

So, what does this strange error mean, and why are you seeing it? Well, whenever you run a program on your machine, your computer needs to know exactly where on your machine that program file is located so it can be executed. In this case, you'll be greeted instead with an error message that reads, "'python' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file."

This is the actual executable file for Python itself, which you downloaded from the official Python downloads page. The first way is to locate the Python executable on your system and double-click on it. Once Python is installed on your Windows machine, you'll likely try to run it in one of two ways. But before we discuss how to fix this error, let's get a better understanding of why it occurs. If you're a Linux or Mac user, then skip to the section titled, "What if I'm on a different operating system?". You may have seen this error if you're running Python on a Windows machine. Note that the exact spelling of this error could vary slightly, and this article may help you if you're encountering similar errors that include messaging like Python Not Found or Python Was Not Found. In this article, you'll take a closer look at the error 'python' is not recognized as an internal or external command and see a few quick fixes for it. Windows users in particular may find themselves greeted with a strange and convoluted error message when trying to run Python from the Command Prompt: 'python' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file. For many beginners, simply getting Python to run on their local machine can present a significant challenge. One of the most frustrating aspects of learning how to code in Python doesn't even involve any coding itself.
