Updating Python on Mac OS X (version 10.12.6)

[snippsat]

Doing it Right Mac

Alternative pyenv(Simple Python Version Management) also work on Mac.
Example how it look on Linux:

# Update pyenv
mint@mint ~ $ pyenv update
 
# Look at what's available
mint@mint ~ $ pyenv install --list
Available versions:
....
3.6.6
  3.6.6rc1
  3.7.0
  3.7-dev
  3.8-dev
....
 
# Update needed
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install libffi-dev
 
# install
mint@mint ~ $ pyenv install 3.7.0
Installing Python-3.7.0...
Installed Python-3.7.0 to /home/mint/.pyenv/versions/3.7.0
 
# Set python and pip to point to 3.7
mint@mint ~ $ pyenv global 3.7.0
mint@mint ~ $ python -V
Python 3.7.0
mint@mint ~ $ pip -V
pip 10.0.1 from /home/mint/.pyenv/versions/3.7.0/lib/python3.7/site-packages/pip (python 3.7)
mint@mint ~ $ 
# Finish

So now do python and pip always point to what you set global in this case 3.7.