setup.py 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.py

Nice Pick

Developers should use setup

Pros

• py when building Python libraries or applications that need to be shared, installed, or deployed, as it standardizes packaging and dependency management
• 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.py if: You want py when building python libraries or applications that need to be shared, installed, or deployed, as it standardizes packaging and dependency management 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.py offers.

The Bottom Line

setup.py wins

Developers should use setup