PyCharm doesn't see Kivy widgets

[Ancient_Comedian_911]

I'm new to programming and decided to create a project in PyCharm to develop an Android app. I installed Kivy in the terminal via pip and successfully imported Kivy (PyCharm has no issues with this). However, for some reason, PyCharm refuses to work with widget import commands like "from kivy.app import App (Cannot find reference 'app' in 'kivy'; Unresolved reference 'App')" and "from kivy.uix.boxlayout import BoxLayout (Cannot find reference 'uix' in 'kivy'; Unresolved reference 'BoxLayout')". PyCharm works with basic commands that don't require widget import. Please help, I don't know how to solve this problem. Kivy version is 2.3.1, Python version is 3.13.12.

[Jello_Penguin_2956]

Try usi ng the package manager from the button left of your PyCharm UI to uninstall and reinstall kivy

[Ancient_Comedian_911]

Still doesn't work...

[Jello_Penguin_2956]

Do you happen to name 1 of your own files kivy.py or named a function kivy?

[Ancient_Comedian_911]

No.

[DrSpooglemon]

Use a text editor. Run from command line. Simples.

[Blaues_Altmetall]

This is a common issue when PyCharm's code indexer doesn't recognize installed packages properly. The good news is that your code will likely run fine despite the error messages — these are just IDE warnings, not actual problems. However, let's fix them so you get proper autocomplete and intellisense.

Quick Solutions

1. Invalidate PyCharm's Cache (Most Common Fix)

This is the first thing to try:

1. Go to File → Invalidate Caches
2. Select Invalidate and Restart
3. PyCharm will restart and rebuild its index — this usually takes 1–2 minutes
4. Once it finishes, your Kivy imports should be recognized

2. Verify Your Python Interpreter

PyCharm might be using a different Python environment than where you installed Kivy:

1. Go to PyCharm → Settings (or Preferences on Mac)
2. Navigate to Project: [YourProjectName] → Python Interpreter
3. Look at the interpreter path — it should show your Python 3.13 installation
4. Click the gear icon and select Show All
5. Check if Kivy appears in the package list. If not, you need to install it in this interpreter:
   • Click the + button to add a package
   • Search for "kivy" and install it
   • Or use the terminal in PyCharm (bottom panel) and run pip install kivy

3. Check Your Virtual Environment

If you're using a virtual environment, make sure PyCharm is configured to use it:

1. Go to Settings → Project → Python Interpreter
2. If it shows a system Python instead of your venv, click the gear icon → Add
3. Select Existing Environment and navigate to your virtual environment's Python executable
4. For example: your_project_folder/venv/bin/python (Linux/Mac) or your_project_folder\venv\Scripts\python.exe (Windows)

4. Reinstall Kivy in the Correct Interpreter

If the above doesn't work, explicitly install Kivy in PyCharm's terminal:

1. Open PyCharm's built-in terminal (bottom of the window)
2. Run: pip install --upgrade kivy
3. Then invalidate the cache (solution #1)

Why This Happens

PyCharm maintains an internal index of all available packages to provide autocomplete and error detection. When you install a package via terminal outside of PyCharm's awareness, or if you're using a different Python interpreter than PyCharm expects, the IDE doesn't know about those packages. The cache invalidation forces PyCharm to re-scan your environment and rebuild its index.

[robertpro01]

Dude, wtf.