Is it safe to delete Python virtual environment (.venv)?
A Python project's virtual environment: its own Python setup with the packages installed for it.
Usually safe
It can be recreated, but it takes a download, a reinstall or the tool's own command.
~/
- Only when it contains pyvenv.cfg
- Never inside ~/
Library
What it is
A virtual environment is a folder, usually named .venv or venv inside a project, that holds a link to a Python installation plus the packages installed for that project. Tools such as venv, virtualenv, uv and Poetry create them. They're meant to be deleted and created again from the project's requirements, and they stay behind in projects you no longer work on.
If it's removed
The project won't run until its environment is created again and its packages are installed again. Packages that were installed by hand, and aren't listed in the project's requirements or lock file, need to be installed again individually.
How it's removed
Moved to the Trash, where you can restore it.
The free analyzer finds it and explains it. Removing it is Pro, after a review sheet that lists every move and command. It's never checked for you: it waits for your choice.
Sources
Last checked on 26 Sep 2026. Every entry is written and checked by hand; the app and the command-line tool use the same words.