kopf
Kubernetes Operator Pythonic Framework (Kopf)
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you are building Kubernetes operators in Python. Kopf eliminates boilerplate and provides a stable, actively maintained framework with a permissive license. The low install friction and support for current Python versions (3.10–3.14) make it a practical choice for production operators. No known vulnerabilities and 2631 GitHub stars indicate community confidence.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires Python 3.10 or later (CPython or PyPy officially supported).
- Low friction install with a pure-Python wheel.
- Actively maintained as of June 2026 with no major feature development planned but regular maintenance for Python and Kubernetes compatibility.
License · maintenance · safety
MIT (permissive) — MIT license permits commercial and private use with minimal restrictions; suitable for most deployment contexts.
last release 2026-06-03 (72 days) · last repo commit 2026-06-03 · 2,631 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 1,729,170 downloads/mo, #3,610 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install kopf
import kopf
@kopf.on.create('kopfexamples')
def create_fn(spec, name, **kwargs):
print(f"Created {name} with spec: {spec}")
# Run with: kopf run handlers.py- Whether the six runtime dependencies (aiohttp, click, pyyaml, iso8601, jsonpatch, python-json-logger) are all required for basic operator functionality or only for specific features.
- Performance characteristics and memory footprint under high-load scenarios, as the description mentions planned optimizations but does not quantify current behavior.
What it is and what it does
Kopf is a framework that simplifies Kubernetes operator development by letting you write domain logic in Python without infrastructure boilerplate. Instead of managing Kubernetes API calls and event loops directly, you decorate Python functions to respond to resource creation, updates, deletion, and other lifecycle events. The framework handles marshalling resource data into function arguments, persisting handler progress across restarts, retrying on failure, and publishing logs as Kubernetes events.
It supports both synchronous and asynchronous handlers, timers, daemons, admission webhooks, and cross-operator coordination (peering). The framework is production-ready and stable; the maintainer has stated that the core design is complete with no major new functionality planned, though maintenance for new Python and Kubernetes versions continues regularly.
Use it for
- Build a custom Kubernetes resource operator that automatically provisions or reconciles infrastructure when resources are created or modified.
- Implement admission webhooks to validate or mutate custom resources before they are persisted to the cluster.
- Run background daemons or periodic timers tied to individual resources, with automatic cleanup when resources are deleted.
- Migrate domain logic from imperative scripts into a declarative operator that survives pod restarts and cluster disruptions.
- Coordinate multiple Kopf-based operators on the same resource kinds to avoid duplicate processing and manage dev/prod operator switching.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you are building Kubernetes operators in Python.
Kopf eliminates boilerplate and provides a stable, actively maintained framework with a permissive license. The low install friction and support for current Python versions (3.10–3.14) make it a practical choice for production operators. No known vulnerabilities and 2631 GitHub stars indicate community confidence.
Install
kopf on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction install with a pure-Python wheel. Actively maintained as of June 2026 with no major feature development planned but regular maintenance for Python and Kubernetes compatibility.
Requires Python 3.10 or later (CPython or PyPy officially supported).
License in practice
MIT license permits commercial and private use with minimal restrictions; suitable for most deployment contexts.
Quickstart
pip install kopf
import kopf
@kopf.on.create('kopfexamples')
def create_fn(spec, name, **kwargs):
print(f"Created {name} with spec: {spec}")
# Run with: kopf run handlers.pyVerify before relying
- Whether the six runtime dependencies (aiohttp, click, pyyaml, iso8601, jsonpatch, python-json-logger) are all required for basic operator functionality or only for specific features.
- Performance characteristics and memory footprint under high-load scenarios, as the description mentions planned optimizations but does not quantify current behavior.
Package facts
| License | MIT permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.10 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 6 packagespython-json-loggerjsonpatchiso8601pyyamlclickaiohttp |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 72 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 1,729,170 / month, #3,610 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Intended Audience :: DevelopersOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming 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: kopf-1.44.6-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 › “kubernetes operator framework python”
- kopfKopf is a Python framework for building Kubernetes operators with…
- patroniPatroni orchestrates PostgreSQL high-availability clusters using…
- apache-airflow-providers-cncf-kubernetesIntegrates Apache Airflow with Kubernetes, enabling orchestration of…
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 kr8s · spaceforge · k8 · cdk8s · lightkube-models · pulumi-kubernetes · portforward · kubernetes · kubernetes-typed · kubernetes-validate