sphinxcontrib-plantuml
Sphinx "plantuml" extension
Decision gist · record as of 2026-08-14
Yes, if you already use Sphinx and have Java and PlantUML available on your build system. The extension is stable (Beta status, 133 GitHub stars, no known vulnerabilities) and widely used (top 15000 PyPI packages). High install friction is the main trade-off: you must set up PlantUML separately, and aging maintenance (last release 345 days ago) means updates may lag behind Sphinx releases, so test compatibility with your Sphinx version before deploying.AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page — verify before relying
Before you install
- PlantUML requires Java and a PlantUML JAR file or executable in your PATH; you must configure the plantuml command in conf.py or install a wrapper script before Sphinx can render diagrams.
- High install friction: requires Java (PlantUML runs on the JVM) and a working PlantUML installation or JAR file on your system, plus Sphinx as a runtime dependency.
- Last release was 345 days ago; maintenance status is aging but the repository is not archived and received a commit as recently as 2025-09-13.
License · maintenance · safety
BSD (permissive) — BSD license is permissive; you can use this extension in commercial and proprietary documentation projects without restriction, though you should retain the license notice.
last release 2025-09-03 (345 days) · last repo commit 2025-09-13 · 133 stars
0 known vulnerabilities (OSV.dev, 2026-08-14) · 600,936 downloads/mo, #5,819 on PyPI
Alternatives
Verify before relying
pip install sphinxcontrib-plantuml
# In conf.py:
extensions = ['sphinxcontrib.plantuml']
plantuml = 'java -jar /path/to/plantuml.jar'
# In your .rst file:
.. uml::
Alice -> Bob: Hi!
Alice <- Bob: How are you?- Whether the package works with modern Python versions (requires_python is unspecified in the fact sheet).
- Performance impact of batch rendering (marked EXPERIMENTAL in the description) on typical documentation builds.
What it is and what it does
sphinxcontrib-plantuml is a Sphinx extension that lets you write PlantUML diagrams inline in reStructuredText using the ``.. uml::`` directive, then automatically renders them as images during documentation builds. It depends on Sphinx and requires a working PlantUML installation (typically a Java JAR file) on your build system.
The extension supports multiple output formats—PNG, SVG, and PDF—and can generate different formats for HTML and LaTeX output. You configure it via Sphinx's conf.py, specifying the PlantUML executable path and output format preferences. It includes caching to avoid re-rendering unchanged diagrams and an experimental batch mode to reduce Java startup overhead when rendering many diagrams.
Use it for
- Embed sequence diagrams, class hierarchies, and state machines directly in API or architecture documentation without maintaining separate image files.
- Generate consistent UML diagrams in both HTML and PDF versions of the same documentation from a single source.
- Document system design and component relationships in technical specifications alongside prose, keeping diagrams version-controlled with source.
- Reduce friction when updating diagrams by editing text in the documentation source rather than using a GUI tool and committing binary files.
Worth the install?
AI-flagged interpretation of the facts on this page. Verify before relying on it.
Yes, if you already use Sphinx and have Java and PlantUML available on your build system.
The extension is stable (Beta status, 133 GitHub stars, no known vulnerabilities) and widely used (top 15000 PyPI packages). High install friction is the main trade-off: you must set up PlantUML separately, and aging maintenance (last release 345 days ago) means updates may lag behind Sphinx releases, so test compatibility with your Sphinx version before deploying.
Install
sphinxcontrib-plantuml on PyPI
Before you install
High install friction: requires Java (PlantUML runs on the JVM) and a working PlantUML installation or JAR file on your system, plus Sphinx as a runtime dependency. Last release was 345 days ago; maintenance status is aging but the repository is not archived and received a commit as recently as 2025-09-13.
PlantUML requires Java and a PlantUML JAR file or executable in your PATH; you must configure the plantuml command in conf.py or install a wrapper script before Sphinx can render diagrams.
License in practice
BSD license is permissive; you can use this extension in commercial and proprietary documentation projects without restriction, though you should retain the license notice.
Quickstart
pip install sphinxcontrib-plantuml
# In conf.py:
extensions = ['sphinxcontrib.plantuml']
plantuml = 'java -jar /path/to/plantuml.jar'
# In your .rst file:
.. uml::
Alice -> Bob: Hi!
Alice <- Bob: How are you?Verify before relying
- Whether the package works with modern Python versions (requires_python is unspecified in the fact sheet).
- Performance impact of batch rendering (marked EXPERIMENTAL in the description) on typical documentation builds.
Package facts
| License | BSD permissive |
| Python support | Not specified |
| Install friction | High. Source build required |
| Runtime dependencies | 1 packageSphinx |
| Maintenance | Aging 345 days since the last release |
| Last repo commit | |
| First released | |
| Downloads | 600,936 / month, #5,819 on PyPI 30-day window, as of 2026-08-14 |
| Known vulnerabilities | None known OSV.dev, checked 2026-08-14 |
| Classifiers | Development Status :: 4 - BetaEnvironment :: ConsoleEnvironment :: Web EnvironmentFramework :: Sphinx :: ExtensionIntended Audience :: DevelopersLicense :: OSI Approved :: BSD LicenseOperating System :: OS IndependentProgramming Language :: PythonTopic :: DocumentationTopic :: Utilities |
Evidence: sphinxcontrib_plantuml-0.31.tar.gz
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See also plantuml · plantuml-markdown · sphinxcontrib-svg2pdfconverter · sphinx-plotly-directive · sphinxcontrib-mermaid · sphinxcontrib-drawio · sphinxcontrib-blockdiag · sqlalchemy-schemadisplay · sphinxcontrib-video · pystructurizr