pillow

Python Imaging Library (fork)

pillow Permissive license MIT-CMU Active ★ 13,751 v12.3.0 released 2026-07-01

Install

pillow on PyPI

pip

pip install pillow

uv

uv add pillow

poetry

poetry add pillow

Package facts

License	MIT-CMU (permissive)
Python support	supports the current Python release (>=3.10)
Install friction	medium — platform-specific wheel
Runtime dependencies	none
Maintenance	actively maintained — 43 days since the last release
Last repo commit	2026-08-13
First released	2010-07-31
Popularity	one of the 100 most-downloaded packages on PyPI (30-day window, as of 2026-08-13)
Known vulnerabilities	none known (OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-13)

Evidence: pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-macosx_10_10_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-manylinux_2_27_aarch64.manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-manylinux_2_27_x86_64.manylinux_2_28_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_aarch64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-win32.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-win_amd64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp310-cp310-win_arm64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-macosx_10_10_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-manylinux_2_27_aarch64.manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-manylinux_2_27_x86_64.manylinux_2_28_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-musllinux_1_2_aarch64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-win32.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-win_amd64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp311-cp311-win_arm64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp312-cp312-macosx_10_13_x86_64.whl; pillow-12.3.0-cp312-cp312-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl

Keywords: Imaging

Development Status :: 6 - MatureProgramming 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 :: Multimedia :: GraphicsTopic :: Multimedia :: Graphics :: Capture :: Digital CameraTopic :: Multimedia :: Graphics :: Capture :: Screen CaptureTopic :: Multimedia :: Graphics :: Graphics ConversionTopic :: Multimedia :: Graphics :: ViewersTyping :: Typed

About pillow

from the package's own PyPI description — quoted content, verbatim

Pillow

Python Imaging Library (Fork)

Pillow is the friendly PIL fork by Jeffrey 'Alex' Clark and contributors. PIL is the Python Imaging Library by Fredrik Lundh and contributors. Development is supported by: - Tidelift (since 2018) - Thanks.dev (since 2023) - GitHub Sponsors (since 2026)

<table> <tr> <th>docs</th> <td> <a href="https://pillow.readthedocs.io/?badge=latest"><img alt="Documentation Status" src="https://readthedocs.org/projects/pillow/badge/?version=latest"></a> </td> </tr> <tr> <th>tests</th> <td> <a href="https://github.com/python-pillow/Pillow/actions/workflows/lint.yml"><img alt="GitHub Actions build status (Lint)"...

Read as markdown · JSON record · Source repository · Homepage · Docs

AI interpretation — verify before relying

AI-generated interpretation of the package facts above; every digit, version, license, or vulnerability id it cites is grounded in the facts already shown on this page

Pillow adds image processing capabilities to Python, providing extensive file format support, efficient internal pixel representation, and image processing operations for conversion and manipulation.

Medium install friction due to compiled C extensions, but mitigated by comprehensive pre-built wheels across macOS, Linux, Windows, and ARM architectures. Active maintenance with release 43 days ago and strong CI/CD coverage.

MIT-CMU permissive license allows commercial and private use with minimal restrictions; you may use, modify, and distribute freely provided you retain attribution.

Usage

pip install pillow==12.3.0
import pillow
# See documentation at https://pillow.readthedocs.io/ for image processing examples

Requires Python >=3.10; compiled C extensions may require build tools or system libraries on some platforms.

Verdict: Pillow 12.3.0 is a mature, actively maintained imaging library with zero known vulnerabilities, permissive licensing, and broad platform support. Medium install friction is offset by pre-built wheels and strong maintenance signals. Suitable for production image processing workflows.

Needs verification

Specific system libraries (libjpeg, libpng, etc.) required on different platforms beyond what wheels provide.
Whether medium install friction reflects actual build failures or merely presence of compiled extensions.
Concrete usage examples beyond import, as fact sheet does not detail API surface.

image processing pythonPIL fork imaging libraryimage format conversionpython image manipulationimage file handlinggraphics processing librarypython imaging library