Composer vs pip
Composer
getcomposer.orgpip
pip.pypa.ioSide by side
| Figure | Composer | pip |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Package Managers | 8.9 (#5) | 8.8 (#7) |
| Dependency resolution | Composer determines which package versions need to be installed and can update all dependencies in one command. | pip can determine and install package dependencies, and its resolver can backtrack when version choices are incompatible. |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Installation options | Composer can be installed locally in a project or globally as a system wide executable. | pip is commonly installed with Python and can also be installed using ensurepip or get-pip.py. |
| Lockfile support | Yes | Yes |
| Offline installation | Yes | Yes |
| Package formats | PHP packages; ZIP; TAR; VCS repositories | sdist,wheel |
| Package sources | Composer uses Packagist by default and supports custom Composer, VCS, and local path repositories. | pip looks at PyPI by default and can install packages from other Python package repositories. |
| Platform support | Composer says it is designed to run on Windows, Linux, and macOS. | The current pip version works on Windows, Linux, and macOS. |
| Private registry auth | Yes | Yes |
| Purpose | Composer is a tool for managing PHP project dependencies, installing and updating the libraries a project declares. | pip is the package installer for Python and can install packages from PyPI and other indexes. |
| Support | The project says commercial support and consulting are available through its sponsorship page. | The documentation directs users seeking help to GitHub Issues, the Discourse channel, and User IRC. |
| Supported platforms | PHP; Windows; Linux; macOS | The current pip version is supported on Windows, Linux, and macOS, and maintainers do not support other operating systems. |
Plans
In their own words
Composer
Composer manages dependencies for PHP projects, installing and updating the libraries each project declares. By default, it keeps those dependencies in a directory within the project, and it can also manage a global project. It resolves dependencies and supports lockfiles, workspaces, private registry authentication, and offline installation. Packagist is its default package source; custom Composer, version-control, and local-path repositories are also supported. Composer integrates with Fossil, Git, Mercurial, Perforce, and Subversion. It can be installed locally or as a system-wide executable on Windows, Linux, and macOS. The latest version requires PHP 7.2.5 or later; the 2.2.x LTS line supports PHP 5.3.2 and later. Its audit command checks installed packages for security advisories, abandoned packages, malware flags, and other dependency policies. Composer is free under the MIT license. Plugins and scripts can run with the user's permissions, so the project advises against running Composer as root with untrusted packages.
pip
pip installs Python packages from PyPI and other package indexes, as well as from version control URLs, local project directories, and source archives. It supports source distributions and wheels, resolves dependencies, and can install an environment specified in a requirements file. Its install command can produce a JSON report of installed packages. pip runs on Linux, macOS, and Windows, and the current version supports CPython 3.10 through 3.15 and the latest PyPy3. Other operating systems and Python versions are not supported by its maintainers. It is commonly included in virtual environments and Python downloads from python.org; ensurepip and get-pip.py are also installation options. An experimental standalone zip application is available, but its documentation advises against production use. pip is free. It does not collect telemetry, though it sends non-identifying details such as Python version and operating system to the remote indexes it accesses. Remote tampering checks are not enabled by default; hash-checking mode and binary-only installs are listed as more secure options.