Skip to main content

How to Resolve Python Django 4.x Error "ImportError" for "url", "force_text", "smart_text", "ugettext_lazy"

With the release of Django 4.0 and subsequent versions, several utility functions and classes were either removed or had their import paths changed as part of ongoing API improvements and Python 3 modernization. This can lead to ImportError exceptions when older codebases or third-party Django packages try to import these names from their deprecated locations. Common errors include cannot import name 'url' from 'django.conf.urls', cannot import name 'force_text' or 'smart_text' from 'django.utils.encoding', and cannot import name 'ugettext_lazy' from 'django.utils.translation'.

This guide explains these changes and provides clear solutions, primarily focusing on updating import statements and managing Django versions.

Understanding the Errors: Django 4.x API Changes​

Django, like any actively developed framework, undergoes API changes over major versions to improve consistency, remove outdated patterns, and align with Python's evolution. Django 4.0 introduced several such changes, deprecating or removing functions that were common in Django 3.x and earlier. If your project or a third-party package it uses still relies on these old names/paths, ImportError exceptions will occur when running with Django 4.0 or newer.

Error: cannot import name 'url' from 'django.conf.urls'​

  • Error Message: ImportError: cannot import name 'url' from 'django.conf.urls'
  • Cause: The django.conf.urls.url() function, which was used for defining URL patterns with regular expressions, was deprecated in Django 3.1 and completely removed in Django 4.0.

Solution 1: Use re_path() (for regex paths)​

The direct replacement for url() when you need to use regular expressions in your URL patterns is django.urls.re_path().

# urls.py (Old, Django < 4.0)
# from django.conf.urls import url # ⛔️
# from . import views
# urlpatterns = [
#     url(r'^articles/(?P<year>[0-9]{4})/$', views.year_archive),
# ]

# ✅ urls.py (New, Django 4.0+)
from django.urls import re_path # ✅ Import re_path
from . import views

urlpatterns = [
    re_path(r'^articles/(?P<year>[0-9]{4})/$', views.year_archive, name='articles_by_year'),
    re_path(r'^$', views.home, name='home'), # Example for root
    # ... other re_path patterns ...
]

Solution 2: Use path() (for simple paths)​

For simpler URL patterns that don't require regular expressions, Django encourages using django.urls.path(), which uses angle bracket converters for path parameters.

# urls.py (New, Django 4.0+)
from django.urls import path, include # ✅ Import path
from . import views

urlpatterns = [
    path('articles/<int:year>/', views.year_archive_path, name='articles_by_year_path'),
    path('product/<slug:product_slug>/', views.product_detail, name='product_detail'),
    path('blog/', include('blog.urls')), # Example include
    path('', views.home, name='home_path'),
]

Workaround: Alias re_path as url (Quick Fix)​

If you have a large codebase with many url() imports and need a quick (but less ideal) fix, you can alias re_path as url:

# urls.py (Quick Workaround)
# from django.conf.urls import url      # ⛔️ Remove this old import
from django.urls import re_path as url  # ✅ Alias re_path to url

from . import views
urlpatterns = [
    url(r'^old_style_regex_path/$', views.some_view), # Now 'url' refers to re_path
]
note

This allows your existing url(...) calls to function, but the long-term solution is to refactor to re_path() or path().

Error: cannot import name 'force_text' or 'smart_text' from 'django.utils.encoding'​

  • Error Message: ImportError: cannot import name 'force_text' from 'django.utils.encoding' (or smart_text)
  • Cause: force_text and smart_text were aliases for force_str and smart_str respectively. These aliases were deprecated in Django 3.0 and removed in Django 4.0. The functions ensure a string is properly encoded/decoded, primarily for consistent string handling.

Solution 1: Update Imports to force_str and smart_str​

If this error occurs in your own code, change the import statements:

# Old code (Django < 4.0)
# from django.utils.encoding import force_text, smart_text # ⛔️

# ✅ New code (Django 4.0+)
from django.utils.encoding import force_str, smart_str # ✅

# Example usage:
byte_string = b"H\xc3\xa9llo"
python_string = "Héllo"

decoded_string = force_str(byte_string, encoding='utf-8')
processed_string = smart_str(python_string)

print(f"force_str result: {decoded_string}")
print(f"smart_str result: {processed_string}")

Solution 2: Upgrade Dependent Packages​

This error often occurs because a third-party Django package (e.g., graphene-django, djangorestframework-simplejwt, django-debug-toolbar) is outdated and still uses the old import paths. Upgrading these packages is usually the best fix!

# Replace <package_name> with the actual package from your traceback
pip install --upgrade <package_name>

Example:

pip install --upgrade graphene-django
pip install --upgrade djangorestframework-simplejwt

Workaround: Monkey-Patching (settings.py)​

If you cannot upgrade the problematic third-party package, you can (as a last resort) add the old names back to django.utils.encoding by pointing them to their new equivalents. Place this at the top of your project's settings.py file, before other Django initializations.

# settings.py (at the very top)
import django.utils.encoding

# Patch for force_text
if not hasattr(django.utils.encoding, 'force_text'):
    django.utils.encoding.force_text = django.utils.encoding.force_str
    print("Applied patch for django.utils.encoding.force_text")

# Patch for smart_text
if not hasattr(django.utils.encoding, 'smart_text'):
    django.utils.encoding.smart_text = django.utils.encoding.smart_str
    print("Applied patch for django.utils.encoding.smart_text")

# ... rest of your settings.py ...

This is a workaround and should be removed once the underlying library is updated.

Error: cannot import name 'ugettext_lazy' from 'django.utils.translation'​

  • Error Message: ImportError: cannot import name 'ugettext_lazy' from 'django.utils.translation'
  • Cause: ugettext_lazy (and ugettext) were aliases for gettext_lazy (and gettext). These u prefixed aliases, primarily for Python 2 compatibility, were deprecated in Django 3.0 and removed in Django 4.0.

Solution 1: Update Imports to gettext_lazy​

The standard way to handle lazy translations in Django is now gettext_lazy.

# models.py or forms.py (Old, Django < 4.0)
# from django.utils.translation import ugettext_lazy as _ # ⛔️

# ✅ models.py or forms.py (New, Django 4.0+)
from django.utils.translation import gettext_lazy as _ # ✅
from django.db import models

class MyModel(models.Model):
    name = models.CharField(max_length=100, help_text=_("This is the help text for the name field."))
    description = models.TextField(verbose_name=_("Detailed Description"))

Replace all occurrences of ugettext_lazy (and ugettext) with gettext_lazy (and gettext). The common alias _ remains the same.

General Solution for All Errors: Downgrade Django (Workaround)​

If you are unable to update your code or third-party packages immediately, you can downgrade Django to the latest version before 4.0 (e.g., Django 3.2.x, the last LTS before 4.0). This allows the old import paths to work.

# This will install the latest 3.2.x version or similar < 4.0
pip install "Django<4.0" --force-reinstall

# Or specify an exact version if needed
# pip install Django==3.2.18 --force-reinstall

Add to requirements.txt:

Django<4.0
# Or Django==3.2.18
note

Downgrading prevents you from using new Django 4.x features and security updates. It should be a temporary measure.

General Troubleshooting​

Check Django Version (pip show django)​

Verify the version of Django active in your environment:

pip show django
# Or: python -m pip show django

This helps confirm if you're running Django 4.0+ or an older version.

Upgrade All Packages​

In complex environments, a cascade of outdated packages might cause these issues. Upgrading all packages could help but also risks breaking other things. Use cautiously and preferably in a virtual environment.

# macOS or Linux (example, adapt for your shell)
# pip install -U `pip list --outdated --format=freeze | cut -d = -f 1`
# Windows (example)
# for /F "delims==" %i in ('pip list --outdated --format=freeze') do pip install -U %i
# Or use a Python script (see previous articles)

A safer bet is often to identify the key packages causing the conflict (e.g., Django itself, DRF, Graphene-Django) and upgrade them specifically.

Use Virtual Environments​

Always develop Django projects within isolated virtual environments (venv or Conda) to manage dependencies cleanly and avoid conflicts.

Conclusion​

ImportError exceptions related to url, force_text, smart_text, or ugettext_lazy in Django usually indicate that your project or one of its dependencies is using an API pattern that was deprecated and subsequently removed in Django 4.0.

The best course of action is usually:

  1. Update your own code's import statements to use the new paths/names (e.g., re_path, force_str, gettext_lazy).
  2. Upgrade third-party Django packages that are causing these import errors.
  3. As a temporary workaround, consider pinning Django to a version <4.0 (e.g., Django==3.2.18) or applying monkey-patches carefully.

Prioritizing code and dependency updates will ensure your Django projects remain compatible with modern versions of the framework.

Table of Contents