azure-identity
Microsoft Azure Identity Library for Python
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. Azure Identity is production-stable, actively maintained, and essential for any Python application using Azure services. It has no known vulnerabilities, low install friction, and is ranked in the top 1000 packages by download volume. The only caveat is that license treatment is unclear in the metadata, though this does not appear to block adoption of the library itself.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires Python 3.9 or later.
- For async credentials, an async transport like aiohttp must be installed separately.
- Low friction install with five runtime dependencies.
License · maintenance · safety
(unclear)
last release 2026-03-13 (154 days) · last repo commit 2026-08-14 · 5,587 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 247,165,055 downloads/mo, #160 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install azure-identity
from azure.identity import DefaultAzureCredential
from azure.keyvault.secrets import SecretClient
credential = DefaultAzureCredential()
client = SecretClient("https://my-vault.vault.azure.net", credential)- Whether the library's continuation policy (as of version 1.14.0) for DefaultAzureCredential is documented in the current release 1.25.3
- Support status for async credentials and whether aiohttp or another async transport is required for async use cases
What it is and what it does
Azure Identity is the authentication layer for the Azure SDK in Python. It provides credential classes—most commonly DefaultAzureCredential and ChainedTokenCredential—that handle the complexity of obtaining Microsoft Entra access tokens. Developers use these credentials when constructing Azure SDK clients (like SecretClient from azure-keyvault-secrets) to authenticate requests to Azure services without managing tokens directly.
The library supports multiple authentication flows: local development via developer tools (Azure CLI, Visual Studio Code), managed identities in Azure-hosted environments (App Service, Functions, AKS, VMs, etc.), and custom chains of credentials for specialized scenarios. It abstracts away OAuth complexity and cloud configuration, allowing developers to write authentication code once and deploy it across Azure Public Cloud, Government, or private clouds by setting an authority URL or environment variable.
Use it for
- Authenticate a Python application to Azure services (Key Vault, Storage, etc.) during local development using developer credentials
- Deploy a service in Azure App Service or Functions with automatic managed identity authentication via DefaultAzureCredential
- Build a custom authentication chain for applications that need to try multiple credential sources in a specific order
- Authenticate async workloads in Kubernetes or other containerized environments using managed identity
- Configure multi-cloud deployments that authenticate to Azure Government or private clouds by setting authority hosts
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
Azure Identity is production-stable, actively maintained, and essential for any Python application using Azure services. It has no known vulnerabilities, low install friction, and is ranked in the top 1000 packages by download volume. The only caveat is that license treatment is unclear in the metadata, though this does not appear to block adoption of the library itself.
Install
azure-identity on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction install with five runtime dependencies. Active maintenance with recent releases; last commit 2026-08-14 and production-stable status. Supports current Python versions (3.9+).
Requires Python 3.9 or later. For async credentials, an async transport like aiohttp must be installed separately.
Quickstart
pip install azure-identity
from azure.identity import DefaultAzureCredential
from azure.keyvault.secrets import SecretClient
credential = DefaultAzureCredential()
client = SecretClient("https://my-vault.vault.azure.net", credential)Verify before relying
- Whether the library's continuation policy (as of version 1.14.0) for DefaultAzureCredential is documented in the current release 1.25.3
- Support status for async credentials and whether aiohttp or another async transport is required for async use cases
Package facts
| License | Not declared unclear |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.9 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 5 packagesazure-corecryptographymsalmsal-extensionstyping-extensions |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 154 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 247,165,055 / month, #160 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Development Status :: 5 - Production/StableProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Programming Language :: Python :: 3.14Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9 |
Evidence: azure_identity-1.25.3-py3-none-any.whl
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See also frontegg · redis-entraid · azure-identity-broker · akeyless-cloud-id · identity · wandelbots_api_client · PowerPlatform-Dataverse-Client · azure-keyvault-secrets · msal · fastapi-azure-auth