etcpak
python wrapper for etcpak
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you need to compress image data into GPU texture formats (BC, ETC, ASTC) and are comfortable with the thin wrapper's direct API and byte-order requirements. The library is stable, permissively licensed, and has broad platform coverage. Install friction is moderate due to compiled wheels, but pre-built binaries are available. Maintenance is aging—no active development beyond the latest release—so expect no new features or rapid bug fixes, but the core functionality is mature and unlikely to break.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Image data must be in the exact channel order required by each format (RGBA for DXT functions, BGRA for ETC functions); image dimensions must be multiples of 4 for most formats.
- Medium install friction due to compiled binary wheels; however, pre-built wheels cover most common platforms (x86_64, ARM, PyPy).
- Last release was 2025-08-11, but the project shows aging maintenance signals with no activity beyond that release.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — MIT License permits unrestricted use, modification, and distribution with minimal obligations—suitable for both open-source and commercial projects.
last release 2025-08-11 (368 days) · last repo commit 2025-08-11 · 9 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 149,561 downloads/mo, #10,990 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install etcpak
import etcpak
# compress raw RGBA bytes to BC3
compressed = etcpak.compress_bc3(img_data, width, height)- Whether archspec is actually used at runtime or is a build-time-only dependency
- Performance characteristics compared to other texture compression libraries
- Whether ASTC compression is fully implemented despite being listed in keywords
What it is and what it does
etcpak is a Python wrapper around the wolfpld/etcpak C++ texture compression library. It provides functions to compress raw image data (in RGBA or BGRA format) into GPU-friendly texture compression formats: BC1 and BC3 (DXT variants), ETC1 and ETC2 (Ericsson Texture Compression), and ASTC. The library is designed for real-time or batch texture encoding in graphics pipelines, game engines, and image processing workflows.
The package requires image data as raw bytes in a specific channel order (RGBA for DXT, BGRA for ETC), along with width and height dimensions. It exposes compression functions with optional dithering variants. The wrapper is thin and direct—it maps closely to the underlying C++ API with minimal abstraction. Installation requires Python 3.7 or later and depends on archspec; pre-built wheels are available for most platforms.
Use it for
- Batch-compress game textures to BC3/DXT5 format for real-time rendering on desktop platforms.
- Convert images to ETC2 format for mobile game assets before deployment.
- Generate multiple compressed texture variants from a single source image for format comparison.
- Integrate texture encoding into asset pipelines that require GPU-compatible formats.
- Compress RGBA image data to BC1 with optional dithering for memory-constrained environments.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you need to compress image data into GPU texture formats (BC, ETC, ASTC) and are comfortable with the thin wrapper's direct API and byte-order requirements.
The library is stable, permissively licensed, and has broad platform coverage. Install friction is moderate due to compiled wheels, but pre-built binaries are available. Maintenance is aging—no active development beyond the latest release—so expect no new features or rapid bug fixes, but the core functionality is mature and unlikely to break.
Install
etcpak on PyPI
Before you install
Medium install friction due to compiled binary wheels; however, pre-built wheels cover most common platforms (x86_64, ARM, PyPy). Last release was 2025-08-11, but the project shows aging maintenance signals with no activity beyond that release.
Image data must be in the exact channel order required by each format (RGBA for DXT functions, BGRA for ETC functions); image dimensions must be multiples of 4 for most formats.
License in practice
MIT License permits unrestricted use, modification, and distribution with minimal obligations—suitable for both open-source and commercial projects.
Quickstart
pip install etcpak
import etcpak
# compress raw RGBA bytes to BC3
compressed = etcpak.compress_bc3(img_data, width, height)Verify before relying
- Whether archspec is actually used at runtime or is a build-time-only dependency
- Performance characteristics compared to other texture compression libraries
- Whether ASTC compression is fully implemented despite being listed in keywords
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.7 |
| Install friction | Medium. Platform-specific wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packagearchspec |
| Maintenance | Aging 368 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 149,561 / month, #10,990 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Intended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: MIT LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Programming Language :: Python :: 3.7Programming Language :: Python :: 3.8Programming Language :: Python :: 3.9Topic :: Multimedia :: GraphicsTopic :: Software Development :: Libraries :: Python Modules |
Evidence: etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-manylinux_2_17_aarch64.manylinux2014_aarch64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-manylinux_2_17_ppc64le.manylinux2014_ppc64le.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-manylinux_2_17_s390x.manylinux2014_s390x.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_aarch64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_armv7l.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_i686.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_ppc64le.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_s390x.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-win32.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-cp37-abi3-win_amd64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-pp310-pypy310_pp73-macosx_10_15_x86_64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-pp310-pypy310_pp73-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-pp310-pypy310_pp73-manylinux_2_17_aarch64.manylinux2014_aarch64.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-pp310-pypy310_pp73-manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux2014_i686.whl; etcpak-0.9.15-pp310-pypy310_pp73-manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux2014_x86_64.whl
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