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PyQt VS OpenGL

Compare PyQt VS OpenGL and see what are their differences

PyQt logo PyQt

Riverbank | Software | PyQt | What is PyQt?

OpenGL logo OpenGL

OpenGL is the premier environment for developing portable, interactive 2D and 3D graphics...
  • PyQt Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-18
  • OpenGL Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-09-25

PyQt features and specs

  • Comprehensive UI library
    PyQt provides a wide range of UI components, from basic widgets to advanced tools. This allows for the creation of highly sophisticated interfaces.
  • Cross-platform
    Applications built with PyQt can run on different operating systems such as Windows, macOS, and Linux without requiring significant changes in the code.
  • Integration with Qt Designer
    Developers can use Qt Designer to design and implement their UIs visually, which can then be seamlessly integrated with Python code in PyQt.
  • Powerful event handling
    PyQt includes a highly efficient event handling system that makes it easy to manage user interactions and system events.
  • Good documentation and community support
    PyQt is well-documented, and there's a large community of developers who can provide support and share resources.
  • Python-specific advantages
    Leveraging Python's simplicity and readability, PyQt allows for rapid development and easy maintenance of applications.

Possible disadvantages of PyQt

  • License considerations
    PyQt is available under the GPL and a commercial license. If you want to create proprietary software without open-sourcing your code, you need to purchase a commercial license.
  • Steep learning curve
    While PyQt is powerful, it can have a steep learning curve for newcomers, particularly those who are not familiar with Qt and its paradigms.
  • Performance overhead
    Being a binding for Qt, some operations may have extra overhead compared to native Qt applications written in C++.
  • Dependency on external libraries
    PyQt relies on the Qt library, which means that you have to manage and distribute these dependencies along with your application.
  • Large binary sizes
    Applications created with PyQt can result in relatively large binary sizes because of the included Qt binaries.
  • Fragmentation of tools
    There can be fragmentation concerns, as PyQt must stay in sync with Qt, and different versions of Qt may introduce changes that are not immediately reflected in PyQt.

OpenGL features and specs

  • Cross-platform Compatibility
    OpenGL is platform-independent, allowing developers to write code that can run on multiple platforms such as Windows, macOS, Linux, and others without modification.
  • Wide Hardware Support
    Extensive support across a broad range of graphics hardware, making it a reliable choice for ensuring that applications will work on various devices.
  • Open Source
    As an open-source graphics API, OpenGL allows for extensive collaboration and contributions from the community, improving its features and performance over time.
  • Industry Standard
    Used widely in the industry for professional applications in areas like CAD, virtual reality, and video games, providing good community support and documentation.
  • Rich Feature Set
    Provides a comprehensive set of features for rendering 2D and 3D vector graphics, offering flexibility for developers to create complex visual effects.

Possible disadvantages of OpenGL

  • Complexity
    OpenGL's vast array of features and options can lead to a steep learning curve for new developers who may find it challenging to implement even basic tasks.
  • Obsolete Features
    Some parts of OpenGL are considered outdated, with legacy functionality that may complicate development and require additional effort to modernize older codebases.
  • Performance Overhead
    While generally efficient, OpenGL can introduce overhead compared to lower-level APIs like Vulkan or Direct3D, which offer more direct control of graphics hardware resources.
  • Fragmented Support
    Different platforms and graphics card vendors may implement OpenGL features inconsistently, requiring extra testing and potentially platform-specific workarounds.
  • Low Abstraction
    Despite its flexibility, OpenGL provides a lower level of abstraction compared to some newer APIs, meaning that developers must manage more of the graphics pipeline manually.

PyQt videos

Python Top 3 GUI Frameworks In 2019 (PyQt5, wxPython, TKinter)

More videos:

OpenGL videos

OSBUDDY 3.0 OPENGL REVIEW - Not as promised??

More videos:

  • Review - Latest OpenGL and Vulkan GPU drivers Pubg gaming Review Poco F1 | 0.18 Mad Miramar Update
  • Review - OpenGL Basic (Fastest Review)

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to PyQt and OpenGL)
Development Tools
100 100%
0% 0
Game Development
0 0%
100% 100
Rapid Application Development
Game Engine
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare PyQt and OpenGL

PyQt Reviews

25 Python Frameworks to Master
PyQt is one of the most popular sets of Python bindings for the Qt cross-platform application framework. This framework perfectly combines the simplicity of Python as a general-purpose language and the powerful Qt application framework built in C++.
Source: kinsta.com
Which Python GUI library should you use? Comparing the Python GUI libraries available in 2023
Before the Qt Company (under Nokia) released the officially supported PySide library in 2009, Riverbank Computing had released PyQt in 1998. The main difference between these two libraries is in licensing. The free-to-use version of PyQt is licensed under GNU General Public License (GPL) v3 but PySide is licensed under GNU Lesser General Public License (LGPL). This means...
10 Best Python Libraries for GUI
Developed by Riverbank Computing, PyQt5 is one of the most popular Python frameworks for GUI. The PyQt package is built around the Qt framework, which is a cross-platform framework used for creating various applications on different platforms.
Source: www.unite.ai
Top 10 Python GUI Frameworks for Developers
When it comes to creating GUIs, the PyQt5 arsenal offers the impressive QtGui and the QtDesigner module, which provide numerous visual elements that the developer can implement with a simple drag and drop. Of course, the option of creating these elements by code also exists, allowing you to create both small-scale as well as large-scale applications with ease. Python’s...

OpenGL Reviews

We have no reviews of OpenGL yet.
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, PyQt seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 4 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

PyQt mentions (4)

  • Python vs. JavaScript: Is It a Fair Comparison?
    JavaScript is a clear winner in the category of mobile development. There are some niche frameworks to do mobile development with Python—like Kivy and PyQT—but pretty much nobody uses them. - Source: dev.to / almost 3 years ago
  • what would be the best looking GUI framework to develop a desktop python application? (other than Tkinter)
    If none of those are to your liking, you can use PyQT (or Pyside) but the learning curve is much steeper. Source: about 3 years ago
  • Is there a "Windows Forms" GUI designer for Python?
    Also, there is the PyQt module which is a comprehensive set of Python bindings for the Qt GUI. It has Qt Designer. Source: over 3 years ago
  • Best way to install qutebrowser?
    As for PyQt, that's developed entirely independently from Qt (by Riverbank Computing). The major/minor versions usually line up with the respective Qt releases (since the Qt release introduces new APIs, so a new PyQt release is needed to expose those to Python). However, it's versioned independently, and a new patch release of PyQt might be needed before/without Qt releasing a new patch release. For more details,... Source: about 4 years ago

OpenGL mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of OpenGL yet. Tracking of OpenGL recommendations started around Mar 2021.

What are some alternatives?

When comparing PyQt and OpenGL, you can also consider the following products

Qt - Powerful, flexible and easy to use, Qt will help you not only meet your tight deadline, but also reduce the maintainable code by an astonishing percentage.

SDL - Simple DirectMedia Layer is a cross-platform multimedia library designed to provide low level...

PySimpleGUI - A simple to use GUI that can create custom GUIs

Vulkan - Vulkan is a new generation graphics and compute API that provides high-efficiency, cross-platform access to modern GPUs used in a wide variety of devices from PCs and consoles to mobile phones and embedded platforms.

Tkinter - Tkinter is a Python wrapper for Tcl/Tk that offers classes to create various graphical user interfaces.

Unreal Engine - Unreal Engine 4 is a suite of integrated tools for game developers to design and build games, simulations, and visualizations.