---
id: authzed
version: "1.25.0"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# authzed — Client library for SpiceDB.

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 940.3K/mo

## What it is and what it does

Authzed is a Python client for SpiceDB, a permissions database and service. It provides gRPC-based access to Authzed's API for storing, computing, and validating application permissions. Developers define a schema modeling their permission requirements, then use this client to apply that schema, insert relationship data, and query permissions efficiently.

The library supports two API versions: v1 for core permission checks and schema management, and materialize/v0 for building materialized permission views in external systems. It handles both secure TLS connections to remote Authzed instances and insecure connections for local development environments, with straightforward initialization via bearer token authentication.

Use it for:

- Check whether a user has permission to perform an action on a resource in a web application
- Build materialized permission views for high-performance lookups in your own database
- Manage and validate complex permission schemas across microservices
- Integrate fine-grained access control into SaaS applications without building custom authorization logic
- Query relationship data to determine group membership or role hierarchies

## Worth the install?

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

Python client library for SpiceDB that enables applications to query and manage permissions through Authzed's gRPC API, supporting both core permission checks and materialized view operations.

Yes. The package is actively maintained, has low install friction, carries a permissive license, and integrates cleanly with standard gRPC tooling. It's the official client for a specialized but well-defined use case (SpiceDB permissions queries). Install it if you're using Authzed/SpiceDB for authorization; skip it if you don't need that specific service.

## Install

pip install authzed
uv add authzed
poetry add authzed

## Installing authzed

Before you install: Low friction installation with a pure-Python wheel. Actively maintained with a release within the last month. Depends on standard gRPC and protobuf libraries.

License in practice: Licensed under Apache-2.0 (permissive), allowing use in commercial and proprietary applications with minimal restrictions.

Quickstart:

pip install authzed

from authzed.api.v1 import Client, CheckPermissionRequest, ObjectReference, SubjectReference

client = Client(
    "grpc.authzed.com:443",
    bearer_token_credentials("t_your_token_here_1234567deadbeef"),
)
resp = client.CheckPermission(CheckPermissionRequest(
    resource=ObjectReference(object_type="blog/post", object_id="1"),
    permission="reader",
    subject=SubjectReference(object=ObjectReference(object_type="blog/user", object_id="emilia")),
))

Requires a valid Authzed API token from the Authzed dashboard to authenticate and connect.

Verify before relying:

- Performance characteristics and latency of permission checks at scale
- Backward compatibility guarantees across minor versions
- How bearer token credentials are provided in the usage example

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 940.3K/month (top 5,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

spicedb python client, permissions management api, authorization service client, grpc permissions checking, access control library, relationship database client, authzed api wrapper, authorization, permissions, grpc-client

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