What is the best way to create a Python package that has a proper directory structure and a __init__.py file?

Python packages vs modules: Structure and functionality explained

Creating a Python package with a proper directory structure and an init.py file is essential for organizing your code and making it importable as a package. Here is the recommended way to create a Python package:

Create a directory:

Create a directory that will serve as the root of your package. To avoid conflicts, name your package meaningfully and avoid using Python keywords or existing package names.

Add init.py:

Inside the package directory, create an empty file named init.py. Python needs this file to recognize the directory as a package. Using this file, you can also initialize the package, define package-level variables, or import modules.

Add modules:

Create Python modules (.py files) within the package directory. Modules contain code and functionality specific to your package. Organize related functionality into separate modules.

Create Sub-Packages (Optional):

In case your package becomes more extensive, you can create sub-packages by adding nested directories with their own init.py files. This creates a hierarchical structure of packages within packages.

Here is an example of a simple Python package directory structure:

test_package/
    __init__.py
    testmodule1.py
    testmodule2.py
    subpackage1/
            __init__.py
            testsub_module1.py
            testsub_module2.py
      subpackage2/
             __init__.py
             testsub_module3.py

In the above example, we have a package named test_package with two modules (testmodule1.py and testmodule2.py) at the top level. It also has two sub-packages (subpackage1 and subpackage2) with their own init.py files and modules.

To import modules or functions from your package, use the "import" statement, referencing the package name and the module name. For example,

import test_package.testmodule1

from test_package.subpackage1 import testsub_module1