cookiecutter

Cookiecutter

Create projects swiftly from cookiecutters (project templates) with this command-line utility. Ideal for generating Python package projects and more.

• Documentation
• GitHub
• PyPI
• License (BSD)

Installation

Install Cookiecutter as a CLI tool with uv:

uv tool install cookiecutter

Features

• Cross-Platform: Supports Windows, Mac, and Linux.
• User-Friendly: No Python knowledge required.
• Versatile: Compatible with Python 3.10 to 3.14.
• Multi-Language Support: Use templates in any language or markup format.

For Users

Quickstart

The most common way to use Cookiecutter is as a command line utility with a GitHub-hosted Cookiecutter template such as https://github.com/audreyfeldroy/cookiecutter-pypackage

Use a GitHub-hosted Cookiecutter template

# You'll be prompted to enter values.
# Then it'll create your Python package in the current working directory,
# based on those values.
# For the sake of brevity, repos on GitHub can just use the 'gh' prefix
$ uvx cookiecutter gh:audreyfeldroy/cookiecutter-pypackage

Use a local template

$ uvx cookiecutter cookiecutter-pypackage/

Use it from Python

If you plan to use Cookiecutter programmatically, please run uv add cookiecutter to add it to your project. Then you can import and use it like this:

from cookiecutter.main import cookiecutter

# Create project from the cookiecutter-pypackage/ template
cookiecutter('cookiecutter-pypackage/')

# Create project from the cookiecutter-pypackage.git repo template
cookiecutter('gh:audreyfeldroy/cookiecutter-pypackage')

If Cookiecutter saves you time, star it on GitHub so other developers can find it too.

Detailed Usage

• Generate projects from local or remote templates.
• Customize projects with cookiecutter.json prompts.
• Utilize pre-prompt, pre- and post-generate hooks.

Learn More

For Template Creators

• Any language, any framework. A Cookiecutter template is just a directory with variables. It works for Python, Rust, Terraform, docs sites, whatever you build repeatedly.
• Hooks for the rest of the setup. Pre- and post-generate scripts (shell or Python) handle git init, dependency installs, or anything else your boilerplate needs.
• One file defines the interface. cookiecutter.json declares every variable and its default. Users answer prompts; the template does the rest.

Learn More

Available Templates

Discover a variety of ready-to-use templates on GitHub.

Special Templates

• cookiecutter-pypackage
• cookiecutter-django
• cookiecutter-pytest-plugin
• cookiecutter-plone-starter

Community

Join the community, contribute, or seek assistance.

• Troubleshooting Guide
• Stack Overflow
• Discord
• File an Issue
• Contributors
• Contribution Guide

Feedback

We value your feedback. Share your criticisms or complaints constructively to help us improve.

• File an Issue

Waiting for a Response?

• Be patient and consider reaching out to the community for assistance.
• For enterprise support, contact [e-mail].

Code of Conduct

Adhere to the PyPA Code of Conduct during all interactions in the project's ecosystem.

Acknowledgements

Created and led by Audrey M. Roy Greenfeld, supported by a dedicated team of maintainers and contributors.