creosote
Identify unused dependencies and avoid a bloated virtual environment.
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. Creosote solves a real problem—unused dependencies create security and maintenance burden—with low friction (pure Python, six lightweight deps) and active maintenance. It supports multiple dependency formats and integrates well into CI/pre-commit workflows. No known vulnerabilities and permissive MIT license. Install as a standalone tool to keep your project venv clean.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires Python 3.10 or later; you must have an activated virtual environment or site-packages folder path to scan, and a dependency specification file (pyproject.toml, requirements.txt, etc.) that creosote can parse.
- Low install friction with a pure Python wheel and six runtime dependencies.
- The project is actively maintained with a recent release and moderate popularity (top 5000 on PyPI), suggesting stable ongoing support.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — Licensed under MIT (permissive), so you can use and modify creosote freely in both open-source and commercial projects without significant legal constraints.
last release 2026-03-28 (139 days) · last repo commit 2026-07-20 · 380 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 860,726 downloads/mo, #4,874 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
# Install in a separate venv
uv tool install creosote
# Run from your project root
creosote --venv .venv --path src --deps-file pyproject.toml --section project.dependencies
# Or configure in pyproject.toml:
# [tool.creosote]
# venvs = [".venv"]
# paths = ["src"]
# deps-file = "pyproject.toml"
# sections = ["project.dependencies"]- Whether importlib-based dynamic imports can be detected (documentation notes this as a known limitation)
- Performance characteristics when scanning large codebases or complex dependency graphs
- Accuracy of deferred import detection when enabled via --include-deferred flag
What it is and what it does
Creosote is a command-line tool that identifies unused dependencies in your Python project by scanning source code for imports and comparing them against your declared dependencies. It works by parsing Python files for import statements, reading your dependency specification (pyproject.toml, requirements.txt, Poetry, Pipenv, or PDM formats), and determining which declared packages are never actually imported. The tool can also scan Django settings files for INSTALLED_APPS and MIDDLEWARE references.
You run it as a standalone tool (typically via `uv tool install creosote` to avoid polluting your project's venv) and configure it with command-line arguments or a `[tool.creosote]` section in pyproject.toml. It supports multiple venv paths, source directories, and dependency sections, and can optionally scan for deferred imports inside functions and conditional blocks. The output identifies which dependencies are unused so you can remove them, reducing virtual environment bloat and dependency maintenance burden.
Use it for
- Run in CI to catch developers forgetting to remove unused dependencies during refactorings
- Audit a legacy project to identify and remove accumulated unused packages before deployment
- Integrate with pre-commit hooks to prevent unused dependencies from being committed
- Scan Django projects to verify all INSTALLED_APPS and MIDDLEWARE entries are actually used
- Reduce noise from dependency update bots by removing packages that won't actually break anything if dropped
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
Creosote solves a real problem—unused dependencies create security and maintenance burden—with low friction (pure Python, six lightweight deps) and active maintenance. It supports multiple dependency formats and integrates well into CI/pre-commit workflows. No known vulnerabilities and permissive MIT license. Install as a standalone tool to keep your project venv clean.
Install
creosote on PyPI
Before you install
Low install friction with a pure Python wheel and six runtime dependencies. The project is actively maintained with a recent release and moderate popularity (top 5000 on PyPI), suggesting stable ongoing support.
Requires Python 3.10 or later; you must have an activated virtual environment or site-packages folder path to scan, and a dependency specification file (pyproject.toml, requirements.txt, etc.) that creosote can parse.
License in practice
Licensed under MIT (permissive), so you can use and modify creosote freely in both open-source and commercial projects without significant legal constraints.
Quickstart
# Install in a separate venv
uv tool install creosote
# Run from your project root
creosote --venv .venv --path src --deps-file pyproject.toml --section project.dependencies
# Or configure in pyproject.toml:
# [tool.creosote]
# venvs = [".venv"]
# paths = ["src"]
# deps-file = "pyproject.toml"
# sections = ["project.dependencies"]Verify before relying
- Whether importlib-based dynamic imports can be detected (documentation notes this as a known limitation)
- Performance characteristics when scanning large codebases or complex dependency graphs
- Accuracy of deferred import detection when enabled via --include-deferred flag
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.10 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 6 packagesdotty-dictlogurunbconvertnbformatpip-requirements-parsertomli |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 139 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 860,726 / month, #4,874 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | License :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Programming Language :: Python :: 3.14Programming Language :: Python :: Implementation :: CPythonProgramming Language :: Python :: Implementation :: PyPy |
Evidence: creosote-5.2.0-py3-none-any.whl
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