# Install vtk with Homebrew, apk, dnf, MacPorts, Nix, pacman, zypper Toolkit for 3D computer graphics, image processing, and visualization. Version 9.6.2 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-22. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:vtk ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install vtk ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install vtk ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: graphics/vtk/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - apk (92%): ```sh sudo apk add vtk ``` Evidence: Alpine Linux edge package indexes: vtk from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz - dnf (92%): ```sh sudo dnf install python3-vtk ``` Evidence: Fedora Rawhide package metadata: python3-vtk from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#vtk ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: vtk from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/master/pkgs/top-level/all-packages.nix - pacman (92%): ```sh sudo pacman -S vtk ``` Evidence: Arch Linux sync databases: vtk from https://geo.mirror.pkgbuild.com/extra/os/x86_64/extra.db.tar.gz - zypper (92%): ```sh sudo zypper install libvtk1 ``` Evidence: openSUSE Tumbleweed package metadata: libvtk1 from https://download.opensuse.org/tumbleweed/repo/oss/repodata/be8d3611d25469107f32075a1697e69ec57a2b850b42348a658cc671ad5ec2b50760d02c3e59524d50da9a11d5be799bdaffba2e166e8ca8858512e3c0bd665d-primary.xml.zst ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:vtk - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 9.6.2 - **Source summary:** Toolkit for 3D computer graphics, image processing, and visualization - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** BSD-3-Clause - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-06-22T14:06:36-07:00 - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - vtkParseJava-9.6 (cli) - vtkProbeOpenGLVersion-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapHierarchy-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapJava-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapJavaScript-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapPython-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapPythonInit-9.6 (cli) - vtkWrapSerDes-9.6 (cli) - vtkpython (cli) - vtkParseJava-9.6 (alias) - vtkProbeOpenGLVersion-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapHierarchy-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapJava-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapJavaScript-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapPython-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapPythonInit-9.6 (alias) - vtkWrapSerDes-9.6 (alias) - vtkpython (alias) ## Dependencies - boost - cgns - double-conversion - eigen - fontconfig - freetype - hdf5 - jpeg-turbo - jsoncpp - libharu - libogg - libpng - libtiff - lz4 - netcdf - nlohmann-json - proj - pugixml - python@3.14 - qtbase - qtdeclarative - sqlite - theora - utf8cpp - xz ## Build dependencies - cmake ## Uses from macOS - expat - libxml2 ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 9.6.2 - Package-manager updated: 2026-06-22 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://www.vtk.org/ - info: Release/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories. ## Project history and usage The Visualization Toolkit, usually called VTK, is a long-running open-source system for 3D graphics, modeling, image processing, volume rendering, scientific visualization, and 2D plotting. It is a C++ toolkit with language bindings, especially Python, and is used as a visualization foundation in research, engineering, medical imaging, and commercial applications. ### Project history VTK began in December 1993 as companion software for the textbook `The Visualization Toolkit: An Object-Oriented Approach to 3D Graphics`. Will Schroeder, Ken Martin, and Bill Lorensen wrote the book and software on their own time while at GE R&D, with permission, to create an open framework for advanced visualization and graphics applications. VTK grew out of the authors' earlier graphics and visualization work at GE and was shaped by systems such as LYMB, VISAGE, Clockworks, and object-oriented modeling ideas. After the core was written, users and developers from GE Medical Systems, research labs, universities, oil and gas, and other domains began applying it to real problems and extending the code. ### Adoption history In 1998, Ken Martin and Will Schroeder, together with Lisa Avila, Charles Law, and Bill Hoffman, left GE to found Kitware in order to support the growing VTK community. Since then, Kitware and hundreds of outside contributors have maintained VTK as a central open-source visualization platform, with major institutional participation from groups such as Sandia National Laboratories, Los Alamos, the Department of Energy ASC program, the National Library of Medicine, and the Army Research Laboratory. ### How it is used VTK applications are usually built as visualization pipelines: data objects flow through filters, mappers, renderers, widgets, and interaction components. Developers use it from C++ when they need maximum control and from Python when they want rapid scientific or data-processing workflows, while VTK's file formats and wrapping tools make it a common bridge between compiled simulation codes and exploratory visualization. ### Why package nerds care For package maintainers, VTK is significant because it is both a library stack and an ecosystem anchor. It underpins tools such as ParaView and many scientific applications, has a large module surface, exposes compiled wrappers, tracks graphics back ends and data formats over decades, and tends to stress build systems, ABI compatibility, and binary packaging more than small command-line tools do. ### Timeline - 1993-12: Work begins on the textbook companion software that became VTK. - 1994: Early public VTK releases follow the textbook/software effort. - 1998: Kitware is founded to support the growing VTK community. - 2015-02-27: Current Kitware GitLab project record for `vtk/vtk` was created. - 2020s: VTK continues adding modern rendering, Python, WebAssembly, WebGPU, data-format, and high-performance visualization features. ### Related projects - Kitware is VTK's principal steward and commercial support organization. - ParaView, VTK.js, trame, medical-imaging tools, engineering post-processors, and many research applications build on VTK concepts or code. ### Sources - - - - ## Security Notes No matching local secret-handling manifest was found for vtk. Nucleus package metadata is still published here so future coverage has a stable package URL. ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** vtk - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Head Version:** HEAD - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** head, stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - vtk: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: vtk from https://raw.githubusercontent.com/NixOS/nixpkgs/master/pkgs/top-level/all-packages.nix - apk - vtk - 9.5.2-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: vtk from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | A software system for 3D computer graphics, image processing and visualization | https://vtk.org/ - apk - vtk-dev - 9.5.2-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: vtk-dev from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | A software system for 3D computer graphics, image processing and visualization (development files) | https://vtk.org/ - apk - vtk-doc - 9.5.2-r2: normalized package name match | Alpine Linux edge package indexes: vtk-doc from https://dl-cdn.alpinelinux.org/alpine/edge/community/x86_64/APKINDEX.tar.gz | A software system for 3D computer graphics, image processing and visualization (documentation) | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - python3-vtk - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: python3-vtk from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Python 3 bindings for VTK | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - python3-vtk-mpich - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: python3-vtk-mpich from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Python 3 bindings for VTK with mpich | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - python3-vtk-openmpi - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: python3-vtk-openmpi from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Python 3 bindings for VTK with openmpi | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | The Visualization Toolkit - A high level 3D visualization library | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-data - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-data from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | VTK data files for tests/examples | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-devel - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-devel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | VTK header files for building C++ code | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-doc - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-doc from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | API documentation for VTK | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-examples - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-examples from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Examples for VTK | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-java - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-java from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Java bindings for VTK | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-mpich - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-mpich from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | The Visualization Toolkit - mpich version | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-mpich-devel - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-mpich-devel from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | VTK header files for building C++ code with mpich | https://vtk.org/ - dnf - vtk-mpich-java - 9.6.2-2.fc45: normalized package name match | Fedora Rawhide package metadata: vtk-mpich-java from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/e5ca8ce900cd68f5419e1c39ae517343100b306336cbaeb70a3c153121d95094-primary.xml.zst | Java bindings for VTK with mpich | https://vtk.org/ ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Networking and protocol packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/networking-protocol-tools/) - Matched network, protocol, or remote-service metadata. - [Media and graphics packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/media-graphics-tools/) - Matched media, image, audio, video, or graphics metadata. - [Scientific computing packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/scientific-computing-tools/) - Matched scientific computing metadata. - [cgns](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cgns/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [fontconfig](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/fontconfig/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [freetype](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/freetype/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [hdf5](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/hdf5/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [jpeg-turbo](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/jpeg-turbo/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [cmake](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cmake/) - Build dependency declared by Homebrew. - [f3d](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/f3d/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [itk](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/itk/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [opencv](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/opencv/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [pcl](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/pcl/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [rtabmap](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/rtabmap/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [visp](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/visp/) - Popular package that depends on this formula. - [gnuplot](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gnuplot/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, scientific-computing, visualization. - [grace](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/grace/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, visualization. - [libgr](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/libgr/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, visualization. - [magics](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/magics/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, visualization. - [teem](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/teem/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, image-processing, science, scientific-computing, visualization. - [geomview](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/geomview/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, visualization. - [root](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/root/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, science, scientific-computing, visualization. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/vtk.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/vtk.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph