Install PySpark in Anaconda & Jupyter Notebook

How to install PySpark in Anaconda & Jupyter notebook on Windows or Mac?

1. Download & Install Anaconda Distribution

From https://anaconda.com/ download the Anaconda Individual Edition, for windows you download the .exe file, and for Mac, download the .pkg file.

After finishing the installation of Anaconda distribution now install Java and PySpark. Note that to run PySpark you would need Python and it’s get installed with Anaconda.

2. Install Java

Install openJDK using conda. Open Terminal from Mac or command prompt from Windows and run the below command to install Java.


# Install OpenJDK 11
conda install openjdk

The following Java version will be downloaded and installed. Note that I am using Mac. Depending on OS and version you are using the installation directory would be different.

3. Install PySpark

To install PySpark on Anaconda I will use the conda command. conda is the package manager that the Anaconda distribution is built upon. It is a package manager that is both cross-platform and language agnostic.


# Install PySpark using Conda
conda install pyspark

The following packages will be downloaded and installed on your anaconda environment. Note that based on your PySpark version you may see fewer or more packages.

4. Install FindSpark

In order to run PySpark in Jupyter notebook first, you need to find the PySpark Install, I will be using findspark package to do so. Since this is a third-party package we need to install it before using it.


conda install -c conda-forge findspark

5. Validate PySpark Installation

Now let’s validate the PySpark installation by running pyspark shell. This launches the PySpark shell where you can write PySpark programs interactively.

anaconda pyspark shell — pyspark validation in anaconda

Run the below code to create a DataFrame. Note that SparkSession 'spark' and SparkContext 'sc' is by default available in PySpark shell.


# Create DataFrame in PySpark Shell
data = [("Java", "20000"), ("Python", "100000"), ("Scala", "3000")]
df = spark.createDataFrame(data)
df.show()

You will get the below output.

Now access http://localhost:4041/jobs/ from your favorite web browser to access Spark Web UI to monitor your jobs.

6. Install Jupyter notebook & run PySpark

With the last step, PySpark install is completed in Anaconda and validated the installation by launching PySpark shell and running the sample program now, let’s see how to run a similar PySpark example in Jupyter notebook.

Now open Anaconda Navigator – For windows use the start or by typing Anaconda in search. and for Mac, you can find it from Finder => Applications or from Launchpad. Anaconda Navigator is a UI application where you can control the Anaconda packages, environment e.t.c. If you don’t have Jupyter notebook installed on Anaconda, just install it by selecting Install option.

Post-install, Open Jupyter by selecting Launch button.

This launches Jupyter Notebook in the default web browser.

Now, choose New -> PythonX and input the provided lines. Then, click Run. In Jupyter, each cell functions as a statement, enabling independent execution of each cell when there are no dependencies on preceding cells.

If you get a pyspark error in Jupyter then run the following commands in the notebook cell to find the PySpark.


import findspark
findspark.init()
findspark.find()

Run the below commands to make sure the PySpark is working in Jupyter. You might get a warning for second command “WARN util.NativeCodeLoader: Unable to load native-hadoop library for your platform” warning, ignore that for now.

7. Run PySpark from Spyder IDE

If you don’t have Spyder on Anaconda, just install it by selecting Install option from navigator.

post install, write the below program and run it by pressing F5 or by selecting a run button from the menu.


# Import PySpark
from pyspark.sql import SparkSession

#Create SparkSession
spark = SparkSession.builder.appName('SparkByExamples.com').getOrCreate()

# Data
data = [("Java", "20000"), ("Python", "100000"), ("Scala", "3000")]

# Columns
columns = ["language","users_count"]

# Create DataFrame
df = spark.createDataFrame(data).toDF(*columns)

# Print DataFrame
df.show()

This completes PySpark install in Anaconda, validating PySpark, and running in Jupyter notebook & Spyder IDE.

Happy Learning !!

This Post Has 11 Comments

Naveen (NNK) February 8, 2023

Hi Anthony, I have fixed it now. Thanks for letting me know.
Anthony February 8, 2023

Hi NNK, just to let you know that I completed this amazing tutorial successfully, with no issues at all. Thank you so much.
By the way, your LinkedIn profile is unable to reach perhaps inactive or it was deleted, so please let us know if you have a new profile.

Kind regards.
NNK December 24, 2022

I think you need to set these env variables.
Anonymous December 24, 2022

helpful information.
DJ December 24, 2022

I successfully followed your instructions and installed the programs mentioned. Do I need to set JAVA_HOME, SPARK_HOME and PATH variable? This was the problem I was having with Mac terminal installation method.
NNK December 19, 2022

Seems you installed the latest Python version which is good.
You should not see any issues.
Andre December 19, 2022

But when I verify the Python version :
(pyspark) C:\Users\mikae>python –version
Python 3.9.15
It’s OK
Anonymous November 14, 2022

Thank you so much 👍👍
Anonymous October 10, 2022

Hi ,

Thannk You for the great content. Could you please let us know if we have a different Virtual enviroment in D:/ Folder and I would like to install pyspark in that environment only. What process will I have to follow
NNK June 30, 2022

Hi Sriran, You should just use pyspark (do not include bin or %). If you still get issues, probably your path is not set correctly.
Please set the pyspark variable and try again with pyspark command.
Kondle Sriram Reddy June 30, 2022

Issue in Validate PySpark Installation

(base) C:\Users\SRIRAM>bin % pyspark
‘bin’ is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

(base) C:\Users\SRIRAM>%pyspark
‘%pyspark’ is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.

(base) C:\Users\SRIRAM>