---
id: kafka
version: "1.3.5"
license: Apache License 2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# kafka — Pure Python client for Apache Kafka

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 254.2K/mo

## What it is and what it does

kafka-python is a pure-Python client for Apache Kafka that lets you produce and consume messages from Kafka brokers without external compiled dependencies. It provides two main APIs: KafkaConsumer for reading messages (with support for consumer groups and dynamic partition assignment on brokers 0.9+) and KafkaProducer for writing messages asynchronously. Both are designed to behave similarly to the official Java client, with Pythonic additions like consumer iterators. The library handles serialization, compression (gzip natively; lz4 and snappy via optional packages), and protocol-level operations.

The package is best suited for Kafka 0.9 and newer brokers, though it remains backward-compatible with 0.8.0. It supports thread-safe producer usage but recommends multiprocessing for consumers. No runtime dependencies means installation is straightforward, and the large download volume and production-stable status indicate it is widely used in production systems.

Use it for:

- Build a consumer application that subscribes to a Kafka topic and processes messages in a consumer group with automatic partition rebalancing
- Implement an asynchronous message producer that sends events to Kafka with optional compression and key-based partitioning
- Set up multi-consumer message processing by manually assigning different partitions to consumer instances using configuration management
- Integrate custom serialization (JSON, msgpack, etc.) for message values and keys in producer and consumer workflows
- Probe and test Kafka broker compatibility by using the protocol layer to check broker versions (0.8.0 to 0.11)

## Worth the install?

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

A pure-Python client library for Apache Kafka that provides high-level producer and consumer APIs designed to mirror the official Java client, with support for consumer groups, message serialization, and compression.

Yes. kafka-python is production-stable, widely adopted (254199 monthly downloads, top 15000 on PyPI), has zero known vulnerabilities, and carries a permissive Apache License 2.0. Installation is frictionless with no runtime dependencies. The only caveat is that the last release was 2017-10-07; verify that this aligns with your support expectations and that the package still meets your target Kafka broker and Python version requirements.

## Install

pip install kafka
uv add kafka
poetry add kafka

## Installing kafka

Before you install: Low friction: pure Python wheel with no runtime dependencies. Actively maintained with recent commits (2026-08-07) and a large user base (254199 monthly downloads). Production-stable classifier and 5901 repository stars indicate mature, widely-adopted code.

License in practice: Apache License 2.0 is permissive: you can use this library freely in commercial and private projects, modify it, and distribute it, provided you include a copy of the license and state significant changes. No copyleft obligations.

Quickstart:

pip install kafka

from kafka import KafkaConsumer
consumer = KafkaConsumer('my_favorite_topic', group_id='my_favorite_group')
for msg in consumer:
    print(msg)

from kafka import KafkaProducer
producer = KafkaProducer(bootstrap_servers='localhost:1234')
producer.send('foobar', b'some_message_bytes')

Requires a running Kafka broker accessible at the specified bootstrap_servers address; optional compression support (lz4, snappy) requires additional system libraries.

Verify before relying:

- Whether the package supports modern Python versions beyond 3.6 (classifiers list up to 3.6, but current ecosystem has moved further)
- Current status of optional compression dependencies (lz4, snappy) and whether they remain actively maintained
- Whether the last release date (2017-10-07) reflects true maintenance status or if updates are released through a different channel

## Package facts

- License: Apache License 2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 254.2K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

kafka python client, apache kafka producer consumer, distributed message streaming, kafka broker communication, python kafka library, message queue client, kafka consumer groups, message-queue, streaming, distributed-systems

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