---
id: esp-idf-size
version: "2.3.1"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# esp-idf-size — Firmware size analysis for ESP-IDF

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 1.3M/mo

## What it is and what it does

esp-idf-size is a firmware analysis tool for Espressif IoT devices that examines statically allocated RAM and binary size in compiled firmware images. It helps developers understand memory usage patterns and optimize their applications to fit within flash constraints—a critical concern in resource-constrained embedded systems. The tool is part of the ESP-IDF SDK but is also available as a standalone PyPI package.

As of version 2.0.0, the package uses a new-generation implementation by default, with improved performance and additional features. It depends on pyyaml for configuration, rich for terminal output formatting, rich_click for CLI handling, and esp-pylib for Espressif-specific utilities. The package supports Python 3.7 through 3.14 and runs on macOS, Windows, and POSIX systems.

Use it for:

- Analyze compiled firmware binaries to identify which functions and data structures consume the most memory.
- Verify that firmware size stays within device flash memory limits after code changes or dependency updates.
- Profile static RAM allocation to optimize memory layout for resource-constrained IoT applications.
- Generate size reports in multiple formats (including JSON) for integration into CI/CD pipelines.
- Compare firmware size across different build configurations or compiler optimization levels.

## Worth the install?

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

Analyzes statically allocated RAM and binary size of ESP-IDF firmware images for Espressif devices, helping developers optimize firmware to fit within flash memory constraints.

Yes, if you develop with ESP-IDF. The tool is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, and low install friction. It directly addresses a core IoT development problem—firmware size optimization. The recent 2.3.1 release and active maintenance signal reliability. Install it if you need to analyze or optimize Espressif device firmware; skip it if you don't work with ESP-IDF.

## Install

pip install esp-idf-size
uv add esp-idf-size
poetry add esp-idf-size

## Installing esp-idf-size

Before you install: Low install friction with pure Python distribution and minimal dependencies. Actively maintained with a release 1 day old, supporting Python 3.7 through 3.14.

License in practice: Apache-2.0 is permissive; you can use this in commercial and proprietary projects with minimal restriction beyond retaining license notices.

Quickstart:

pip install esp-idf-size

from esp_idf_size import analyze

# Analyze a firmware binary
result = analyze('path/to/firmware.elf')

Requires an ESP-IDF-built firmware binary (.elf file) to analyze; the tool itself does not generate binaries.

Verify before relying:

- Whether the package can be used standalone or requires an active ESP-IDF SDK installation.
- What output formats are produced and how they differ between versions.
- Whether esp-pylib dependency brings additional system requirements.
- Specific device models supported beyond the Espressif ecosystem.

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 1.3M/month (top 5,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

ESP-IDF firmware size analysis, embedded binary size optimization, firmware footprint analyzer, IoT device memory profiling, static RAM allocation tool, Espressif binary size report, firmware optimization, embedded-systems, esp-idf, firmware-analysis

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/esp-idf-size) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/esp-idf-size/)