How to clear Python shell?

Python provides a python shell which is used to execute a single Python command and display the result. It is also called REPL. REPL stands for Read, Evaluate, Print and Loop. The command is read, then evaluated, afterwards the result is printed and looped back to read the next command.

Sometimes after executing so many commands and getting haphazard output or having executed some unnecessary commands, we may need to clear the python shell. If the shell is not cleared, we will need to scroll the screen too many times which is inefficient. Thus, it is required to clear the python shell.

The commands used to clear the terminal or Python shell are cls and clear.

Basic Clear Commands

Windows

import os
os.system('cls')

Linux/Mac

import os
os.system('clear')

Cross-Platform Clear Function

Let us create a function that works on both Windows and Unix-based systems. The following example shows output for a few seconds and then clears the shell ?

from os import system, name
from time import sleep

def clear():
    # for windows
    if name == 'nt':
        _ = system('cls')
    # for mac and linux
    else:
        _ = system('clear')

print("Hi Learner!!")
sleep(5)
clear()

The output of the above code is ?

Hi Learner!!
(screen clears after 5 seconds)

How It Works

• Import os and sleep

• Define a function where the commands to clear the shell are specified, cls for windows and clear for linux

• Print some output

• Let the screen sleep for few seconds

• Call the function to clear the screen

Alternative Methods

Using subprocess

import subprocess
import os

def clear_screen():
    if os.name == 'nt':  # Windows
        subprocess.run('cls', shell=True)
    else:  # Linux/Mac
        subprocess.run('clear', shell=True)

clear_screen()

Using ANSI Escape Codes

def clear_with_ansi():
    print('\033[2J\033[H', end='')

clear_with_ansi()

Conclusion

Use os.system('cls') for Windows and os.system('clear') for Linux/Mac to clear the Python shell. Create a cross-platform function using os.name to detect the operating system and apply the appropriate clear command.