Username and Password inputs with 3 attempts in Python

# Table of Contents

1. Username and password inputs with 3 attempts in Python
2. Display asterisks when user inputs their password in Python
3. Prompt for username and password in Python

# Username and password inputs with 3 attempts in Python

To take username and password input values with 3 attempts:

1. Use a while loop to iterate a maximum of 3 times.
2. Use the input() function to take values for the username and password from the user.
3. If the credentials are correct, break out of the loop.

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attemps = 0

while attemps < 3:
    username = input('Enter your username: ')
    password = input('Enter your password: ')

    if username == 'user123' and password == 'password123':
        print('You have successfully logged in.')
        break
    else:
        print('Incorrect credentials. Check if you have Caps lock on and try again.')
        attemps += 1
        continue

We used a while loop to iterate a maximum of 3 times.

# Hiding the Password while the user types

If you want to hide the password text while the user is typing, use the getpass() method.

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import getpass


attemps = 0

while attemps < 3:
    username = input('Enter your username: ')
    password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')

    if username == 'user123' and password == 'password123':
        print('You have successfully logged in.')
        break
    else:
        print('Incorrect credentials. Check if you have Caps lock on and try again.')
        attemps += 1
        continue

We used the getpass() method from the getpass module to prompt the user for a password without echoing.

The getpass module is available in the standard library, so you don't have to install anything.

If both conditions in the if statement evaluate to True, the if block runs where we break out of the while loop.

The break statement breaks out of the innermost enclosing for or while loop.

If one or both conditions evaluate to False, the else block runs.

The continue statement continues with the next iteration of the loop.

If the user enters incorrect credentials 3 times, the attempts variable gets set to 3 and the condition in the while loop is no longer met.

# Display asterisks when user inputs their password in Python

To display asterisks when a user inputs their password:

1. Install the pwinput() module.
2. Use the pwinput() method to take input from the user and display asterisks.
3. The method takes a mask argument that can be set to an asterisk.

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import pwinput
import getpass

# ✅ Display * (asterisks) when user types their password
password = pwinput.pwinput(prompt='Enter your password: ', mask='*')
print(password)

# ------------------------------------------------

# ✅ Don't display anything when user types their password
password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

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pip install pwinput

# 👇️ or with pip3
pip3 install pwinput

Now you can use the pwinput method to show asterisks while the user enters their password.

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import pwinput

password = pwinput.pwinput(prompt='Enter your password: ', mask='*')
print(password)

The prompt argument is the message that gets displayed and the mask argument is what to mask the user input with.

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import getpass

password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

The getpass() method from the getpass module is used to hide the input while the user types their password.

The getpass module is available in the standard library, so you don't have to install anything.

The argument the method takes is the message that is displayed to the user.

If no message is provided, it defaults to "Password: ".

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import getpass

password = getpass.getpass()
print(password)

We didn't pass a message to the getpass() method so it displayed the default "Password: " message.

You can use the getpass() method to take any other sensitive information from the user without displaying the text, it doesn't have to be a password.

# Prompt for username and password in Python

To prompt the user for username and password:

1. Use the input() function to take non-sensitive input values, such as the username.
2. Use the getpass() method to take sensitive values, such as the password.

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import getpass

# ✅ Prompt for username and password

username = input('Enter your username: ')
print(username)

password = input('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

# ----------------------------------------------------

# ✅ Prompt for username and password with hidden inputs

username = getpass.getpass('Enter your username: ')
print(username)

password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

The first example uses the input() function to take the user's username and password.

The input() function shows the text as the user is typing.

The input function takes an optional prompt argument and writes it to standard output without a trailing newline.

The function then reads the line from the input, converts it to a string and returns the result.

The second example uses the getpass method to take the user's username and password without showing the text as the user is typing.

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import getpass


username = getpass.getpass('Enter your username: ')
print(username)

password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

We used the getpass() method from the getpass module to prompt the user for input without echoing.

The getpass module is available in the standard library, so you don't have to install anything.

The argument the method takes is the message that is displayed to the user.

You can also combine the solutions and use the input() function to take the username and the getpass() method to take the password.

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import getpass


username = input('Enter your username: ')
print(username)

password = getpass.getpass('Enter your password: ')
print(password)

The input() function prompts for the username and shows the text while the user is typing.

The getpass() method prompts for the user's password and hides the text.

# Additional Resources

You can learn more about the related topics by checking out the following tutorials:

• How to Add user input to a Dictionary in Python
• How to take a List from user input in Python
• How to check if User Input is Empty in Python
• Using a For or While Loop to take user input in Python
• Taking user input boolean (True/False) values in Python
• How to Create a Date from user Input in Python
• Taking a file path from user input in Python
• How to take Float user input in Python
• Multiple lines user Input in Python
• Only accept a single character from user Input in Python
• Creating a Tuple or a Set from user Input in Python
• How to Validate user input in Python
• Yes/No question with user input in Python