⚡ 10 Python Libraries That Make You More Productive “Forbidden”

Source: Dev.to

Python is famous for productivity—but most developers only scratch the surface.
Beyond the usual requests, pandas, and pytest, there exists a shadow tier of Python tools that feel almost too powerful, too convenient, or too opinionated to be mainstream.

⚠️ “Forbidden” does not mean illegal or malicious.
It means powerful, unconventional, or avoided because they replace traditional workflows.

1️⃣ Typer — CLI Apps at Unfair Speed

Category: Productivity / Automation

Why it feels forbidden: It makes argparse feel obsolete.

pip install typer

import typer

app = typer.Typer()

@app.command()
def hello(name: str):
    print(f"Hello {name}")

app()

Why it’s powerful

• Zero‑boilerplate CLIs
• Type hints become CLI validation
• Auto‑generated help, docs, and shell completion

Use cases

• Dev tooling
• Internal scripts
• SaaS admin CLIs

🧠 If you still write raw argparse, Typer will feel illegal.

2️⃣ Rich — Terminal UI That Feels Like a Web App

Category: Developer Experience

Forbidden because: It makes logs beautiful.

pip install rich

from rich.console import Console

console = Console()
console.print("[bold green]Success![/bold green]")

What makes it insane

• Tables, progress bars, trees
• Syntax highlighting in the terminal
• Tracebacks that actually help

Why teams avoid it

“Our logs shouldn’t look this good.”

They should.

3️⃣ Watchdog — Reactivity for the File System

Category: Automation

Forbidden because: You stop polling forever.

pip install watchdog

What it does

• Watches file changes in real‑time
• Triggers actions instantly

Use cases

• Auto‑rebuild tools
• Static site generators
• Hot‑reload pipelines

If you’ve ever written a while True: sleep(2) loop—this is your redemption.

4️⃣ Pydantic — Data Validation That Rewrites Your Brain

Category: Backend / APIs

Forbidden because: You stop trusting raw dictionaries.

pip install pydantic

from pydantic import BaseModel

class User(BaseModel):
    id: int
    email: str

Why it’s elite

• Runtime validation
• Automatic type coercion
• Self‑documenting models

Used heavily in:

• FastAPI
• Microservices
• Config systems

Once you use it, untyped Python feels unsafe.

5️⃣ Invoke — Task Runners Without YAML Hell

Category: DevOps‑lite

Forbidden because: It replaces Makefiles.

pip install invoke

from invoke import task

@task
def build(c):
    c.run("python setup.py sdist")

Why it matters

• Python instead of Bash
• Cross‑platform
• Readable automation

Perfect for:

• Indie hackers
• Internal tools
• Boilerplates

6️⃣ IceCream — Debugging Without Shame

Category: Debugging

Forbidden because: print() but smarter.

pip install icecream

from icecream import ic

ic(my_variable)

Why devs love it

• Prints variable name and value
• No manual formatting needed
• Can be stripped out later with a single flag

It’s the fastest debug feedback loop in Python.

7️⃣ APScheduler — Cron Jobs Without Cron

Category: Scheduling

Forbidden because: You stop touching crontab.

pip install apscheduler

What it unlocks

• In‑app schedulers
• Interval, date, and cron‑style triggers
• Persistent jobs

Used for:

• Background jobs
• Cleanup tasks
• SaaS maintenance

Cron is powerful—but APScheduler is civilized.

8️⃣ SQLModel — The ORM That Should’ve Existed Earlier

Category: Databases

Forbidden because: It merges Pydantic + SQLAlchemy.

pip install sqlmodel

Why it’s (good) dangerous

• Type‑safe DB models
• Much less boilerplate than raw SQLAlchemy
• Perfect synergy with FastAPI

If Django ORM feels heavy and SQLAlchemy feels verbose—this hits the sweet spot.

9️⃣ Python Fire — Turn Any Code into a CLI

Category: Automation

Forbidden because: It exposes everything instantly.

pip install fire

import fire

def greet(name="World"):
    return f"Hello {name}"

fire.Fire(greet)

Why it’s controversial

• Zero friction – a CLI from any function in seconds
• Minimal control over the interface
• Extremely fast prototyping

⚠️ Best for internal tools, not public‑facing CLIs.

🔟 Autopep8 + Ruff — The Style Dictators

Category: Code Quality

Forbidden because: They enforce opinions.

pip install autopep8 ruff

Why they’re powerful

• Auto‑format code (autopep8)
• Catch bugs early and enforce linting rules (ruff)
• Impose a consistent style across the codebase

Once enabled:

“I don’t argue about style anymore.”

And that’s freedom.

🧠 Final Thoughts: Why These Feel “Forbidden”

These tools:

• Remove traditional barriers
• Replace old workflows
• Make Python feel unfairly productive

They’re avoided not because they’re bad—but because they change habits. Embrace the “forbidden” and watch your productivity soar.

If you:

• Build SaaS
• Ship boilerplates
• Create dev tools
• Value speed over ceremony

👉 You should be using at least 5 of these already.

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