how to fix “‘int’ object is not callable” in Python

✋ Update: This post was originally published on my blog decodingweb.dev, where you can read the latest version for a 💯 user experience. ~reza

The “TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable” error occurs when you try to call an integer (int object) as if it was a function!

Here’s what the error looks like:

Traceback (most recent call last):
 File "https://dev.to/dwd/sandbox/test.py", line 4, in 
  round = round(result)
          ^^^^^^^^^^^^^
TypeError: 'int' object is not callable

In the simplest terms, this is what happens:

result = 33 / 5
round = round(result)
# ⚠️ The value of round is 7 from now on 
# it's no longer pointing to the round() built-in function

result = 34 / 8

# ⛔ Calling round at this point is equivalent to calling 7()
round = round(result)

Additionally, if you put an extra parenthesis after a function such as round(), you’ll get the same TypeError:

print(round(14.5)())

The reason is round() function returns an int object, and having an extra pair of parenthesis means calling the returned value.

How to fix TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable?

This error happens under various scenarios:

1. Declaring variable with a name that’s also the name of a function
2. Calling a method that’s also the name of a property
3. Calling a method decorated with @property
4. Missing a mathematical operator

Let’s explore each scenario with some examples.

Declaring a variable with a name that’s also the name of a function: A Python function is an object like any other built-in object, such as int, float, dict, list, etc.

All built-in functions are defined in the builtins module and assigned a global name for easier access. For instance, sum() refers to the __builtins__.sum() function.

That said, overriding a function (accidentally or on purpose) with another value is technically possible.

For instance, if you define a variable named sum and initialize it with an integer value, sum will no longer point to the sum class.

# this overrides the sum value to 0
sum = 0
values = [34, 43, 2, 8, 1]

# ⛔ Raises TypeError: 'int' object is not callable
sum = sum(values)

If you run the above code, Python will complain with a “TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable” error because 0 (the new value of sum) isn’t callable.

You have two ways to fix the issue:

1. Rename the variable sum
2. Explicitly access the sum() function from the builtins module (__bultins__.sum)

The second approach isn’t recommended unless you’re developing a module. For instance, if you want to implement an open() function that wraps the built-in open():

# Custom open() function using the built-in open() internally
def open(filename):
     # ...
     __builtins__.open(filename, 'w', opener=opener)
     # ...

In almost every other case, you should always avoid naming your variables as existing functions and methods. But if you’ve done so, renaming the variable would solve the issue.

So the above example could be fixed like this:

sum_of_values = 0
values = [34, 43, 2, 8, 1]

sum_of_values = sum(values)
print(sum_of_values)
# output: 88

Here’s another example with the built-in max() function:

max = 0
items = [1, 45, 54, 165, 0, 2]

# ⛔ Raises "TypeError: 'int' object is not callable"
max = max(items)

And to fix it, we rename the max variable name to max_value:

max_value = 0
items = [1, 45, 54, 165, 0, 2]

max_value = max(items)
print('The biggest number is:', max_value)
# output: The biggest number is: 165

⚠️ Long story short, you should never use a function name (built-in or user-defined) for your variables!

Overriding functions (and calling them later on) is the most common cause of the “TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable” error.

Now, let’s get to the less common mistakes that lead to this error.

Calling a method that’s also the name of a property: When you define a property in a class constructor, any further declarations of the same name (e.g., methods) will be ignored.

class Book:
    def __init__(self, book_code, book_title):
        self.title = book_title
        self.code = book_code

    def code(self):
        return self.code

book = Book(1, 'Head First Python')

# ⛔ Raises "TypeError: 'int' object is not callable"
print(book.code())

In the above example, since we have a property named code, the method code() is ignored. As a result, any reference to the code will return the property code. Obviously, calling code() is like calling 1(), which raises the “TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable” error.

To fix this TypeError, we need to change the method name:

class Book:
    def __init__(self, book_code, book_title):
        self.title = book_title
        self.code = book_code

    def get_code(self):
        return self.code

book = Book(1, 'Head First Python')
print(book.get_code())

Calling a method decorated with @property decorator: The @property decorator turns a method into a “getter” for a read-only attribute of the same name.

class Book:
    def __init__(self, book_code, book_title):
        self._title = book_title
        self._code = book_code

    @property
    def code(self):
        """Get the book code"""
        return self._code

book = Book(1, 'Head First Python')

# ⛔ Raises "TypeError: 'int' object is not callable"
print(book.code())

You need to access the getter method without the parentheses:

book = Book(1, 'Head First Python')

print(book.code)
# Output: 1

Missing a mathematical operator: In algebra, we can remove the multiplication operator to avoid ambiguity in our expressions. For instance, a × b, can be ab, or a × (b + c) can become a(b + c).

But not in Python!

In the above example, if you remove the multiplication operator in a * (b + c), Python’s interpreter would consider it a function call! And since the value of a is numeric (integer in this case), it’ll raise the “TypeError: ‘int’ object is not callable” error.

So if you have something like this in your code:

a = 12
b = 3
c = 6

# ⛔ raises  TypeError: 'int' object is not callable
result = a (b + c)

You’d have to change it like so:

a = 12
b = 3
c = 6

result = a * (b + c)

print(result)
# output: 108

Problem solved!

Alright, I think it does it! I hope this quick guide helped you fix your problem.

Thanks for reading.

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