PrettyTable

Common errors

• ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'prettytable'

  cause The 'prettytable' package is not installed in the Python environment where the script is being executed.
  fix pip install prettytable

• AttributeError: 'module' object has no attribute 'PrettyTable'

  cause A local Python file named 'prettytable.py' exists in the same directory as your script, shadowing the installed 'prettytable' library and preventing the correct module from being imported.
  fix Rename your local file from 'prettytable.py' to something else (e.g., 'my_table_script.py') and delete any associated '.pyc' files.

• TypeError: PrettyTable.add_row() takes 2 positional arguments but X were given

  cause The 'add_row()' method expects a single iterable (like a list or tuple) containing all the values for the row as its argument, but individual values are being passed as separate arguments.
  fix Pass a list or tuple of values to 'add_row()', for example: `table.add_row([value1, value2, value3])`.

• AttributeError: 'module' object has no attribute 'set_field_names'

  cause The 'set_field_names()' method was deprecated and removed in PrettyTable version 0.6. Field names are now set directly via the 'field_names' attribute.
  fix Instead of `table.set_field_names(['Header 1', 'Header 2'])`, use `table.field_names = ['Header 1', 'Header 2']`.

Warnings

• breaking PrettyTable 3.17.0 dropped support for Python 3.9. Users on Python 3.9 or older should use an earlier version of PrettyTable (e.g., 3.16.0 or below) or upgrade their Python interpreter.
  Fix: Upgrade Python to 3.10+ or pin `prettytable<3.17.0`.
• deprecated The direct constants `hrule` and `tableStyle` were deprecated in version 3.12.0. Use the corresponding enum values from `HRuleStyle`, `VRuleStyle`, and `TableStyle` instead for clarity and type safety.
  Fix: Replace `prettytable.FRAME` with `HRuleStyle.FRAME` or `TableStyle.DEFAULT` etc. as appropriate.
• gotcha `ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'prettytable'` is a common issue, often caused by installing `prettytable` in a different Python environment (e.g., virtual environment) than the one your IDE or script is using.
  Fix: Ensure `pip install prettytable` is run in the *same* Python environment where your script is executed. Verify the active Python interpreter in your IDE.
• gotcha Prior to 3.15.1, `add_rows()` could raise an `IndexError` if provided with an empty list that was not handled gracefully.
  Fix: Upgrade to `prettytable>=3.15.1` or ensure the list passed to `add_rows()` is not empty before calling.
• gotcha In versions prior to 3.14.0, specifying `sortby` directly at class declaration might not have been correctly applied, requiring it to be set after instantiation or via `get_string()` arguments.
  Fix: Upgrade to `prettytable>=3.14.0` or set `sortby` explicitly on the table instance (`table.sortby = "Column"`) after initialization or when calling `get_string()`.

Install

• pip install prettytable Install latest version

Imports

• PrettyTable

  from prettytable import PrettyTable

• ColorTable

  from prettytable.colortable import ColorTable

  Use ColorTable for ANSI color support.
• TableStyle

  from prettytable import TableStyle

  Also HRuleStyle, VRuleStyle for granular styling enums.

Quickstart

Initialize a PrettyTable, define column headers using `field_names`, add data row by row with `add_row`, and then print the table. Customization for alignment and built-in styles is also demonstrated.

from prettytable import PrettyTable

table = PrettyTable()
table.field_names = ["City name", "Area", "Population"]
table.add_row(["Adelaide", 1295, 1158259])
table.add_row(["Brisbane", 5905, 1857594])
table.add_row(["Sydney", 2058, 4336374])

print(table)

# Example with alignment and style
table.align["City name"] = "l"
table.align["Population"] = "r"

# To use custom styles, import TableStyle
from prettytable import TableStyle
table.set_style(TableStyle.MARKDOWN)
print(table)