How to Install Python 3.10 on Ubuntu 20.04

Python is one of the most popular high-level languages, focusing on high-level and object-oriented applications from simple scrips to complex machine learning algorithms. Some of the features Python can do:

• Python can be used on a server to create web applications.
• Python can be used alongside software to create workflows.
• Python can connect to database systems. It can also read and modify files.
• Python can be used to handle big data and perform complex mathematics.
• Python can be used for rapid prototyping or production-ready software development.

For users and especially developers wanting to try out Python’s latest release, at the end of this guide, you will know how to install Python 3.10 on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS.

Prerequisites

• Recommended OS: Ubuntu 20.04 or higher
• User account: A user account with sudo or root access.

Update Operating System

Update your Ubuntu operating system to make sure all existing packages are up to date:

sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade -y

The tutorial will be using the sudo command and assuming you have sudo status.

To verify sudo status on your account:

sudo whoami

Example output showing sudo status:

[joshua@ubuntu ~]$ sudo whoami
root

To set up an existing or new sudo account, visit our tutorial on How to Add a User to Sudoers on Ubuntu.

To use the root account, use the following command with the root password to log in.

su

Install Python 3.10 with APT Package Manager

To install the latest versions of Python 3.10 is a relatively straightforward process on Ubuntu, thanks to custom PPAs. To install and receive continued updates for new features, bug fixes, and critical security updates, you will add the (deadsnakes/ppa).

First, install the prerequisite for adding custom PPAs:

sudo apt install software-properties-common -y

Second, add the (deadsnakes/ppa) to your APT package manager sources list:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:deadsnakes/ppa -y

Once the repository has been installed, you can now install Python 3.10 by executing the following code:

sudo apt install python3.10

You will see the following packages installed in your installation:

To verify the installation and Python 3.10 build version, perform the following:

python3.10 --version

Example output:

Note, this version will change in time is an example only.

Optionally, you can install the following extras.

To install development headers for building C extensions:

sudo apt install python3.10-dev

To install the standard library (venv) module:

sudo apt install python3.10-venv

To install the standard library (distutils) module:

sudo apt install python3.10-distutils

To install the (2to3.11) utility as well as the standard library (lib2to3) module:

sudo apt install python3.10-lib2to3

To install the standard library (dbm.gnu) module:

sudo apt install python3.10-gdbm

To install the standard library (tkinter) module:

sudo apt install python3.10-tk

Alternative – Nightly Builds

For developers that require the latest nightly builds, the PPA has an additional branch for these builds. However, they should only be used by professionals and developers that require the use of such builds.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:deadsnakes/nightly -y

Now, if you have the default 3.10 stable by (deadsnakes/ppa), you can run the apt update command to upgrade the existing packages.

sudo apt update

Then upgrade the packages:

sudo apt upgrade

If you do not have python installed, use the installation command.

sudo apt install python3.10 -y

REMEMBER TO UPDATE REGULARLY AS THIS IS A NIGHTLY BUILD VERSION.

If you want to roll back to the stable PPA. First, remove python 3.10.

sudo apt autoremove python3.10 --purge

Next, remove the Nightly build PPA.

sudo add-apt-repository --remove ppa:deadsnakes/nightly -y

Once done, update the APT repository list to reflect the removal.

sudo apt update

Now re-install Python 3.10; you may need to re-add the stable PPA if you remove it. You can toggle between versions doing this. However, it’d be advised to set up virtual environments if you need to use multiple environments.

Install Python 3.10 on Ubuntu from Source

The alternative option for those that feel up to more of a challenge or require specific advanced builds from the git repository of the source can opt to install directly from the source. The main issue with this method is that you cannot quickly update like the APT package manager and will need to recompile for any changes.

First, you will need to install the dependencies necessary to build Python 3.10:

sudo apt install build-essential zlib1g-dev libncurses5-dev libgdbm-dev libnss3-dev libssl-dev libreadline-dev libffi-dev libsqlite3-dev wget libbz2-dev

The second part is visiting the downloads page on Python’s website and getting the latest version using (wget):

wget https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.10.0/Python-3.10.0.tar.xz

Note, this is Python 3.10 stable version; visit and check for updates.

The file archive is small, so it won’t take a long time to download. Once done, extract the archive:

tar -xf Python-3.10.0.tar.xz

You will need to switch to the source directory and run the configuration script, which does an essential run-through checklist to ensure all dependencies are present for the installation to work.

cd Python-3.10.0 && ./configure --enable-optimizations

Note, the (–enabled-optimizations) is recommended as it optimizes the Python binary by running multiple tests but takes extra time to compete. Overall the process should take a few minutes, so it’s recommended not to skip.

Example output:

The next option is to use the (make) command to start the build process.

make -j 2

Note, the (-j) corresponds to the number of cores in your system to speed up the build time. If you have a powerful server, you can set this as high as you like. If you don’t, then it will be the default option of 1. To find out how many cores you have on your system, execute the following code:

nproc

Example output:

2

As you can see, we have two cores, so in the (make) command, we used (-j 2).

In the last step, once you have finished with the build process, you will install Python 3.10 source by executing the following:

sudo make altinstall

Note, the guide has used (altinstall) instead of the default (install) because it will overwrite the default python3 binary python binary file /usr/bin/python.

Check the version of the installation to make sure it has been installed successfully and its current build number:

python3.10 --version

Example output:

Python 3.10.0

Create a Test Virtual Environment

Python’s venv module is a virtual environment is a Python environment such that the Python interpreter, libraries, and scripts installed into it are isolated from those established in other virtual environments, and (by default) any libraries installed on your operating system, for example, those that are installed on your Ubuntu operating system to avoid clashing and disturbing your production environments.

To make sure Python 3.10 is installed correctly and functioning, create a quick Python project as follows.

First, create the project directory and navigate to it:

mkdir ~/test_app && cd ~/test_app

Now inside the project root directory, run the following command to create a virtual environment, for the test name it test_app:

python3.10 -m venv test_app_venv

Note, the compiled installation included venv. However, if you installed using the APT package manager method, you may need to install the venv package if you encounter problems.

sudo apt install python3.10-dev python3.10-venv -y

Next, activate the virtual environment as follows:

source test_app_venv/bin/activate

After starting the virtual environment, you will now be in the shell prompt terminal. You will notice the name of your environment will be prefixed.

Example:

(test_app_venv) [joshua@localhost test_app]

By default, PIP3.10 should be installed, which is the most used package manager for Python.

Before you begin, check if any upgrades are available for PIP.

python3.10 -m pip install --upgrade pip

In the tutorial to test the installation, Apache-Airflow was installed.

Example:

pip3.10 install apache-airflow

Remove the test application using PIP3.10.

pip3.10 uninstall apache-airflow

Example output:

Proceed (Y/n)? y
  Successfully uninstalled apache-airflow-2.1.4

To exit the virtual environment, use the following command:

deactivate

Comments and Conclusion

In the tutorial, you have learned how to install Python 3.10 for Ubuntu and create a quick virtual environment. Overall, Python 3.10 is still better, so sticking with Python 3.9 may be more desirable for the time being. For those wanting to test the latest Python, 3.10 is worth the investment to install.