---
id: ripgrep
version: "15.1.0"
license: Unlicense OR MIT
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# ripgrep — ripgrep is a line-oriented search tool that recursively searches the current directory for a regex pattern while respecting gitignore rules. ripgrep has first class support on Windows, macOS and Linux.

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 414.8K/mo

## What it is and what it does

This package provides Python access to ripgrep, a Rust-based line search tool optimized for speed and code search workflows. It recursively searches directories for regex patterns while automatically respecting .gitignore rules and filtering hidden and binary files (behavior can be disabled with flags). ripgrep is designed as a faster alternative to grep, The Silver Searcher, and ack, with support for file-type filtering, Unicode, PCRE2 regex engines, and multiple text encodings.

The package wraps ripgrep for use from Python, making it available to developers who want to integrate fast pattern searching into Python applications or scripts. With no runtime dependencies and active maintenance, it targets modern Python versions (3.8+) across Windows, macOS, and Linux.

Use it for:

- Integrate fast code search into Python development tools or IDE plugins that need to find patterns across large codebases.
- Build log analysis or audit scripts that search through large text files while respecting project ignore rules.
- Create custom search utilities that need to filter by file type (e.g., search only Python or JavaScript files) with better performance than standard grep.
- Automate text processing workflows that require regex matching across directory trees while respecting version control ignore files.

## Worth the install?

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

Provides a Python interface to ripgrep (rg), a fast regex-based line search tool that recursively searches directories while respecting gitignore rules and filtering hidden and binary files by default.

Yes, if you need to integrate fast regex search into Python and are comfortable with the platform-specific wheel constraints. The package is actively maintained, has no runtime dependencies, uses permissive licensing, and wraps a well-established tool. Install friction is moderate due to platform-specific wheels; verify that your platform (macOS ARM64 or manylinux 2.39 x86_64) is supported or that you can build from source before committing.

## Install

pip install ripgrep
uv add ripgrep
poetry add ripgrep

## Installing ripgrep

Before you install: Medium install friction due to platform-specific wheels (macOS ARM64, manylinux 2.39 x86_64). Active maintenance with recent release (82 days ago) and strong repository signals (67331 stars). No runtime dependencies.

License in practice: Dual-licensed under Unlicense or MIT (permissive). Either license permits commercial and private use with minimal restrictions, making this safe for most projects.

Quickstart:

pip install ripgrep

import ripgrep
# Use ripgrep's command-line interface via subprocess or the package's exposed API

Requires Python >=3.8. Platform-specific wheels available for macOS ARM64 and manylinux 2.39 x86_64; other platforms may require building from source.

Verify before relying:

- What Python API does this package expose beyond wrapping the ripgrep binary—is it a thin CLI wrapper or does it provide programmatic search functions?
- Does the package bundle the ripgrep binary or require it to be installed separately on the system?
- What is the actual scope of the Python interface—can it be used for programmatic searches or only for invoking the command-line tool?

## Package facts

- License: Unlicense OR MIT (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: medium
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 414.8K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

regex search tool python, fast grep alternative, gitignore-aware file search, command-line pattern matching, recursive text search, ripgrep python wrapper, code search utility, text-search, regex, cli-wrapper

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