Build Integration

To compile a Python extension using Pycairo you need to know where Pycairo and cairo are located and what flags to pass to the compiler and linker.

  1. Variant:

    Similar to variant 2 but doesn’t require pycairo to be loaded, which can be problematic on Windows where by default cairo isn’t in the dll search path since Python 3.8.

    def get_include_path():
        import os
        from importlib.util import find_spec
        spec = find_spec("cairo")
        assert spec is not None
        return os.path.join(os.path.dirname(spec.origin), 'include')
    
    Compiler Flags:
    • python -c "get_include_path()"

    • pkg-config --cflags cairo

    Linker Flags:
    • pkg-config --libs cairo

  2. Variant:

    Only available since version 1.16.0.

    While Pycairo installs a pkg-config file, in case of virtualenvs, installation to the user directory or when using wheels/eggs, pkg-config will not be able to locate the .pc file. The get_include() function should work in all cases, as long as Pycairo is in your Python search path.

    Compiler Flags:
    • python -c "import cairo; print(cairo.get_include())"

    • pkg-config --cflags cairo

    Linker Flags:
    • pkg-config --libs cairo

  3. Variant:

    This works with older versions, but with the limitations mentioned above. Use it as a fallback if you want to support older versions or if your module does not require virtualenv/pip support.

    Compiler Flags:
    • pkg-config --cflags py3cairo

    Linker Flags:
    • pkg-config --libs py3cairo