5 Best Python TUI Libraries for Building Text-Based User Interfaces

Text-based user interfaces, or TUIs, are ideal for creating interactive applications that run in terminal environments. There are several Python libraries available for building TUIs, each with its unique features and capabilities. Curses is a classic library that wraps around the Unix ncurses library, allowing for multi-line text input, window management, and keyboard event handling. Rich is a modern library that focuses on rich text and beautiful formatting, and also includes a TUI toolkit for building interactive applications. Textual is another modern library built on top of Rich, adding interactivity with an API inspired by modern web development. Textual supports 16.7 million colors, mouse support, and smooth animations, making it possible to build apps that rival desktop and web experiences. Pytermgui is a Python TUI framework that offers mouse support, a modular widget system, and a customizable terminal markup language. ASCIIMATICS is a cross-platform package that provides curses-like operations, higher-level APIs, and widgets for creating text UIs and ASCII art animations. Each library has its strengths and weaknesses, and the choice of which one to use depends on the specific needs of the project. Overall, these libraries provide a range of options for building interactive and visually appealing TUIs in Python.