Quickstart: App Skeleton (MVC‑ish)

import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import ttk

class App(tk.Tk):
    def __init__(self):
        super().__init__()
        self.title("Tkinter Starter")
        self.geometry("720x420")
        self.columnconfigure(0, weight=1)
        self.rowconfigure(0, weight=1)

        # Frame (view)
        self.main = ttk.Frame(self, padding=12)
        self.main.grid(sticky="nsew")
        self.main.columnconfigure(0, weight=1)

        ttk.Label(self.main, text="Hello, Tkinter!", font=("Segoe UI", 14)).grid(row=0, column=0, sticky="w")
        self.var = tk.StringVar(value="Type here")
        ttk.Entry(self.main, textvariable=self.var).grid(row=1, column=0, sticky="ew", pady=8)
        ttk.Button(self.main, text="Greet", command=self.on_greet).grid(row=2, column=0, sticky="w")

        self.output = tk.Text(self.main, height=8)
        self.output.grid(row=3, column=0, sticky="nsew")
        self.main.rowconfigure(3, weight=1)

    def on_greet(self):
        self.output.insert("end", f"Hello, {self.var.get()}!\\n")
        self.output.see("end")

if __name__ == "__main__":
    App().mainloop()

Layout Patterns: pack vs grid vs place

frm = ttk.Frame(root, padding=8)
frm.grid(sticky="nsew")
root.columnconfigure(0, weight=1)
root.rowconfigure(0, weight=1)

for i in range(3): frm.columnconfigure(i, weight=1)
ttk.Label(frm, text="Name").grid(row=0, column=0, sticky="w")
ttk.Entry(frm).grid(row=0, column=1, columnspan=2, sticky="ew")

toolbar = ttk.Frame(root)
toolbar.pack(side="top", fill="x")
ttk.Button(toolbar, text="Open").pack(side="left")
ttk.Button(toolbar, text="Save").pack(side="left")

Common Widgets: copy‑paste

def only_int(P):
    return P.isdigit() or P == ""
vcmd = (root.register(only_int), "%P")
e = ttk.Entry(root, validate="key", validatecommand=vcmd)
e.pack(fill="x", padx=8, pady=4)

cols = ("name","score")
tv = ttk.Treeview(root, columns=cols, show="headings", height=8)
for c in cols: tv.heading(c, text=c.title()); tv.column(c, width=120, anchor="w")
tv.pack(fill="both", expand=True)
tv.insert("", "end", values=("Ada",99))

cv = tk.Canvas(root, bg="#fff")
cv.pack(fill="both", expand=True)
cv.create_line(10,10,200,100, fill="teal", width=2)
cv.create_rectangle(50,50,150,120, outline="gray")

frame = ttk.Frame(root); frame.pack(fill="both", expand=True)
lb = tk.Listbox(frame)
sb = ttk.Scrollbar(frame, orient="vertical", command=lb.yview)
lb.configure(yscrollcommand=sb.set)
lb.pack(side="left", fill="both", expand=True)
sb.pack(side="right", fill="y")

pb = ttk.Progressbar(root, mode="indeterminate"); pb.pack(fill="x", padx=8)
pb.start(10)        # call pb.stop() to stop

nb = ttk.Notebook(root); nb.pack(fill="both", expand=True)
tab1, tab2 = ttk.Frame(nb), ttk.Frame(nb)
nb.add(tab1, text="Home"); nb.add(tab2, text="Settings")

Events, Shortcuts, and After

def on_return(event):
    print("Enter pressed, value:", entry.get())
entry = ttk.Entry(root); entry.pack()
entry.bind("<Return>", on_return)

# Global shortcuts
root.bind_all("<Control-s>", lambda e: print("Save"))

# Timers / debounce
def tick():
    label.config(text="Tick")
    root.after(500, tick)
label = ttk.Label(root, text=""); label.pack()
root.after(500, tick)

Images (PhotoImage, PIL)

import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import ttk
from PIL import Image, ImageTk

img = Image.open("logo.png").resize((120,120))
photo = ImageTk.PhotoImage(img)
label = ttk.Label(root, image=photo); label.image = photo  # keep reference!
label.pack()

Dialogs & File Pickers

from tkinter import filedialog, messagebox, simpledialog

path = filedialog.askopenfilename(title="Open image", filetypes=[("PNG","*.png"),("All files","*.*")])
if path:
    messagebox.showinfo("Selected", path)

name = simpledialog.askstring("Your Name","Enter your name")

Menus, Toolbars, Statusbar

# Menu bar
menubar = tk.Menu(root)
filem = tk.Menu(menubar, tearoff=0)
filem.add_command(label="Open", command=lambda: ...)
filem.add_separator()
filem.add_command(label="Exit", command=root.quit)
menubar.add_cascade(label="File", menu=filem)
root.config(menu=menubar)

# Statusbar
status = ttk.Label(root, text="Ready", relief="sunken", anchor="w")
status.pack(side="bottom", fill="x")

Threading & Async (Don’t Freeze the UI)

import threading, time

def work():
    time.sleep(2)
    root.after(0, lambda: status.config(text="Done"))

status = ttk.Label(root, text="Working...")
status.pack()
threading.Thread(target=work, daemon=True).start()

import queue, threading, time
q = queue.Queue()

def worker():
    time.sleep(1)
    q.put(("progress", 50))
    time.sleep(1)
    q.put(("done", None))

def poll():
    try:
        while True:
            kind, val = q.get_nowait()
            if kind=="progress": pb["value"]=val
            elif kind=="done": status.config(text="Done")
    except queue.Empty:
        pass
    root.after(100, poll)

pb = ttk.Progressbar(root, mode="determinate", maximum=100); pb.pack(fill="x")
status = ttk.Label(root, text="Working..."); status.pack()
threading.Thread(target=worker, daemon=True).start()
poll()

ttk Theming & Styles

from tkinter import ttk
style = ttk.Style()
style.theme_use("clam")  # or "default", "alt", "vista", "xpnative", platform-dependent
style.configure("TButton", padding=6, font=("Segoe UI", 10))
style.configure("Accent.TButton", background="#10b981", foreground="#fff")
ttk.Button(root, text="OK", style="Accent.TButton").pack(pady=8)

Packaging with PyInstaller (one‑file)

# Install
# pip install pyinstaller

# Build (Windows/macOS/Linux)
pyinstaller --noconfirm --onefile --windowed --name MyApp main.py

# Add data files (images, icons)
# pyinstaller --add-data "assets;assets" ...

# Common gotchas:
# - Use a console build first (omit --windowed) to see errors
# - For PIL images, ensure files are collected and paths resolved via sys._MEIPASS

Troubleshooting & FAQ

FAQ

Should I use pack or grid? Use grid for most complex layouts and pack for simple stacking (toolbars/sidebars). Never mix them in the same container.

How to organize a bigger app? Use classes for screens, a controller for navigation, and separate model/logic modules (MVC‑ish). Keep UI‑thread code UI‑only.

How to theme dark mode? Switch ttk theme if available or apply color styles; consider third‑party themes that support dark palettes.