pydata-sphinx-theme
Bootstrap-based Sphinx theme from the PyData community
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. The theme is production-stable, actively maintained with recent releases, has no known vulnerabilities, and installs with low friction. It is the right choice if you are building Sphinx documentation for a PyData project or want a well-supported, modern three-column Bootstrap theme. Be aware that major Sphinx releases may require a few months for compatibility updates.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires Python 3.11 or later.
- New major Sphinx releases may not be immediately compatible; allow time for updates.
- Low friction installation as a pure Python wheel.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — Permissive license allows use in most projects without restriction.
last release 2026-07-09 (36 days) · last repo commit 2026-08-13 · 775 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 4,710,080 downloads/mo, #2,251 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install pydata-sphinx-theme
# In your Sphinx conf.py:
html_theme = "pydata_sphinx_theme"- Exact compatibility matrix with specific Sphinx versions beyond the general lag-time note in the description.
What it is and what it does
pydata-sphinx-theme is a Sphinx theme that replaces the default HTML output styling with a modern, three-column Bootstrap-based layout designed by and for the PyData community. It integrates with Sphinx's standard documentation build pipeline and requires only a one-line configuration change in your `conf.py` file to activate.
The theme depends on common documentation and rendering libraries—Sphinx itself, BeautifulSoup4 for HTML parsing, Babel for internationalization, Pygments for syntax highlighting, Jinja2 for templating, and requests for HTTP operations. It is actively maintained and supports modern Python versions (3.11 through 3.14). The maintainers explicitly note that new major Sphinx releases may take a few months to support, so teams using cutting-edge Sphinx versions should expect a brief compatibility lag.
Use it for
- Style a PyData-ecosystem project's documentation (NumPy, pandas, SciPy, etc.) with a consistent, community-standard appearance.
- Build a technical documentation site that needs a responsive three-column layout without writing custom CSS.
- Migrate existing Sphinx docs to a modern Bootstrap theme while keeping the same build toolchain.
- Contribute to or customize an open-source documentation theme actively maintained by the PyData community.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
The theme is production-stable, actively maintained with recent releases, has no known vulnerabilities, and installs with low friction. It is the right choice if you are building Sphinx documentation for a PyData project or want a well-supported, modern three-column Bootstrap theme. Be aware that major Sphinx releases may require a few months for compatibility updates.
Install
pydata-sphinx-theme on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction installation as a pure Python wheel. Actively maintained with a recent release; note that the theme may lag behind the latest major Sphinx versions by a few months, so allow time for compatibility updates after new Sphinx releases.
Requires Python 3.11 or later. New major Sphinx releases may not be immediately compatible; allow time for updates.
License in practice
Permissive license allows use in most projects without restriction.
Quickstart
pip install pydata-sphinx-theme
# In your Sphinx conf.py:
html_theme = "pydata_sphinx_theme"Verify before relying
- Exact compatibility matrix with specific Sphinx versions beyond the general lag-time note in the description.
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.11 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 8 packagessphinxbeautifulsoup4docutilsBabelpygmentsaccessible-pygmentsjinja2requests |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 36 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 4,710,080 / month, #2,251 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/StableFramework :: SphinxFramework :: Sphinx :: ThemeLicense :: OSI Approved :: BSD LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: Python :: 3Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Programming Language :: Python :: 3.14 |
Evidence: pydata_sphinx_theme-0.20.0-py3-none-any.whl
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