---
id: aggdraw
version: "1.4.1"
license: Python (MIT style)
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# aggdraw — High quality drawing interface for PIL.

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 187.4K/mo

## What it is and what it does

aggdraw is a Python extension that wraps the Anti-Grain Geometry (AGG) library to provide high-quality 2D drawing. It implements the WCK 2D drawing interface, enabling anti-aliased and alpha-composited graphics rendering. The package bundles AGG sources and compiles them as a C++ extension, so installation requires a C++ compiler on most platforms, though pre-built wheels are available for common Python versions and architectures.

The library is designed for developers who need superior drawing quality—particularly for anti-aliased lines, shapes, and compositing operations. It maintains compatibility with standard image workflows, making it suitable for graphics-intensive applications. The project is actively maintained and supports modern Python versions (3.11+), with experimental free-threading support available.

Use it for:

- Render anti-aliased vector graphics and shapes for scientific visualization or data plots.
- Create high-quality composite graphics with alpha blending for image processing pipelines.
- Draw text and glyphs with TrueType font support (when freetype2 is available) for label and annotation tasks.
- Build custom image generation tools that require superior rendering quality.
- Implement 2D graphics in geospatial or remote-sensing applications (package is maintained by pytroll community).

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

aggdraw provides high-quality 2D drawing for images using the Anti-Grain Geometry library, with anti-aliasing and alpha compositing support.

Yes, if you need anti-aliased 2D drawing and have a C++ compiler available. Pre-built wheels eliminate compilation friction on most platforms. Active maintenance, no known vulnerabilities, and permissive licensing make it a safe choice. Not necessary if basic drawing suffices or if you cannot compile C extensions.

## Install

pip install aggdraw
uv add aggdraw
poetry add aggdraw

## Installing aggdraw

Before you install: Medium install friction due to C++ compilation requirement. Pre-built wheels are available for Python 3.11–3.14 across macOS, Linux, and Windows architectures, reducing build burden on most platforms. Active maintenance with recent releases.

License in practice: Licensed under a permissive MIT-style license. No restrictions on commercial or proprietary use; you may modify and distribute freely provided copyright notices are retained.

Quickstart:

pip install aggdraw

import aggdraw

draw = aggdraw.Draw(image)
draw.line((x1, y1, x2, y2), fill_color)
image.save('output.png')

Requires a C++ compiler and Python ≥3.11. Optional: freetype2 library for TrueType/OpenType font support (requires freetype-config on PATH during build).

Verify before relying:

- Whether free-threading support (mentioned in description) is production-ready or still experimental given the 'Unstable' classifier.
- Current state of freetype2 integration and whether it is commonly needed for typical use cases.
- Specific image format compatibility and whether aggdraw works with formats beyond those supported by the underlying image library.

## Package facts

- License: Python (MIT style) (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: medium
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 187.4K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

image drawing anti-aliasing, 2D graphics rendering Python, high-quality image drawing, anti-grain geometry library, alpha compositing graphics, WCK drawing interface, vector graphics rendering, image-rendering, vector-graphics, agg-library

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/aggdraw) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/aggdraw/)