# Installing the AWS ParallelCluster command line interface (CLI)
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AWS ParallelCluster is distributed as a Python package and is installed using the Python `pip` package manager. For instructions on how to install Python packages, see [Installing packages](https://packaging.python.org/tutorials/installing-packages/) in the *Python Packaging User Guide*.

**Ways to install AWS ParallelCluster:**
+ [Install AWS ParallelCluster in a virtual environment (recommended)](install-v3-virtual-environment.md)
+ [Installing AWS ParallelCluster in a non-virtual environment using pip](install-v3-pip.md)
+ [Install AWS ParallelCluster as a standalone application](install-v3-install-standalone.md)

You can find the version number of the most recent CLI on the [releases page on GitHub](https://github.com/aws/aws-parallelcluster/releases). In this guide, the command examples assume that you have installed a version of Python that is later than version 3.6. The `pip` command examples use the `pip3` version.

**Manage both AWS ParallelCluster 2 and AWS ParallelCluster 3**  
If you use both AWS ParallelCluster 2 and AWS ParallelCluster 3 and want to manage the CLIs for both packages, we recommend that you install AWS ParallelCluster 2 and AWS ParallelCluster 3 in different [virtual environments](install-v3-virtual-environment.md). This ensures that you can continue using each version of AWS ParallelCluster and any associated cluster resources.