How to Check the Python Version on Windows, Mac, and Linux

To check the Python version on different operating systems, you can use the command line or terminal. Here’s how to do it on Windows, Mac, and Linux:

1. Windows:
   • Open the command prompt by pressing Win + R, typing cmd, and hitting Enter.
   • In the command prompt, type python --version or python -V and press Enter.
   • The Python version installed on your Windows system will be displayed.
2. Mac:
   • Open the Terminal application. You can find it in the Applications folder under Utilities.
   • In the terminal, type python --version or python -V and press Enter.
   • The Python version installed on your Mac will be displayed.
3. Linux:
   • Open the terminal. You can usually find it in the applications menu or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl + Alt + T.
   • In the terminal, type python --version or python -V and press Enter.
   • The Python version installed on your Linux system will be displayed.

The command python --version or python -V displays the Python version installed as per your system’s PATH environment variable. If you have multiple Python installations, the command will display the version of the default Python interpreter.

Note: If you have both Python 2 and Python 3 installed on your system, you might need to use python3 --version or python3 -V to check the version of Python 3 specifically.

Alternatively, you can run a Python script to check the version. Create a new text file, enter the following line, and save it with a .py extension (e.g., version_check.py):

Then, open the command prompt or terminal, navigate to the directory containing the script, and run python version_check.py to see the Python version.

These methods should help you determine the Python version installed on your Windows, Mac, or Linux system.