A relative import specifies the resource to be imported relative to the current location—that is, the location where the import statement is. How do I import a Python module given its relative path? For example, if dirFoo contains Foo. If project is a package, then you can use relative imports here. py? Here's a visual representation: dirFoo\ Foo. Drag and drop the file (that you want Pandas to read) in that terminal window. Let's say you make two files, one in your project's main directory and another in a sub directory. – marcz. But there is an often used trick to build an absolute path from current script: use its __file__ special attribute: test = list(csv. Relative Imports. A better way to get SCRIPTDIR is given in a comment of Import a module from a relative path as os. And if the path provided is itself a absolute path then the function returns the same path. The import system ¶. Really, for me, relative imports are somewhat difficult to see the utility. dirBar\ Bar. e. path list to add the directory containing the module to the Python search path, and then use the import statement to import the module. Foo wishes to include Bar, but restructuring the folder hierarchy is not an option. It'll look like this: Aug 24, 2011 · path_list = script_path. sep) Remove the last item in the list (the actual script file): script_directory = path_list[0:len(path_list)-1] Add the relative file's path: rel_path = "main/2091/data. The issue with this approach is that your import path can get very messy and hard to understand. py. . python. Here’s an example of an absolute import: To import a module using a relative path in Python, you can use the `importlib` module. realpath(os. relative-path. And if the path provided is itself a relative path then the function returns the same path. However, you should provide the absolute path to the sys. Oct 4, 2019 · The most important thing to remember is that in Python, absolute is relative. dirname(inspect. Apr 25, 2017 · 0. append(". There are two types of relative imports: implicit and explicit. split(os. Functions such as importlib. It's better for me to use direct imports relative to the project directory, but I could see them being useful if you wanted to nest a naive sub package, but again, still better to be explicit than implicit if possible. Import from above. ") # added! Jun 7, 2013 · 11. While importing, we are not specifying a path in the file system, but rather an import path. Aug 26, 2022 · Absolute vs Relative Imports in Python Absolute imports in Python. from b. path. The import statement is the most common way of invoking the import machinery, but it is not the only way. We can use sys. read_csv("the path returned by terminal") That's it. This will import the mymodule module from the subdir subdirectory and make it available for use in your code. py, how do I import Bar. This works because the import path includes the folder containing structure. If you do not want your path to be relative, it must be absolute. pd. Join the list items, and addition the relative path's file: path = "/". py into Foo. The `importlib` module provides a number of functions for importing modules, including the `import_module ()` function. May 28, 2009 · In short os. Make a __init__. In this example I think 'main' folder is the best candidate to be the top level package. Therefore, the imports are always relative to the PYTHONPATH, even if called absolute. import_module() and built-in __import__() can also be used to invoke the import machinery. append method. You can also use the sys. dirname(__file__)). The `import_module ()` function takes the following arguments: `name`: The name of the module to import. B. Now you can use relative imports: Aug 27, 2023 · An absolute import specifies the full path (starting from the root package) to the module you’re importing, while a relative import specifies the path to the module relative to the current module. also see this. Python code in one module gains access to the code in another module by the process of importing it. Oct 7, 2022 · 1. py and files. C import foo . Absolute import involves a full path i. module_x import foo. Aug 30, 2022 · Method 1: Import module from different directory using the sys module. Allows one to import from anywhere, something __import__ does not do. Try this: Open a new terminal window. Jun 28, 2009 · This folder is considered a python package and you can import from files in this parent directory even if you're writing a script anywhere else on your computer. Copy and paste that line into read_csv command as shown here: import pandas as pd. Jan 26, 2021 · To get the test file running regardless of where we are running Python from we need to append the relative parent directory to Python’s in-built sys. txt. This will return the full address of your file in a line. currentframe()))) if your confident that your module has always a proper file you could also use os. Update for Python 3's namespace Relative paths are relative to current working directory . Syntax and Practical Examples: 5 days ago · 5. getfile(inspect. , from the project’s root folder to the desired module. abspath(path) makes a relative path to absolute path. path variable. py inside 'main' folder and put the following code inside it to make it the top level folder in package: __package__ = ''. c. 4+ (for the pathlib module). However, relative imports are only meant to work within one package. If project is not a package, you cannot. join(script_directory) + "/" + rel_path. py and dirBar, and dirBar contains Bar. An absolute import state that the resource is to be imported using its full path from the project’s root folder. . path to add the path of the new different folder (the folder from where we want to import the modules) to the system path so that Python can also look for the module in that directory if it doesn’t find the module in its current directory. This is the list of directories Python looks through when it’s executing: test_drink. Another option for importing modules is to define the relative path Dec 27, 2012 · In order to use relative imports, you have to have a package. In practice, you’re re-creating a feature of early Python versions called implicit relative imports. Step 3. reader(f)) This requires python 3. from project. import unittest import sys # added! sys. relpath(path) makes a absolute path to relative path. def import_path(fullpath): """ Import a file with full path specification. similarly os. uo ff lt pa im vw et hc bw jx