Welcome to IceCream

IceCream: Never use print() to debug again.

icecream, or ic for short, is a Python library that makes print debugging a little sweeter. It's designed to be a more informative and less intrusive alternative to the standard print() function, providing out-of-the-box context for your debugging output.

If you've ever found yourself writing code like print(f'my_var: {my_var}') just to see a variable's value, ic() is for you.

Key Features

• Prints variable names and values: Automatically prints the variable or expression passed to it, along with its value. No more manual string formatting.
• Minimal typing: ic(my_var) is much faster to type than print("my_var", my_var).
• Pretty-printed output: Data structures like lists and dictionaries are beautifully formatted for easy reading.
• Syntax highlighting: Output is colorized to improve readability.
• Context-aware: Can optionally print the filename, line number, and parent function where ic() was called.
• Easy to integrate: ic() returns its argument, so you can sprinkle it throughout your code without refactoring.

A Quick Taste

Here's a simple comparison to see the magic of icecream.

Before (with print()):

import math

def my_function(n):
    result = math.sqrt(n)
    print(f'n: {n}')
    print(f'result: {result}')
    return result

my_function(144)

After (with ic()):

import math
from icecream import ic

def my_function(n):
    result = math.sqrt(n)
    ic(n)
    ic(result)
    return result

my_function(144)

Output:

ic| n: 144
ic| result: 12.0

Ready to get started? Check out the Quick Start guide or dive deep into the Usage Guide.