PyInquirer Documentation

Using PyInquirer follows a two-step pattern similar to Inquirer.js:

1. Define a list of questions.
2. Pass them to the prompt function to receive a list of answers.

Use print_json from PyInquirer to easily inspect the resulting answers dictionary.

from __future__ import print_function, unicode_literals
from PyInquirer import prompt, print_json

questions = [
    {
        'type': 'input',
        'name': 'first_name',
        'message': 'What\'s your first name',
    }
]

answers = prompt(questions)
print_json(answers)  # use the answers as input for your app

Install the PyInquirer package using pip.

If you encounter prompt_toolkit errors, it is likely due to an incompatible version. You can resolve this by installing the specific version 1.0.14.

pip install PyInquirer

# If you encounter prompt_toolkit errors:
pip install prompt_toolkit==1.0.14

Confirm

{type: 'confirm'} Asks a yes/no question.

• Properties: type, name, message [, default]
• Note: default should be a boolean.

Input

{type: 'input'} Standard text input.

• Properties: type, name, message [, default, filter, validate]

Password

{type: 'password'} Text input that masks characters.

• Properties: type, name, message [, default, filter, validate]

List

{type: 'list'} Used for selecting a single option from a list.

• Properties: type, name, message, choices [, default, filter]
• Note: default must be the choice index in the array or a choice value.

Raw List

{type: 'rawlist'} Similar to list, but displays the raw values.

• Properties: type, name, message, choices [, default, filter]
• Note: default must be the choice index in the array.

Expand

{type: 'expand'} Allows selecting an option by typing a single character.

• Properties: type, name, message, choices [, default]
• Note: default must be the choice index. If not provided, the help property is used as the default.
• Choices: Each choice object must include a key property (a single lowercased character).

Checkbox

{type: 'checkbox'} Allows selecting multiple options.

• Properties: type, name, message, choices [, filter, validate]
• Default Selection: Set {'checked': True} within a choice object to select it by default.
• Disabling Choices: Use the disabled property. It can be a truthy value (defaults to "Disabled") or a synchronous function that receives the current answers and returns a boolean or a string.

{type: 'editor'} Opens the user's preferred editor to allow for multi-line or complex text input.

Editor Behavior:

• It uses the VISUAL or EDITOR environment variables. If neither is set, it defaults to notepad (Windows) or vim (Linux/Mac).
• If the editor is closed without changes, None is returned.

Properties:

• type, name, message, default, filter, validate, eargs

eargs (Editor Arguments):

• editor: Path to the executable (overrides auto-detection).
• ext: File extension for the temporary file (e.g., .py, defaults to .txt).
• save: Boolean determining whether to save the file.
• filename: Path of the file to edit.
• env: Dictionary of environment variables to pass to the editor.