8 Best Python GUI Frameworks

One of the best things about Python is how easy it is to learn. Of all the programming languages ​​on the market, none is as simple as Python. And even though the language is very beginner-friendly, that doesn't mean it's limited in what you can do. As you begin your journey with this language, you will find that creating text-based applications is extremely easy. With two simple lines of code, you can create the popular Hello, World! application. This code looks like this:

 # This program prints Hello, world! 
print('Hello, world!')
 Run the program, and it would print out:
 Hello world!

Although this is very simple, you can create quite complex text-based Python applications. For some, though, text-based apps aren't exactly the best option. This is especially true when these applications will be used by people (clients, consumers, customers) who are not exactly used to using non-GUI applications.

Fortunately, it is possible to create GUI applications with Python. Let's continue with Hello, World! application. Using a GUI framework, you can create the graphical version of Hello, World! equal to:

 # Python tkinter hello world program
 from tkinter import *
 root = Tk
 a = Label(root, text ="Hello World")
 a.pack
 root.mainloop

The important thing to note above is the use of tkinter, which is a library for Python that makes it possible to create user interfaces and complete GUI applications. There are quite a few libraries for the language, and because it is so popular, you should have no problem finding a Python development company to help you create a well-designed GUI application for your company.

Why is it important to choose the right GUI framework for Python?

As you probably expect, you can't make GUI development in Python easier without making use of one of the many GUI frameworks. However, you can't just pick any random Python GUI framework. For example, some frameworks can only be used with specific operating systems. Other Python GUI frameworks are not independent and depend on other GUI frameworks. Additionally, some Python GUI frameworks can be used to create only specific types of GUIs or certain aspects of a GUI.

Because of these issues, it's important to choose the right framework for your Python GUI project.

Fortunately, there are many frameworks to choose from, and some of them support cross-platform applications and can take care of all your GUI needs.

Let's take a look at some of the best options on the market.

Things to Consider When Choosing a Python Graphical User Interface

As mentioned earlier, there are certain things you should consider when choosing a Python GUI framework. These considerations include the following.

1. Operating system specific: If your application is only native to a specific operating system, rather than multiple platforms, you must make sure that the library you choose supports that operating system. If you plan to release your application to multiple platforms, you will want to make sure the library supports all target operating systems.
2. GUI needs: If you know the necessary elements of your GUI (such as clickable buttons, drop-down menus, forms, windows, and other controls), you should know whether the GUI framework is capable of designing and controlling these elements.
3. Support for multiple versions: Although Python 2 has reached the end of its useful life, there are still people and companies using it. When selecting a GUI framework, make sure it is compatible with the version of Python you use.
4. Extension support: You may be using multiple extensions for your application (such as OpenGL or GTK). In this case, make sure the GUI library you choose supports these extensions.
5. Support: Does the framework you selected have a thriving community of Python developers? If not, you might consider a different GUI, as help may be difficult to find and the framework itself may not be around for long.

Now that you understand what a Python GUI framework is and what to consider when making your selection, let's look at some of the best frameworks available.

Top 8 Python GUI Packages and Libraries

Although you can find a large number of popular Python GUI frameworks, not all of them are equally viable options. The eight you see below have all been reviewed and deserve your consideration.

PyQT5

PyQT5 is probably one of the most popular Python GUI frameworks on the market. Built around the PyQT package, this framework makes it easy to create all types of applications for virtually any platform. PyQT5 supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS and Windows.

What makes PyQT5 stand out is its use of QtGUI and QtDesigner, which provide a drag-and-drop means of implementing visual elements for your GUI applications. Even better, if your Python developers prefer to program these elements through code, they have that option too.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• More than 600 classes covering a wide range of needs.
• Supports versions 4.x and 5.x of the Qt framework.
• Supports SQL databases.
• Supports web toolkits for building web applications.
• Supports XML processing.
• It has a huge library of widgets.
• Very flexible when dealing with GUI events.
• Supports a wide range of native platform APIs.

Tkinter

Tkinter comes pre-installed with Python, so there is no need to install anything else to create a GUI application. And like Python itself, Tkinter is very easy to learn and use. For these two reasons, Tkinter is the best GUI library for those new to Python.

Each Tkinter widget includes a different level of customization, meaning some widgets have few customizations while others offer a lot. You'll find widgets for frames, buttons, check buttons, labels, file dialogs, and screens.

Tkinter is an open source library and offers a syntax that is very much in line with the simplicity of Python code.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• Requires zero dependencies.
• Portable, so you can create graphical user interfaces for almost any operating system.
• Python scripts using Tkinter do not need to be modified when migrating from one platform to another.
• Easily themeable.

PyGUI

Just like PyQT5, PyGUI must be installed separately from Python. To install PyGUI, you must use the pip installer (which is included with Python). On the other hand, however, this is a lightweight API, so very little code is required to connect the application to the hosting platform. Although PyQUI does not support mobile applications, it can be used to create GUIs for Linux, macOS, UNIX, and Windows.

PyGUI also supports numerous Python extensions such as OpenGL and GTK. With PyGUI, you can create GUI elements such as buttons, radio buttons, and menus.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• All included, so there is nothing else to install for creating Python GUI applications.
• Works perfectly with Python data types.
• GUI applications are small and lightweight.
• Supports Python 2.x and 3.x

Kivy

Kivy is a framework designed to create more modern-looking interfaces with Python. Kivy is an OpenGL ES2 accelerated framework that supports Android, iOS, Linux, macOS, and Windows. With over 20 widgets in its toolkit, Kivy is a very flexible option for creating more intuitive user interfaces.

Kivy is written in Python and Cython and can even build multi-touch applications that help implement a natural user interface (NUI), which makes it easier for the user to easily learn the different types of interactions required for an application.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• Extensive collection of multi-touch enabled widgets.
• Includes Kv languages ​​to design custom widgets.
• Supports multiple input devices such as mouse, keyboard, TUIO and multi-touch (such as touchpads and phone screens).

wxPython

This Python GUI library simplifies the process of creating native-looking UIs without adding extra overhead to the application. With wxPython, you can create applications for Linux, macOS, UNIX, and Windows.

wxPython includes a large number of widgets, all of which look great on all supported platforms without the need to customize them.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• A large number of widgets included.
• GUIs look like native applications regardless of platform.
• It is a very flexible GUI framework.
• Large and active community.

PySimpleGUI

PySimpleGUI is simple enough to use that even Python beginners can quickly create GUI applications. In fact, PySimpleGUI might be the easiest Python GUI framework on the market. So if you have several new Python developers, this could be the perfect framework for them to get started.

One thing to keep in mind about PySimpleGUI is that it depends on other frameworks, specifically Qt, Tkinter, wxPython, and Remi. Because of this, developers can choose the GUI framework they want to use and will have immediate access to all the elements included in their choice. This also makes PySimpleGUI quite flexible as it is not limited to a single GUI framework.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• Uses the REMote interface library to build GUIs that can be rendered on a web page.
• The names of the GUI elements (as well as their properties and methods) are the same in all four packages.

Libavg

Thanks to hardware acceleration support, Libavg is one of the best Python GUI libraries for developing Python iOS and Android apps for modern touch-based devices.

Libavg includes several important features for mobile phones, such as camera support, animation, text alignment, and GPU effects. Rotation, scaling, blending modes, and cropping are also supported. Clearly, Libavg was developed specifically for mobile applications.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• Various widgets and features.
• Written in C++, so it's fast.
• Includes an advanced screen layout engine.

PyForms

PyForms is the Python implementation of Windows Forms and makes it possible to create interactive UIs for desktop (aka Windows), web, and terminal applications. To develop applications for each mode, you must work with PyForms-GUI, PyForms-Web, or PyForms-Terminal.

PyForms also implements rules and methodologies to help developers write short, clean, readable, and reusable code.

Key Features // Product Highlights

• Uses a minimal API, so UIs can be defined with a few short lines of code.
• Advanced features can be added.
• The code is organized into modules.
• Rapid prototyping.
• Easy application maintenance.

Conclusion

And there you have it, the top eight Python GUI frameworks for you to consider when your business requires creating GUI applications. When your Python developers access one or more of these frameworks, they can create excellent GUI applications with the simplicity of the programming language. And considering some of these frameworks, provide your team with a cross-platform GUI toolkit so there's no limit to what you can do.

Before choosing a Python GUI development tool, keep in mind the type of applications you want to build and your target platforms. You don't want to find yourself in a situation where you selected the wrong framework and have to give up and start all over again. This type of setback can be catastrophic in the agile world of large companies.

Just remember, when using any of these frameworks, it will be essential for your developers to follow Python best practices to avoid problems with building, deploying, or maintaining your applications.

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