Difference between tkinter and Tkinter

Question

When I answer Tkinter questions I usually try and run the code myself, but sometimes I get this error:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "C:\Python27\pygame2.py", line 1, in <module>
    from tkinter import *
ImportError: No module named tkinter

When I look at the question I see they import tkinter with a lower-case t:

from tkinter import *

I always import Tkinter with a capital T:

from Tkinter import *

Which always works for me. What is the difference between using tkinter and Tkinter?

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_{Please use this question as the canonical to close questions where OP has used the wrong name for the import. There are other reasons why importing the Tkinter library may fail; see also Why does tkinter (or turtle) seem to be missing or broken? Shouldn't it be part of the standard library? , a newly established canonical to gather information about those problems and how to repair the Tkinter installation when necessary. If it isn't clear which case applies, please either offer both duplicate links, or close the question as "needs debugging details".}

Echinoderm

Related: ImportError: No module named 'Tkinter' – Eruct

Answer 1

It's simple.

For python2 it is:

from Tkinter import *

For python3 it is:

from tkinter import *

Here's the way how can you forget about this confusion once and for all:

try:
    from Tkinter import *
except ImportError:
    from tkinter import *

Lemniscus

In both cases, I recommend avoiding global imports. IMO a much better way is import Tkinter as tk or import tkinter as tk. – Unbridle

Here is a link that lists all the tkinter differences: python-future.org/compatible_idioms.html#tkinter – Distraught

It's 2021 and I can import both tkinter and Tkinter from python2.7 cli. This answer makes it seem like this shouldn't work. – Deianira

@Deianira That's kind of weird, sure you are on 2.7? – Rawlinson

@CoolCloud so, after digging in I think this is actually about future, not tkinter! Check this: $ dpkg -S /usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/tkinter/__init__.py python-future: /usr/lib/python2.7/dist-packages/tkinter/__init__.py. So, I think that's why this was working for both variants. – Deianira

Answer 2

Tkinter is Python 2.x's name for the Tkinter library. In Python 3.x however, the name was changed to tkinter. To avoid running into this problem, I usually do this:

from sys import version_info
if version_info.major == 2:
    # We are using Python 2.x
    import Tkinter as tk
elif version_info.major == 3:
    # We are using Python 3.x
    import tkinter as tk

Pantalets

In both cases, I recommend avoiding global imports. IMO a much better way is import Tkinter as tk or import tkinter as tk. – Unbridle

Answer 3

The capitalization of Tkinter and tkinter widget, method and option names is significantly different across the board. In some cases, the names themselves are different. Some features of Tkinter do not exist in tkinter, and vice-versa. But, as already stated, the main difference is that Tkinter is a module in Python 2x while tkinter is a module in Python 3x.

Riehl

Answer 4

It's simply that in Python 3 it's "tkinter" and in Python 2 it's "Tkinter" case in point:

#python 2
from Tkinter import *

#python 3
from tkinter import *

To make program run both on Python 2 and Python 3 you can use:

try:
    import tkinter as tk
except:
    import Tkinter as tk

and then use Tkinter module as tk

Highbred

Answer 5

According to the official documentation, "Tkinter has been renamed to tkinter in Python 3". In Python2 you use import Tkinter or more often from Tkinter import * where "*" means "all". In Python3 you use import tkinter or from tkinter import *.

Exanthema

Answer 6

Additional Difference Between Tkinter and tkinter for Python 2. & Python 3.**

I had a script which had different imports of Python 2.* Tkinter so browsing a but I see that the answer are all scattered. Here a small summary with a safe Script for using both Python versions.

try:
    import Tkinter as tk
    import tkMessageBox as tkm
    import ScrolledText as tkst
    from tkFileDialog import askopenfilename
except ImportError:
    import tkinter as tk
    import tkinter.messagebox as tkm
    import tkinter.scrolledtext as tkst
    from tkinter.filedialog import askopenfilename

List of ModuleNotFoundError Errors (When Running Python 3.)

ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'Tkinter'
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'tkMessageBox'
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'ScrolledText'
ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'tkFileDialog'

Wisnicki

Answer 7

The only difference is the module name that depends on the major version of Python. While in Python 3 it is tkinter, it used to be Tkinter in Python 2. Keep in mind, that other modules related to Tkinter were renamed as well. Here is the full list.

From the docs:

Tkinter has been renamed to tkinter in Python 3.

For backward compatibility, it's a good idea to import tkinter and the related modules you're using like this:

try:
    import tkinter as tk
    from tkinter import messagebox
    from tkinter import filedialog
except ImportError:
    import Tkinter as tk
    import tkMessageBox as messagebox
    import tkFileDialog as filedialog

Euonymus