---
id: python-openid
version: "2.2.5"
license: UNKNOWN
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: abandoned
---

# python-openid — OpenID support for servers and consumers.

License: permissive · Maintenance: abandoned · Downloads: 329.9K/mo

## What it is and what it does

python-openid is a legacy Python library implementing the OpenID authentication protocol, allowing applications to act as OpenID consumers (accepting logins from OpenID providers) or OpenID servers (providing identity verification to other sites). It includes both consumer and server packages with support for multiple storage backends and includes example implementations.

The package is in production-stable status but has been unmaintained since its last commit on 2020-11-25 and its repository is archived. It requires Python 2.7 or >=3.5 and external dependencies including lxml, six, and cryptography. The library provides logging hooks for debugging and includes documentation in Epydoc format.

Use it for:

- Integrate OpenID login into legacy Python web applications that still rely on the OpenID protocol.
- Build an OpenID provider server for applications that need to offer identity services to other sites.
- Migrate or maintain existing applications that use python-openid without rewriting authentication logic.
- Support decentralized identity verification in systems designed around the OpenID standard.

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Implements OpenID authentication for Python applications, providing both consumer and server libraries to enable single sign-on and decentralized identity verification.

No. This package is abandoned (last commit 2020-11-25, archived repository) and the OpenID protocol it implements has been superseded by modern alternatives. Install friction is high due to undeclared dependencies. Use only if maintaining legacy code already using this library; for new projects, consider modern authentication approaches.

## Install

pip install python-openid
uv add python-openid
poetry add python-openid

## Installing python-openid

Before you install: High install friction: the description lists required external packages (lxml, six, cryptography) but these are not declared as runtime dependencies in the package metadata. The repository has been archived since 2020 with no maintenance activity, making this a legacy package with no active support.

License in practice: Licensed under Apache Software License (permissive), which allows commercial and private use with minimal restrictions, though the license metadata is marked UNKNOWN in the package record.

Quickstart:

pip install python-openid

from openid.consumer import consumer
from openid.server import server

# Consumer: verify identity from OpenID provider
# Server: run your own OpenID authentication endpoint

Requires external dependencies (lxml, six, cryptography) not declared as package dependencies; Python 2.7 or >=3.5 required but not enforced in package metadata.

Verify before relying:

- Whether lxml, six, and cryptography are properly installed as transitive dependencies or must be installed manually.
- Whether this package works reliably with modern Python versions despite being last released in 2010.
- Current security posture of OpenID protocol implementation given the maintenance gap.
- Whether example code and documentation in the repository are still functional and relevant.

## Package facts

- License: UNKNOWN (permissive)
- Python support: unspecified
- Install friction: high
- Maintenance: abandoned
- Downloads: 329.9K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

openid authentication python, single sign-on library, openid consumer server, decentralized identity python, openid protocol implementation, web authentication openid, identity verification library, legacy-unmaintained, authentication, openid-protocol

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/python-openid) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/python-openid/)