pylev
A pure Python Levenshtein implementation that's not freaking GPL'd.
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you need a lightweight, dependency-free Levenshtein implementation. The package is stable, permissively licensed, and carries no known vulnerabilities. The abandoned maintenance status is not a blocker for a mature algorithm, but consider alternatives if you need active support or performance-critical use.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Low friction: pure Python with no runtime dependencies and a wheel distribution.
- Maintenance is abandoned (last commit 2023-04-04, no releases since 2021-05-30), but the package is stable and unlikely to require updates for basic use.
License · maintenance · safety
permissive license (permissive) — Licensed under BSD (permissive), which allows free use, modification, and distribution with minimal restrictions—suitable for both open-source and proprietary projects.
last release 2021-05-30 (1902 days) · last repo commit 2023-04-04 · 99 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 1,894,735 downloads/mo, #3,455 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
import pylev
distance = pylev.levenshtein('kitten', 'sitting')
assert distance == 3- Whether the package receives security updates despite the abandoned status
- Performance characteristics compared to alternative Levenshtein implementations
What it is and what it does
pylev is a pure Python implementation of the Levenshtein distance algorithm, which measures how different two strings are by counting the minimum edits (insertions, deletions, substitutions) needed to transform one into the other. It has no external dependencies and works across Python versions. The package is straightforward: you import it, call the levenshtein() function with two strings, and get back an integer distance.
The library is useful for fuzzy matching, spell-checking, and similarity scoring in text processing pipelines. The current version (1.4.0) was released in 2021-05-30. The project is no longer actively maintained, but the algorithm itself is deterministic and unlikely to break.
Use it for
- Fuzzy string matching in search or autocomplete features to find similar terms despite typos
- Spell-checking and correction by ranking candidate words by their edit distance from a misspelled input
- Duplicate detection in datasets by comparing record fields and flagging near-identical entries
- Name matching across databases where entries may have minor variations in spelling or formatting
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you need a lightweight, dependency-free Levenshtein implementation.
The package is stable, permissively licensed, and carries no known vulnerabilities. The abandoned maintenance status is not a blocker for a mature algorithm, but consider alternatives if you need active support or performance-critical use.
Install
pylev on PyPI
Before you install
Low friction: pure Python with no runtime dependencies and a wheel distribution. Maintenance is abandoned (last commit 2023-04-04, no releases since 2021-05-30), but the package is stable and unlikely to require updates for basic use.
License in practice
Licensed under BSD (permissive), which allows free use, modification, and distribution with minimal restrictions—suitable for both open-source and proprietary projects.
Quickstart
import pylev
distance = pylev.levenshtein('kitten', 'sitting')
assert distance == 3Verify before relying
- Whether the package receives security updates despite the abandoned status
- Performance characteristics compared to alternative Levenshtein implementations
Package facts
| License | permissive license permissive |
| Python support | Not specified |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | None |
| Maintenance | Abandoned 1,902 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 1,894,735 / month, #3,455 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/StableIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: BSD LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: PythonProgramming Language :: Python :: 3 |
Evidence: pylev-1.4.0-py2.py3-none-any.whl
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See also editdistance · python-Levenshtein · Levenshtein · textdistance · strsimpy · Distance · editdistpy · polyleven · fuzzywuzzy · pyjarowinkler