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Raylib

A simple and easy-to-use library for game development

As of 30 August 2026, Raylib is free to use. Raylib is a free, open-source library for game development. Softwr lists it under Game Development. Raylib is made by Raylib Community, launched in 2013, available on Windows, macOS, Linux, Android.

Overview

What Raylib does

Raylib is a free, open-source library for game development. It provides a simple API with support for graphics, audio, and input.

What people use it for

  • Simple 2D games
  • Game prototyping
  • Educational games
  • Learning game development

The honest half

Where it falls short

Concrete and checkable, so you can decide whether any of them matter to you. This is the half of a review a vendor will not write about Raylib.

  • Raylib is entirely free and open source with no commercial support offered. Donations are encouraged but completely optional.

Cross-shopped

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Each pairing was judged by two reviewers asking whether a buyer would genuinely weigh the two against each other. The ones that failed were deleted rather than published.

Pricing

What Raylib costs

Taken from the vendor's own pricing page. Prices move, so check before you buy.

Free

Free

  • Full library
  • C/C++ support
  • Graphics rendering
  • Audio support
  • Input handling
  • Community support

Capabilities

Features

  • Graphics rendering

  • Audio system

  • Input handling

  • Shapes drawing

  • Sprite management

  • Collision detection

  • Font rendering

  • Text input

  • C/C++

    Integration with C/C++

  • Python bindings

    Integration with Python bindings

  • Lua bindings

    Integration with Lua bindings

  • Open-source

    Open-source security feature

Answered, with sources

Questions people ask

Each answer names the page it came from, so you can check it rather than take our word for it.

Is Raylib free?

Yes. Raylib is completely free and open source. The project is licensed under a permissive license with no fees or costs to download, use, or modify.

Source
Does Raylib require a paid license?

No. Raylib requires no paid license. Users can freely use it for personal, educational, and commercial projects without any licensing fees.

Source
Does Raylib accept donations?

Yes. Raylib accepts voluntary donations through GitHub Sponsors, Patreon, Ko-fi, PayPal, and other platforms to support ongoing development. Donations are entirely optional.

Source

Behind it

Who makes Raylib

Company
Raylib Community
Based in
Community-driven
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Where to go from Raylib

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Softwr does not host reviews and shows no star rating for Raylib, because a rating we did not collect is not ours to publish. What is here is the pricing and platform detail from the vendor’s own pages, limitations we could state concretely, and alternatives a reviewer confirmed people weigh against it. Tell us if any of it is wrong.

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