vispy

library0.16.2pypypi✓ verified 89d ago

VisPy is a high-performance interactive 2D/3D data visualization library in Python. It leverages the computational power of modern Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) through OpenGL to display very large datasets and facilitate real-time data visualization. Currently at version 0.16.1, the library is under active development with a roadmap towards a 1.0 release, focusing on stability, performance, and higher-level interfaces for ease of use.

data ai-ml

pip install vispy

package ↗homepage ↗

INSTALL

IMPORT

SIG · VISPY

vispy

datapythonv0.16.2

Install

4.6s avg

Import

—

Disk

107MB

Pass rate

5/ 10

Env Coverage5 / 10

glibc

3.9–3.13

musl

3.9–3.13

Install & Compatibility

Where this runs

tested against v0.16.2 · pip install

no network on importno background threads

Install × environment matrix

Each cell = how many times install + import succeeded across repeated harness runs. Partial = flaky.
glibc = Debian/Ubuntu slim · musl = Alpine Linux

musl

py 3.10–3.920 runs

build_error

glibc

py 3.10–3.920 runs

installs and imports cleanly · install 4.6s · import 0.000s · 105MB

107MB installed

● package 107MB

Code

Verified usage

Verified import paths — ran on the pinned version, not inferred.

app, scene

✓ from vispy import app, scene

Common top-level imports for creating applications and working with the scene graph.

SceneCanvas

✓ from vispy.scene import SceneCanvas

For creating an interactive 3D scene canvas.

visuals

✓ from vispy.scene import visuals

For accessing high-level visual objects like Mesh, Cube, etc.

Color

✓ from vispy.color import Color

For defining colors within VisPy.

gloo

✓ from vispy import gloo

For low-level OpenGL programming with VisPy's `gloo` interface. Note that `gloo` is slated for deprecation.

This example creates a simple interactive 3D cube using VisPy's high-level scene graph interface. It demonstrates how to initialize a canvas, set up a 3D camera, add a visual object, and run the VisPy application event loop.

import sys import numpy as np from vispy import scene, app from vispy.color import Color # Create a canvas canvas = scene.SceneCanvas(keys='interactive', size=(800, 600), show=True) canvas.title = "VisPy Cube" # Create a viewbox view = canvas.central_widget.add_view() view.camera = 'turntable' # For 3D interaction # Create a cube visual and add to the view cube_mesh = scene.visuals.Cube() view.add(cube_mesh) # Set background color view.bgcolor = Color('black') # Start the event loop if __name__ == '__main__': print("VisPy window opened. Close it to exit.") app.run()

Debug

Known issues

gotchaVisPy requires at least one GUI toolkit backend (e.g., PyQt5, PySide2, GLFW) and an up-to-date GPU driver with OpenGL 2.1+ support to function. Without these, applications may fail to run or display correctly.

fix

Ensure a compatible GUI toolkit (e.g., `pip install PyQt5`) and the latest GPU drivers are installed.

affects: All versions

gotchaPerformance can degrade significantly when creating many individual `Visual` objects. VisPy internally treats each visual as a separate OpenGL program, leading to overhead.

fix

Combine multiple graphical elements into a single `Visual` where possible (e.g., one `LineVisual` to draw multiple lines instead of many `LineVisuals`). For complex cases, consider custom visuals with optimized shader code.

affects: All versions

gotchaOpenGL operations, including calls to `self.update()` on VisPy Canvas or Visual objects, must be performed on the main/GUI thread. While data updates can occur in secondary threads, the final redraw command must originate from the main thread.

fix

Ensure all drawing and update calls that interact directly with the OpenGL context or VisPy Canvas are executed on the main GUI thread. Use thread-safe mechanisms provided by the GUI backend (e.g., signals/slots in Qt) for inter-thread communication.

affects: All versions

breakingVisPy is pre-1.0 and undergoing heavy development, meaning its internal API and behavior, especially for visuals, can change between minor versions. This has historically caused incompatibilities for applications relying on specific internal implementations.

fix

Pin `vispy` to an exact version in `requirements.txt` to prevent unexpected breaking changes. Review release notes carefully when upgrading.

affects: <1.0

deprecatedThe low-level `gloo` interface and GLIR (Graphics Library Intermediate Representation) are likely to be deprecated in future versions as development shifts focus towards higher-level interfaces.

fix

For new projects or refactoring, prioritize using the `vispy.scene` and `vispy.plot` high-level interfaces. If `gloo` is necessary, be aware of its potential deprecation and future replacement strategies.

affects: Likely >0.16.1

Upgrade

Version history

0.16.2latest on PyPI · released May 20, 2026

Audit

Dependencies

numpyrequiredMandatory requirement for array operations.

PyQt5optionalOne of several optional GUI backends required to open a window and create an OpenGL context.

PyQt6optionalOne of several optional GUI backends required to open a window and create an OpenGL context.

PySide2optionalOne of several optional GUI backends required to open a window and create an OpenGL context.

PySide6optionalOne of several optional GUI backends required to open a window and create an OpenGL context.

jupyter_rfboptionalRequired for inline visualizations in Jupyter notebooks.

PillowoptionalOptional dependency for reading image files.

Agent activity

38 hits · last 30 days

node

OpenAI (training)

Resources

packagehttps://pypi.org/project/vispy/ ↗

homepagehttp://vispy.org ↗