/xcent/Desktop/Finxter/Books/book_dash/pythonProject/main.py", line 1, in <module>
    import pandas as pd
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'pandas'

Process finished with exit code 1

The reason is that each PyCharm project, per default, creates a virtual environment in which you can install custom Python modules. But the virtual environment is initially empty—even if you’ve already installed Pandas on your computer!

Here’s a screenshot:

The fix is simple: Use the PyCharm installation tooltips to install Pandas in your virtual environment—two clicks and you’re good to go!

First, right-click on the pandas text in your editor:

Second, click “Show Context Actions” in your context menu. In the new menu that arises, click “Install Pandas” and wait for PyCharm to finish the installation.

The code will run after your installation completes successfully.

As an alternative, you can also open the “Terminal” tool at the bottom and type:

pip install pandas

If this doesn’t work, you may want to change the Python interpreter to another version using the following tutorial: https://www.jetbrains.com/help/pycharm/2016.1/configuring-python-interpreter-for-a-project.html

You can also manually install a new library such as Pandas in PyCharm using the following procedure:

• Open File > Settings > Project from the PyCharm menu.
• Select your current project.
• Click the Python Interpreter tab within your project tab.
• Click the small + symbol to add a new library to the project.
• Now type in the library to be installed, in your example Pandas, and click Install Package.
• Wait for the installation to terminate and close all popup windows.

Here’s a complete introduction to PyCharm:

Related Article: PyCharm—A Helpful Illustrated Guide

Chris

While working as a researcher in distributed systems, Dr. Christian Mayer found his love for teaching computer science students.

To help students reach higher levels of Python success, he founded the programming education website Finxter.com. He’s author of the popular programming book Python One-Liners (NoStarch 2020), coauthor of the Coffee Break Python series of self-published books, computer science enthusiast, freelancer, and owner of one of the top 10 largest Python blogs worldwide.

His passions are writing, reading, and coding. But his greatest passion is to serve aspiring coders through Finxter and help them to boost their skills. You can join his free email academy here.