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📋 requirements.txt file for Python

The requirements.txt file is the industry standard for specifying and managing dependencies in Python projects. This guide shows how to create, configure and use requirements.txt to ensure consistency between development and production environments.

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What is a requirements.txt file?

A requirements.txt file lists all external Python packages your project needs, with their specific versions. This allows:
  • You and your team to maintain identical environments
  • New collaborators to reproduce the environment exactly
  • Deploy on Square Cloud to work with the correct dependencies
1

Activate the virtual environment

Working inside a virtual environment is essential to keep your project dependencies isolated from the global Python system. This avoids version conflicts and ensures reproducibility.Activate your virtual environment with one of the commands below, depending on your system:Windows:
venv\Scripts\activate
macOS/Linux:
source venv/bin/activate
2

List project dependencies

Always specify exact versions with == to ensure reproducibility and prevent breakage from incompatible updates in production.
Create a requirements.txt file in the root of your project and list all external packages with their versions:
requirements.txt
discord.py==2.3.0
requests==2.31.0
python-dotenv==1.0.0

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Option B: Generate automatically with pip freeze

After installing dependencies in your virtual environment, you can automatically generate the file. There are two main ways:Option B1: Use pip freeze (includes everything)
pip freeze > requirements.txt
Caution: pip freeze includes all globally installed packages, which may include unnecessary packages for your project. Review the file after generating and remove dependencies that are not strictly necessary.
Option B2: Use pipdeptree or pip freeze with filtering (Recommended)To capture ONLY your project’s dependencies (without auxiliary environment packages), use:
pip freeze --user > requirements.txt
Or, for a cleaner solution, install pipdeptree:
pip install pipdeptree
pipdeptree -p your_project > requirements.txt
Alternative: Use a manual list check or check which package was installed specifically for your project:
pip list | grep -i "your-package"
If you are working in a virtual environment (recommended), pip freeze will work perfectly as the environment will be isolated and contain only your project’s dependencies.
3

Review and validate dependencies

Open the requirements.txt file in your text editor and:
  1. Review the package list
  2. Remove unnecessary dependencies
  3. Update versions as needed
  4. Ensure you are using exact versions (with ==)
4

Install dependencies

To install all listed dependencies:
pip install -r requirements.txt
This command guarantees that all collaborators and production environments use exactly the same versions.
5

Version and share

With requirements.txt ready, you can:
  • Share it with your team
  • Put it in version control (git)
  • Ensure everyone works with the same versions
  • Simplify deployment on Square Cloud
When you host your project on Square Cloud, the requirements.txt file is automatically detected and all dependencies are installed during build.

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💡 Best Practices and Tips:

  • Keep updated: Review and update requirements.txt regularly as you add new dependencies
  • Use exact versions: Always use == instead of >, >= or no version to avoid surprises in production
  • Review pip freeze: If using pip freeze, review the file before committing, as it may include unnecessary auxiliary packages
  • Versioning: Commit requirements.txt to git to track dependency changes
  • Isolated environment: Maintain one virtual environment per project to avoid global conflicts
  • Test locally: Before deploying, test the file with pip install -r requirements.txt in a new environment

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🚀 Next Steps

With your requirements.txt file configured:
  1. Commit to your Git repository.
  2. Host your project on Square Cloud.
  3. Configure automatic deploy via GitHub.
  4. Welcome to professional Python application hosting!
A well-structured requirements.txt file is the foundation for any successful Python application, ensuring your application works perfectly on Square Cloud.