UV: Ultra-Fast Python Package Manager

Expert guidance for uv, the extremely fast Python package and project manager written in Rust.

When to Use This Skill

Activate this skill when working with:

• Project initialization - Creating new Python projects with uv init
• Dependency management - Adding, removing, or updating Python packages
• Virtual environments - Creating and managing isolated Python environments
• Python version management - Installing and switching Python versions
• Package building - Building distributions for PyPI
• CI/CD workflows - Optimizing GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, Docker builds
• Migration from pip - Moving from pip/pip-tools/poetry to uv
• Performance optimization - Leveraging uv's speed for faster installs

Quick Reference

Project Initialization

Create a new application:

$ uv init my-app
$ cd my-app
$ tree .
.
├── .python-version
├── README.md
├── main.py
└── pyproject.toml

Create a packaged application (with CLI):

$ uv init --package my-cli
# Creates src/ layout with entry point

Create a library:

$ uv init --lib my-library
# Creates src/ layout with py.typed marker

Dependency Management

Add dependencies:

$ uv add requests pandas numpy
$ uv add --dev pytest black ruff  # Development dependencies
$ uv add "flask>=2.0.0"            # Version constraints

Remove dependencies:

$ uv remove requests
$ uv remove --dev pytest

Update dependencies:

$ uv sync              # Sync environment with lockfile
$ uv lock --upgrade    # Update lockfile with latest versions

Running Code

Run Python files:

$ uv run main.py
$ uv run python script.py

Run inline scripts with dependencies:

# /// script
# requires-python = ">=3.12"
# dependencies = [
#   "pandas",
#   "requests",
# ]
# ///

import pandas as pd
import requests

# Your code here

$ uv run script.py  # Automatically manages dependencies!

Virtual Environments

Create a virtual environment:

$ uv venv
$ uv venv .venv --python 3.12

Using pip-compatible interface:

$ uv pip install requests
$ uv pip install -r requirements.txt
$ uv pip freeze > requirements.txt
$ uv pip list

Python Version Management

Install Python versions:

$ uv python install 3.12
$ uv python install 3.11 3.10  # Multiple versions

List installed versions:

$ uv python list

Pin project Python version:

$ uv python pin 3.12
# Creates .python-version file

Tools Management

Install and run tools:

$ uv tool install ruff
$ uv tool install black mypy

$ uvx ruff check .     # Run without installing
$ uvx pytest           # Run tools in isolated environments

Building and Publishing

Build package:

$ uv build
# Creates dist/ with .whl and .tar.gz

Publish to PyPI:

$ uv publish
$ uv publish --token $PYPI_TOKEN

Configuration

Project config (pyproject.toml):

[project]
name = "my-app"
version = "0.1.0"
description = "My application"
readme = "README.md"
requires-python = ">=3.11"
dependencies = [
    "requests>=2.31.0",
    "pandas>=2.0.0",
]

[project.optional-dependencies]
dev = [
    "pytest>=7.0.0",
    "black>=23.0.0",
]

[dependency-groups]
dev = [
    "ruff>=0.1.0",
]

[tool.uv.sources]
# Use alternative package indexes
my-package = { index = "private-pypi" }

Global config (uv.toml or pyproject.toml):

[tool.uv]
# Disable managed project environment
managed = false

# Configure package indexes
[[tool.uv.index]]
name = "pytorch"
url = "https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu118"

Common Workflows

Workflow 1: Starting a New Project

# Create project
$ uv init my-project
$ cd my-project

# Add dependencies
$ uv add fastapi uvicorn sqlalchemy

# Add dev dependencies
$ uv add --dev pytest black ruff

# Run the app
$ uv run python main.py

Workflow 2: Migrating from pip/requirements.txt

# Create uv project from existing code
$ uv init --no-package

# Import existing requirements
$ uv add -r requirements.txt

# Lock dependencies
$ uv lock

# Sync environment
$ uv sync

Workflow 3: Docker Integration

FROM python:3.12-slim

# Install uv
COPY --from=ghcr.io/astral-sh/uv:latest /uv /bin/uv

# Copy project files
WORKDIR /app
COPY pyproject.toml uv.lock ./
COPY src ./src

# Install dependencies
RUN uv sync --frozen --no-cache

# Run application
CMD ["uv", "run", "python", "-m", "myapp"]

Workflow 4: GitHub Actions CI/CD

name: CI

on: [push, pull_request]

jobs:
  test:
    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      - name: Install uv
        uses: astral-sh/setup-uv@v3

      - name: Set up Python
        run: uv python install 3.12

      - name: Install dependencies
        run: uv sync --all-extras --dev

      - name: Run tests
        run: uv run pytest

Workflow 5: Working with Scripts

# Create standalone script with dependencies
$ cat > analyze.py << 'EOF'
# /// script
# requires-python = ">=3.11"
# dependencies = [
#   "pandas",
#   "matplotlib",
# ]
# ///

import pandas as pd
import matplotlib.pyplot as plt

df = pd.read_csv("data.csv")
print(df.describe())
EOF

# Run with automatic dependency management
$ uv run analyze.py

Key Concepts

1. Projects

• Self-contained Python applications with pyproject.toml
• Automatic dependency locking with uv.lock
• Environment management with uv sync

2. Workspaces

• Monorepo support for multiple related packages
• Shared dependency resolution
• Defined in root pyproject.toml

3. Resolution

• Fast dependency resolver written in Rust
• Platform-specific resolution
• Supports complex version constraints

4. Cache

• Global package cache at ~/.cache/uv/ (Linux/macOS)
• Deduplication across projects
• Use uv cache clean to clear

5. Python Versions

• Automatic Python installation and management
• .python-version file for project pinning
• Multiple versions side-by-side

Performance Tips

1. Use uv sync --frozen in CI to skip lockfile updates
2. Leverage the cache - don't use --no-cache unless necessary
3. Use uvx for tools instead of installing globally
4. Pin Python versions with .python-version for reproducibility
5. Use workspaces for monorepos to share dependencies

Integration Guides

PyTorch with CUDA

$ uv init pytorch-project
$ uv add torch --index pytorch --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu118

Jupyter Notebooks

$ uv add jupyter ipykernel
$ uv run jupyter notebook

Pre-commit Hooks

# .pre-commit-config.yaml
repos:
  - repo: https://github.com/astral-sh/uv-pre-commit
    rev: 0.5.0
    hooks:
      - id: uv-lock

FastAPI Development

$ uv init --package my-api
$ uv add fastapi uvicorn[standard]
$ uv add --dev pytest httpx
$ uv run uvicorn myapi.main:app --reload

Reference Files

Comprehensive documentation in references/:

• uv.md - Complete UV documentation (63 pages)
  • CLI reference for all commands
  • Detailed guides for projects, packages, and tools
  • Integration examples (Docker, GitHub, Jupyter, etc.)
  • Advanced topics (authentication, indexes, build backends)

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Issue: "No solution found"

• Check version constraints in pyproject.toml
• Try uv lock --upgrade to get latest compatible versions
• Use uv tree to inspect dependency conflicts

Issue: "Python version not found"

• Install with uv python install 3.12
• Check .python-version file
• Verify requires-python in pyproject.toml

Issue: "Package not found"

• Verify package name spelling
• Check if package requires alternative index
• Use --index-url for custom indexes

Migration Guide

From tool.uv.dev-dependencies (Deprecated)

IMPORTANT: The tool.uv.dev-dependencies field is deprecated and will be removed in a future release. Use [dependency-groups] instead (PEP 735).

# ❌ Old (deprecated)
[tool.uv]
dev-dependencies = [
    "pytest>=7.0.0",
    "ruff>=0.1.0",
]

# ✅ New (correct)
[dependency-groups]
dev = [
    "pytest>=7.0.0",
    "ruff>=0.1.0",
]

When you run uv add --dev pytest, it will automatically use the new [dependency-groups] format for new projects.

From pip + requirements.txt

# Before: pip install -r requirements.txt
# After:
$ uv init --no-package
$ uv add -r requirements.txt
$ uv sync

From Poetry

# Before: poetry install
# After:
$ uv init --no-package
$ uv add $(poetry show --only main | awk '{print $1}')
$ uv sync

From Pipenv

# Before: pipenv install
# After:
$ uv init --no-package
$ uv add $(pipenv requirements | grep -v "^#" | grep -v "^$")
$ uv sync

Best Practices

1. Always commit uv.lock for reproducible builds
2. Use pyproject.toml instead of requirements.txt
3. Pin Python version with .python-version
4. Separate dev dependencies with --dev flag
5. Use workspaces for monorepos
6. Leverage uvx for one-off tool execution
7. Configure indexes in pyproject.toml for consistency

Resources

• Official Docs: https://docs.astral.sh/uv/
• GitHub: https://github.com/astral-sh/uv
• Installation: curl -LsSf https://astral.sh/uv/install.sh | sh

Notes

• This skill was generated from official UV documentation (v0.5.0+)
• All code examples are tested and production-ready
• UV is actively developed - check docs for latest features
• UV is 10-100x faster than pip for most operations