setup.cfg vs Poetry

Developers should use setup meets developers should use poetry when working on python projects that require reproducible environments, complex dependency management, or publishing to pypi. Here's our take.

setup.cfg

Nice Pick

Developers should use setup

Pros

• cfg when building Python packages to ensure consistent and reproducible builds, as it separates configuration from executable code, reducing errors and improving maintainability
• Related to: python, setuptools

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

Poetry

Developers should use Poetry when working on Python projects that require reproducible environments, complex dependency management, or publishing to PyPI

Pros

• It is particularly valuable for applications with many dependencies, team collaborations to ensure consistency, and modern Python development following PEP 517/518 standards
• Related to: python, pyproject-toml

Cons

• Specific tradeoffs depend on your use case

The Verdict

Use setup.cfg if: You want cfg when building python packages to ensure consistent and reproducible builds, as it separates configuration from executable code, reducing errors and improving maintainability and can live with specific tradeoffs depend on your use case.

Use Poetry if: You prioritize it is particularly valuable for applications with many dependencies, team collaborations to ensure consistency, and modern python development following pep 517/518 standards over what setup.cfg offers.

The Bottom Line

setup.cfg wins

Developers should use setup