pkgconf

What it is and what it does

pkgconf is a PyPI distribution of the pkgconf binary, designed to make the pkg-config tool available across platforms without requiring system package managers. It wraps the unmodified pkgconf upstream and installs it as a script in your Python environment, solving the problem of discovering library dependencies and configuring compiler and linker flags in a reproducible, cross-platform way.

The package targets workflows where other Python packages need pkg-config as a build or runtime dependency. It provides pre-built wheels for macOS (Intel and ARM), Linux (x86_64, i686, ARM, PowerPC, s390x, and musl variants), and Windows (x86_64, x86, and ARM64), making it practical for CI/CD pipelines and containerized builds where system pkg-config may not be available or where you need a consistent version across environments.

Use it for:

• Installing pkg-config in CI/CD pipelines without relying on apt, brew, or yum package managers
• Building Python packages that require pkg-config during compilation in isolated environments
• Cross-platform development where team members use different operating systems and need consistent dependency resolution
• Containerized builds where you want to minimize base image size by avoiding system package manager dependencies
• Virtual environments where pkg-config must be available without affecting the host system

Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying

pkgconf is a cross-platform Python package that distributes the pkgconf binary, helping discover library dependencies and configure compiler and linker flags without requiring system installation.

Yes, if you need pkg-config in a Python environment and want to avoid system package manager dependencies or ensure consistent versions across platforms. The active maintenance, permissive MIT license, and broad platform support make it a practical choice for build automation and CI/CD. No known vulnerabilities and minimal dependencies are additional positives. Install only if you actually need pkg-config; it adds a platform-specific binary to your environment.

Install

pkgconf on PyPI

pip install pkgconf

uv add pkgconf

poetry add pkgconf

Installing pkgconf

Before you install

Medium install friction due to platform-specific wheels across many architectures (x86_64, ARM, PowerPC, s390x, Windows, macOS). Active maintenance with a recent release 32 days ago. Single runtime dependency on colorama keeps the footprint minimal.

License in practice

MIT license permits unrestricted use, modification, and distribution in both open-source and proprietary projects with minimal attribution requirements.

Quickstart

pip install pkgconf
import pkgconf
# pkg-config binary is installed as a script in the Python environment

Requires Python 3.10 or later. The package installs pkg-config as a script alias; availability depends on the Python environment's scripts directory being in PATH.

Verify before relying

• Whether the installed pkg-config script is automatically added to PATH or requires manual configuration
• How the package handles system pkg-config conflicts or coexistence scenarios
• Performance characteristics compared to system-installed pkgconf

Package facts

Evidence: pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-macosx_10_9_x86_64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-macosx_11_0_arm64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux1_i686.manylinux2014_i686.manylinux_2_17_i686.manylinux_2_5_i686.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux2014_aarch64.manylinux_2_17_aarch64.manylinux_2_28_aarch64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux2014_ppc64le.manylinux_2_17_ppc64le.manylinux_2_28_ppc64le.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux2014_s390x.manylinux_2_17_s390x.manylinux_2_28_s390x.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux2014_x86_64.manylinux_2_17_x86_64.manylinux_2_28_x86_64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-manylinux_2_27_armv7l.manylinux_2_31_armv7l.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_aarch64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_armv7l.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_i686.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_ppc64le.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_s390x.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-musllinux_1_2_x86_64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-win32.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-win_amd64.whl; pkgconf-3.0.1.post0-py3-none-win_arm64.whl

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