What does TypeError: 'NoneType' object is not subscriptable mean?

Updated October 2026 · How we answer

What the error means

In Python, subscriptable objects are those that implement __getitem__(), such as lists, dictionaries, strings, and tuples. NoneType (the type of None) does not implement this, so using square brackets on None raises TypeError: 'NoneType' object is not subscriptable.

This typically happens when a function returns None instead of the expected list or dictionary, or when you forget to initialize a variable.

How to fix it

Find the variable that is None. The traceback will show the line with the subscript operation. Check why that variable is None — perhaps a function didn't return a value, or a method like .get() returned None.

Ensure the variable is assigned a proper container before subscripting. If a function might return None, check its return value or provide a default.

• Check that functions return a value (not just print or modify in place).
• Use dict.get(key, default) instead of dict[key] to avoid KeyError, but note that get returns None if no default is given.
• Initialize variables to empty lists or dictionaries instead of None.
• Use if x is not None: before subscripting.
• If using an API that returns None on failure, handle that case explicitly.

Example

Suppose you have: result = some_function() and then print(result[0]). If some_function() returns None (because it has no return statement), you'll get this error. Fix by adding return [] or return [1,2,3] to the function, or by checking result before subscripting.

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