Choosing a Python GUI framework in 2026
Posted 2026-05-12 on the pythondeck.com blog
Python has more GUI options than ever - Tkinter, CustomTkinter, PyQt / PySide, wxPython, Kivy, Flet, DearPyGui, Toga, Streamlit, Gradio. This post walks through how to pick one based on what you are actually building.
What problem are you solving?
The most common mistake is picking the framework first and the problem second. The honest answer is that the right toolkit depends on three things: your target platforms (desktop, web, mobile), whether the interface is data-entry / dashboard / drawing / game, and how much polish you need. A throwaway internal tool deserves Tkinter; a customer-facing desktop product deserves Qt; a mobile prototype deserves Kivy or Flet; a quick chart for a colleague deserves Streamlit or Gradio.
Tkinter and CustomTkinter
Tkinter ships with Python, has no dependencies, and is more than enough for most utilities. It looks dated by default; CustomTkinter modernises the appearance with rounded buttons, dark mode and proper theming, without changing the underlying API. For both, a visual designer is a huge productivity gain - it removes the tedious x/y geometry maths and lets you focus on behaviour. See our Tkinter tutorial for the basics.
PyQt and PySide
Qt is the heavyweight option: rich widgets, a model/view system, signals/slots, accessibility, internationalisation and excellent designers. Pick PySide6 if licensing matters to you (LGPL); pick PyQt6 if you already know the API. Both ship Qt Designer, which produces .ui files that you load at runtime - this scales much better than hand-coding layouts for large applications.
Kivy
Kivy is the only mainstream pure-Python toolkit that targets Android and iOS. It uses OpenGL for rendering and a declarative .kv markup language. Best fit: touch-first apps, games, kiosks and anywhere a custom look is desired. See our Kivy tutorial.
Flet
Flet is the newcomer: it wraps Flutter and lets you ship desktop, mobile and web apps from one Python codebase. The widgets look modern out of the box, hot-reload works, and you don't need to learn Dart. The trade-off is a young ecosystem; expect some rough edges around niche widgets. Start with our Flet tutorial.
How to actually decide
- Internal Windows-only tool, one developer: Tkinter or CustomTkinter.
- Customer-facing desktop app on Win/macOS/Linux: PySide6.
- Mobile / touch / custom drawing: Kivy.
- One codebase across desktop + mobile + web with a modern look: Flet.
- A chart or form to share with non-programmers: Streamlit or Gradio.