# fastplotlib vs VisPy

## Key differences

- VisPy has 2.4× as many GitHub stars as fastplotlib (3.6K vs 1.5K).
- VisPy had more development activity over the last 12 months: 63 commits vs 40.
- VisPy is downloaded 81× as often on PyPI (151.7K vs 1.9K per week).
- fastplotlib is licensed under Apache-2.0; VisPy under BSD-3-Clause.
- VisPy is the older project: its repository was created in 2013, fastplotlib's in 2022.

| | fastplotlib | VisPy |
|---|---|---|
| Description | GPU-accelerated plotting library built on WGPU and pygfx for fast interactive visualization. | High-performance scientific visualization based on OpenGL. |
| GitHub stars | 1,533 | 3,608 |
| Commits (12 months) | 40 | 63 |
| Contributors | 14 | 174 |
| License | Apache-2.0 | BSD-3-Clause |
| Language | Python | Python |
| Status | Active | Active |
| Install | `pip install fastplotlib` | `pip install vispy` |

Source: https://awesomedataviz.com/compare/fastplotlib-vs-vispy/ · Data updated 2026-11-01 · Content: CC BY 4.0, Awesome Dataviz (https://awesomedataviz.com).