---
id: usd-core
version: "26.8"
license: LicenseRef-TOST-1.0
license_treatment: unclear
maintenance: active
---

# usd-core — Pixar's Universal Scene Description

License: unclear · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 2.1M/mo

## What it is and what it does

USD is Pixar's domain-agnostic data model and composition system for 3D scene interchange. The usd-core package provides the foundational libraries—a low-level data model with plugin architecture and a multi-threaded composition engine—that enable applications to read, write, and compose complex 3D scenes from modular assets. It handles static and time-sampled geometry, shading, and lighting data, making it a central interchange format in professional 3D pipelines.

This is the core-only distribution; it does not include optional plugins, imaging features, or rendering capabilities from the full USD distribution. It's designed for applications that need to parse, manipulate, or generate USD scene files programmatically, or that integrate USD as a scene interchange layer in a larger pipeline.

Use it for:

- Build a 3D asset pipeline that reads and writes USD files from multiple content creation tools.
- Programmatically compose complex scenes from reusable USD assets and modular components.
- Integrate USD scene interchange into a custom rendering or simulation engine.
- Parse and query 3D geometry, shading, and animation data from USD files in production workflows.
- Develop plugins or extensions on top of USD's composition engine for domain-specific scene authoring.

## Worth the install?

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

Provides Pixar's Universal Scene Description (USD) core libraries for encoding, storing, and exchanging 3D geometry, shading, and lighting data between content creation applications.

Yes, if you need USD scene interchange in a Python application and are comfortable with the unclear license terms. The package is actively maintained, widely used (top 5000 on PyPI), has no known vulnerabilities, and supports current Python versions. Verify the LicenseRef-TOST-1.0 terms for your use case before committing to production.

## Install

pip install usd-core
uv add usd-core
poetry add usd-core

## Installing usd-core

Before you install: Medium install friction due to compiled wheels across multiple Python versions (3.9–3.14) and platforms (macOS, Linux, Windows). Actively maintained with recent releases; last commit 2026-08-06 and 7442 repository stars indicate ongoing development.

License in practice: License is marked as LicenseRef-TOST-1.0 with unclear treatment—not a standard SPDX identifier. Review the actual license terms at the project homepage before use in commercial or proprietary contexts.

Quickstart:

pip install usd-core==26.8

Requires Python 3.9–3.14; compiled wheels are platform-specific (macOS 10.15+, manylinux_2_27+, Windows 10+).

Verify before relying:

- Whether LicenseRef-TOST-1.0 is compatible with your intended use (commercial, proprietary, open-source).
- Whether the core-only package (without optional plugins or imaging features) meets your 3D pipeline needs.
- Specific API surface and typical usage patterns for the core libraries.
- Performance characteristics and memory footprint for large scene graphs.

## Package facts

- License: LicenseRef-TOST-1.0 (unclear)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: medium
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 2.1M/month (top 5,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

3D scene interchange format, USD core libraries, 3D geometry data exchange, scene composition engine, 3D asset interchange, geometry shading lighting encoding, 3D content pipeline, 3d-graphics, scene-interchange, asset-pipeline

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