flatdict
Python module for interacting with nested dicts as a single level dict with delimited keys.
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. This is a stable, well-maintained utility with zero dependencies, no known vulnerabilities, and a permissive license. Install it if you regularly work with nested dicts and need a lightweight, transparent way to flatten them. The low friction and broad Python version support make it a safe, practical choice.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Low friction: pure Python wheel with no runtime dependencies.
- Active maintenance with a recent release (2026-02-15) and a commit history through 2026-06-12.
- Supports Python 3.10 through 3.14 and PyPy.
License · maintenance · safety
BSD-3-Clause (permissive) — BSD-3-Clause (permissive): you can use, modify, and distribute this package freely in proprietary or open-source projects with minimal restrictions, provided you include the license notice.
last release 2026-02-15 (180 days) · last repo commit 2026-06-12 · 116 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 1,527,366 downloads/mo, #3,811 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install flatdict
import flatdict
value = flatdict.FlatDict({'foo': {'bar': 'baz'}})
print(value['foo:bar']) # 'baz'
print(value['foo']['bar']) # 'baz'What it is and what it does
FlatDict provides two dict subclasses—FlatDict and FlatterDict—that present nested dictionaries as a single flat level while preserving access to the original structure. When you wrap a nested dict, keys are automatically flattened using a delimiter (colon by default), so a path like `{'foo': {'bar': 'baz'}}` becomes accessible as `{'foo:bar': 'baz'}`. You can read and write using either the composite key or the nested path interchangeably.
FlatterDict extends this to sequences: lists and tuples are also flattened by converting indices to keys, so `{'list': ['a', 'b', 'c']}` becomes `{'list:0': 'a', 'list:1': 'b', 'list:2': 'c'}`. This is useful when you need to work with deeply nested or mixed structures as a flat key-value store—common in configuration handling, data transformation, or API response normalization.
Use it for
- Normalize deeply nested JSON or config objects into a flat key-value store for easier iteration or lookup.
- Convert API responses with nested structures into a single-level dict for database storage or serialization.
- Flatten configuration hierarchies to pass as environment variables or command-line arguments.
- Transform nested data structures into a format suitable for CSV export or tabular processing.
- Simplify access patterns in code that needs to work with both flat and nested representations simultaneously.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
This is a stable, well-maintained utility with zero dependencies, no known vulnerabilities, and a permissive license. Install it if you regularly work with nested dicts and need a lightweight, transparent way to flatten them. The low friction and broad Python version support make it a safe, practical choice.
Install
flatdict on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction: pure Python wheel with no runtime dependencies. Active maintenance with a recent release (2026-02-15) and a commit history through 2026-06-12. Supports Python 3.10 through 3.14 and PyPy.
License in practice
BSD-3-Clause (permissive): you can use, modify, and distribute this package freely in proprietary or open-source projects with minimal restrictions, provided you include the license notice.
Quickstart
pip install flatdict
import flatdict
value = flatdict.FlatDict({'foo': {'bar': 'baz'}})
print(value['foo:bar']) # 'baz'
print(value['foo']['bar']) # 'baz'Package facts
| License | BSD-3-Clause permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.10 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | None |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 180 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 1,527,366 / month, #3,811 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/StableIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: BSD LicenseOperating System :: POSIXProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming 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 :: PyPyTopic :: Software Development :: Libraries |
Evidence: flatdict-4.1.0-py3-none-any.whl
Tags
Let your AI agent find packages like this
Example. Real query, live index.
You found this page by searching. An agent finds it by wishing: SkillFed indexes 14,416 PyPI packages by what they can do, searchable in plain language.
wish › “composite key mapping”
- flatdictFlattens nested dictionaries into single-level dicts with delimited…
- flatten-dictConverts nested dictionaries into flat key-value pairs and back, with…
- pynamodb-attributesProvides typed attribute classes for PynamoDB that extend DynamoDB's…
Give your agent the search over MCP, or paste the wish link into any chat.
More Libraries packages
urllib3 is an HTTP client library that provides thread-safe connection pooling, SSL/TLS verification, multipart file uploads, request retries, compression support, and proxy handling for Python applications.
Requests is a Python HTTP library that simplifies sending HTTP/1.1 requests with automatic handling of headers, authentication, cookies, and response parsing.
Pluggy provides a plugin system that lets you define hook specifications and register implementations to be called in sequence, enabling extensible Python applications without tight coupling.
Install it if you're building an extensible application or framework.
Provides parsing, arithmetic, and recurrence rule computation for dates and times, with timezone support and iCalendar RFC compliance.
Install it if you need to parse flexible date strings, compute relative dates, handle timezones, or work with recurrence rules—it's the de facto choice for these tasks.
Six provides utility functions to write Python code that runs on both Python 2.7 and Python 3.3+, smoothing over language differences between the two versions.
pytest is a testing framework that lets you write test functions using plain assert statements and automatically discovers and runs them, with detailed failure reporting.
See also attrdict · deflate-dict · flatten-json · json-normalize · magicattr · flatten-dict · dictknife · json-flatten · dpath · querystring-parser