qiskit-ibm-runtime
IBM Quantum client for IBM Quantum Compute (formerly Qiskit Runtime).
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes. This is the official client for IBM Quantum Compute and is essential if you need to run quantum circuits on IBM hardware. It is actively maintained, has low install friction, carries no security vulnerabilities, uses a permissive license, and provides well-documented primitives for quantum algorithm development. Install it if you have IBM Quantum Platform or IBM Cloud access and want to execute real quantum computations.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- Requires valid IBM Quantum Platform or IBM Cloud credentials (API token and Cloud Resource Name) to authenticate with the service.
- Low install friction with a pure-Python wheel.
- Actively maintained with a recent release (4 days old) and active repository status.
License · maintenance · safety
Apache 2.0 (permissive) — Licensed under Apache 2.0 (permissive), allowing commercial and private use with minimal restrictions. You may use, modify, and distribute this package freely provided you include the license notice.
last release 2026-08-10 (4 days) · last repo commit 2026-08-14 · 236 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 670,455 downloads/mo, #5,408 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install qiskit-ibm-runtime
from qiskit_ibm_runtime import QiskitRuntimeService
service = QiskitRuntimeService(channel="ibm_quantum_platform", token="YOUR_API_KEY", instance="YOUR_CRN")- Whether the package supports quantum simulators in addition to hardware backends.
- Performance characteristics and typical execution latency for quantum circuits.
- Specific error suppression and mitigation techniques available beyond those named in the description.
What it is and what it does
This package is the official Python client for IBM Quantum Compute, a cloud-based service for running quantum circuits on IBM quantum processors. It provides access to Qiskit primitives—Sampler and Estimator—which are foundational building blocks for quantum algorithms. The Sampler executes circuits and returns measurement results, while the Estimator computes expectation values of quantum observables. Both primitives are optimized for IBM hardware and include built-in error suppression (dynamical decoupling, noise-aware compilation) and error mitigation (readout mitigation, zero-noise extrapolation, probabilistic error cancellation).
The package handles authentication via IBM Cloud credentials, circuit optimization for target hardware, and job submission and result retrieval. It depends on Qiskit for circuit construction, numpy and scipy for numerical operations, and IBM platform services for cloud integration. You authenticate once by saving credentials to disk or via environment variables, then instantiate a service and submit quantum jobs. The package is actively maintained, supports Python 3.10+, and has no known security vulnerabilities.
Use it for
- Execute parameterized quantum circuits on real IBM quantum hardware with automatic error mitigation applied.
- Compute expectation values of quantum operators for variational quantum algorithms and quantum machine learning.
- Sample measurement outcomes from quantum circuits to validate quantum algorithms before scaling to larger systems.
- Develop and test quantum applications using cloud-based quantum processors without local simulator overhead.
- Integrate quantum computation into classical workflows via the Sampler and Estimator primitive interfaces.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes.
This is the official client for IBM Quantum Compute and is essential if you need to run quantum circuits on IBM hardware. It is actively maintained, has low install friction, carries no security vulnerabilities, uses a permissive license, and provides well-documented primitives for quantum algorithm development. Install it if you have IBM Quantum Platform or IBM Cloud access and want to execute real quantum computations.
Install
qiskit-ibm-runtime on PyPI
Before you install
Low install friction with a pure-Python wheel. Actively maintained with a recent release (4 days old) and active repository status. Depends on 12 runtime packages including qiskit, numpy, scipy, and IBM platform services—all widely used and well-maintained.
Requires valid IBM Quantum Platform or IBM Cloud credentials (API token and Cloud Resource Name) to authenticate with the service.
License in practice
Licensed under Apache 2.0 (permissive), allowing commercial and private use with minimal restrictions. You may use, modify, and distribute this package freely provided you include the license notice.
Quickstart
pip install qiskit-ibm-runtime
from qiskit_ibm_runtime import QiskitRuntimeService
service = QiskitRuntimeService(channel="ibm_quantum_platform", token="YOUR_API_KEY", instance="YOUR_CRN")Verify before relying
- Whether the package supports quantum simulators in addition to hardware backends.
- Performance characteristics and typical execution latency for quantum circuits.
- Specific error suppression and mitigation techniques available beyond those named in the description.
Package facts
| License | Apache 2.0 permissive |
| Python support | Supports the current Python release >=3.10 |
| Install friction | Low. Pure-Python wheel |
| Runtime dependencies | 12 packagesrequestsrequests-ntlmnumpyscipyurllib3python-dateutilibm-platform-servicesibm-quantum-schemaspydanticqiskitpybase64samplomatic |
| Maintenance | Actively maintained 4 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 670,455 / month, #5,408 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Environment :: ConsoleIntended Audience :: DevelopersIntended Audience :: Science/ResearchLicense :: OSI Approved :: Apache Software LicenseOperating System :: MacOSOperating System :: Microsoft :: WindowsOperating System :: POSIX :: LinuxProgramming Language :: Python :: 3 :: OnlyProgramming Language :: Python :: 3.10Programming Language :: Python :: 3.11Programming Language :: Python :: 3.12Programming Language :: Python :: 3.13Topic :: Scientific/Engineering |
Evidence: qiskit_ibm_runtime-0.49.0-py3-none-any.whl
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