I've been using Anaconda and Conda for quite a while, but I'm getting increasingly annoyed with how slow the solver is. It's starting to feel a bit outdated. I'm curious about what tools and setups people are using these days for managing Python environments and dependencies. In particular, I'm looking at options like micromamba or mamba, pyenv combined with venv and pip, or even Poetry. I'm primarily interested in solutions that: * Don't interfere with the system Python * Are fast and reliable * Maintain compatibility with popular scientific or ML packages * Are easy to manage since I'm mainly a game developer using Python for personal projects. Would love to hear about the current best practices for 2026 and what's working well in real projects!
5 Answers
For my projects, especially when working in teams, I prefer using Docker with DevContainers. It eliminates a lot of environment issues and keeps everyone on the same page. It might not be what everyone else is using, but it's ideal for collaboration.
You should definitely check out uv! It's a drop-in replacement for pip and it automatically creates a virtual environment for your projects. It's incredibly fast and makes managing dependencies super simple.
Yeah, uv is blazing fast! I switched over and I've found it really improves my workflow.
A lot of folks are raving about Pixi too. It’s built with Rust and designed as a more modern version of Conda, perfect for when you need to manage both Python and non-Python packages. I've found it easy to use and it shares some code with uv for dependency resolution.
Pixi is great for handling system dependencies that uv might miss. Plus, if you’re moving from conda, the transition feels pretty smooth!
I’ve read that a lot of developers are now leaning towards uv for its speed and ease of use. Especially if you need to create environments quickly for testing—it's really turning into a go-to for many.
I’ve seen a lot of buzz around uv recently! Might have to give it a shot soon.
Honestly, I’ve been sticking with good old pip + venv. It's been reliable, and since I don't need anything too complicated, it does the job well without getting in the way. Plus, it’s easy to use and keeps everything clean.
I get the nostalgia, but have you tried uv? It's fast and might change your mind about switching!
That's a solid approach! It definitely helps with consistency across different environments.