Importing Packages

Basic Import Syntax

The import keyword, followed by a package's import path in quotes, makes that package's exported identifiers available, accessed with a dot after the package's name (usually the last element of its path).

Example: Basic Import Syntax

package main

import "fmt"

func main() {
	fmt.Println("fmt package imported and used")
}

Grouped Imports

When importing several packages, Go convention groups them in one parenthesized block rather than repeating the import keyword on each line, which gofmt keeps neatly sorted.

Note: Run 'go fmt' to automatically keep grouped imports sorted alphabetically.

Example: Grouped Imports

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	"strings"
)

func main() {
	fmt.Println(strings.ToUpper("go imports"))
}

Aliasing an Import

An import can be given a different local name by placing an identifier before its path, useful when two imported packages would otherwise share the same default name.

Example: Aliasing an Import

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	str "strings"
)

func main() {
	fmt.Println(str.ToLower("ALIASED IMPORT"))
}

Blank Imports for Side Effects

Prefixing an import path with _ imports it purely for its side effects (like an init() function registering something), without making its identifiers usable or triggering an 'unused import' error.

Example: Blank Imports for Side Effects

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	_ "strings" // blank import: runs init side effects only, not actually needed here
)

func main() {
	fmt.Println("blank imports run side effects without exposing identifiers")
}