Since uv both downloads Python and creates virtual environments, one Python environment manager does the jobs that pyenv and virtualenv split between them.
1
virtualenv
Python Toolchain
245,549,076
5,067
2026-11-11
Environment Management
Python Toolchain
→
A tool to create isolated Python environments.
2
uv
Package Management
171,109,987
91,923
2026-11-11
Package Managers
Environment Management
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
An extremely fast Python version, package and project manager, written in Rust.
3
pyenv
Python Toolchain
Not on PyPI
45,186
2026-11-11
Environment Management
Python Toolchain
→
Simple Python version management.
4
mise
Python Toolchain
Not on PyPI
36,051
2026-11-11
Environment Management
Python Toolchain
→
A polyglot tool version manager that installs Python versions and reads .python-version files.
uv manages your project with a lockfile, and doubles as a Python package manager. Its uv-build backend packages pure-Python code with reasonable defaults.
5
pip
Package Management
565,277,174
10,314
2026-11-07
Package Managers
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
The package installer for Python.
6
poetry
Package Management
43,626,078
34,326
2026-11-10
Package Managers
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Python dependency management and packaging made easy.
7
hatch
Package Management
3,714,505
7,260
2026-11-08
Package Managers
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Modern, extensible Python project manager for environments, builds, and publishing.
8
pipx
Package Management
4,075,558
13,006
2026-11-10
Package Managers
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Install and run Python applications in isolated environments. Like npx in Node.js.
9
conda
Package Management
Not on PyPI
7,556
2026-11-10
Package Managers
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Cross-platform, Python-agnostic binary package manager.
10
setuptools
Package Management
1,081,349,888
2,871
2026-10-29
Build Backends
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
The historical and still most widely used pyproject build backend.
11
hatchling
Package Management
385,998,430
7,260
2026-11-08
Build Backends
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Modern, extensible build backend from the hatch project.
12
poetry-core
Package Management
85,804,116
482
2026-11-08
Build Backends
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Poetry's PEP 517 build backend, usable without Poetry itself.
13
flit-core
Package Management
18,970,249
2,262
2026-10-27
Build Backends
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
Minimal, dependency-free build backend for pure-Python packages.
14
uv-build
Package Management
18,711,181
91,923
2026-11-11
Build Backends
Package Management
Python Toolchain
→
uv's fast, minimal build backend for pure-Python projects.
Private packages can live on a Python package repository you host, such as pypiserver. devpi serves them too, next to a cache of PyPI.
15
pypiserver
Python Toolchain
490,661
2,078
2026-11-08
Package Repositories
Python Toolchain
→
A minimal PyPI server for uploading and installing packages with pip.
16
devpi
Python Toolchain
133,745
1,250
2026-11-09
Package Repositories
Python Toolchain
→
PyPI server and packaging/testing/release tool.
17
bandersnatch
Python Toolchain
12,128
559
2026-11-11
Package Repositories
Python Toolchain
→
PyPI mirroring tool provided by the Python Packaging Authority (PyPA).
Users without Python installed can still run your app once PyInstaller takes it from Python script to exe. Pyarmor obfuscates the code you ship.
18
pyinstaller
Distribution
10,348,155
13,146
2026-11-08
Executables
Distribution
Python Toolchain
→
Converts Python programs into standalone executables (cross-platform).
19
Nuitka
Distribution
826,318
15,234
2026-11-08
Executables
Distribution
Python Toolchain
→
Compiles Python programs into high-performance standalone executables (cross-platform).
20
pex
Distribution
5,365,791
4,226
2026-11-06
Executables
Distribution
Python Toolchain
→
A tool for building self-contained Python executable environments (PEP 441 zipapps).
21
cx-Freeze
Distribution
150,207
1,564
2026-11-07
Executables
Distribution
Python Toolchain
→
Converts Python scripts into standalone executables and installers for Windows, macOS, and Linux.
22
pyarmor
Distribution
400,385
5,229
2026-10-31
Obfuscation
Distribution
Python Toolchain
→
A tool used to obfuscate Python scripts, bind obfuscated scripts to a fixed machine or expire obfuscated scripts.
Settings that change between deployments belong in the environment, whatever Python configuration library you use. pydantic-settings reads them as typed fields.
23
configparser
Python Toolchain
Stdlib
78,173
2026-11-12
Configuration Files
Python Toolchain
Stdlib
→
(Python standard library) INI file parser.
24
python-dotenv
Python Toolchain
708,819,483
8,920
2026-11-09
Configuration Files
Python Toolchain
→
Reads key-value pairs from a .env file and sets them as environment variables.
25
pydantic-settings
Python Toolchain
467,176,376
1,498
2026-11-06
Configuration Files
Python Toolchain
→
Settings management using Pydantic models with validation, loading from environment variables and secrets files.
26
hydra-core
Python Toolchain
16,545,877
10,742
2026-11-04
Configuration Files
Python Toolchain
→
Hydra is a framework for elegantly configuring complex applications.
27
dynaconf
Python Toolchain
5,274,114
4,337
2026-11-09
Configuration Files
Python Toolchain
→
Dynaconf is a configuration manager with plugins for Django and Flask.