all Python 3until 3.14Removed from the standard libraryfunction

pkgutil.find_loader()

removed

Found the loader for a module by name. Removed in Python 3.14 — use importlib.util.find_spec().

Syntax

pkgutil.find_loader('json')  # до 3.14

find_loader('json') answered "can this module be imported, and who will load it" without running the import. It was removed once the import system moved to module specs, where the loader is just one field of the spec. To migrate, replace pkgutil.find_loader(name) with importlib.util.find_spec(name); if you need the loader itself, take .loader from the result. For a missing module find_spec returns None just as before, so an is None check stays the same.

Examples

# Python 3.14+
import pkgutil
try:
    pkgutil.find_loader
except AttributeError as e:
    print(type(e).__name__)  # → AttributeError

# Python 3.14+
import importlib.util
spec = importlib.util.find_spec('json')
print(type(spec.loader).__name__)  # → SourceFileLoader
print(importlib.util.find_spec('no_such_module_xyz'))  # → None

import pkgutil
print(type(pkgutil.find_loader('json')).__name__)  # → SourceFileLoader
print(pkgutil.find_loader('no_such_module_xyz'))  # → None

See also

Common errors

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