Best Package Managers in 2026
Package managers support the work of installing and handling software dependencies across projects. Compare dependency resolution, lockfile support, workspace support, and package formats to understand how the listed tools address project setup. Offline installation, private registry auth, and supported platforms bring further environment and access considerations; Free plan and Paid from add cost-related comparison points. npm, Conan, and pnpm head the ranking, followed by Go Modules and uv. Consider the structures and package sources used in your projects, then weigh these capabilities against the environments where you need installations to work.
93 package managers ranked on what their makers publish — plans and prices, free tiers, platforms and the facts on their own pages.
93ranked
25free plans on this page
$1.50/molowest paid tier
3 Oct 2026last checked
#1 npm Top pick · 8.8 Free plan · $7/mo #2 Conan Runner-up · 8.8 Free plan · Free
#3 pnpm Also great · 8.7 Free plan · Free- Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- $7/mo
- Package formats
- package.json folders, gzipped tarballs, URLs, name@version, name@tag, Git URLs
- Supported platforms
- macOS, Windows, Linux, and other operating systems via Node.js installers or version managers
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms$7/mofirst paid tier About npmVisit site - Free plan AndroidiOSLinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Conan recipes and binary packages
- Supported platforms
- Linux, Windows, macOS, Android, iOS, embedded and bare-metal targets
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan AndroidLinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- npm packages, JSR packages, Cargo crates, PyPI packages, tarballs, Git repositories, local directories
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows, Android
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About pnpmVisit site - Free plan AndroidiOSLinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Go modules, module ZIP files
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- source distributions, wheels, requirements.txt, pylock.toml
- Supported platforms
- macOS, Linux, Windows, CPython, PyPy, Pyodide, GraalPy
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About uvVisit site - Free plan apiLinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Maven, Ivy, flat directory
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Rust crates; crates.io packages; alternate registry packages; Git dependencies; local path dependencies
- Supported platforms
- Windows; macOS; Linux; other Unix-like systems
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan apiLinuxmacOSWebWindows
- Package formats
- .nupkg, .snupkg
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux, .NET
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free planFree trial apiself-hostedWeb
- Free plan
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms$7.50/mofirst paid tier About HexVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- npm packages; tarballs; local, Git, link, patch, portal, and workspace references
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About YarnVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Paid from
- Free
- Package formats
- nupkg, nuspec, packages.config
- Supported platforms
- Windows; Linux; macOS
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms$1.50/mofirst paid tier About ChocolateyVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- sdist, wheel
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows, Python
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About pipVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- pom, jar, maven-plugin, ejb, war, ear, rar
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- .conda, .tar.bz2
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- wheel, sdist
- Supported platforms
- Windows, Linux, macOS, Python 3.10+
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About PDMVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- source distributions, wheels
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms€42/mofirst paid tier About PixiVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Dart packages
- Supported platforms
- Windows, Linux, macOS
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- PHP packages; ZIP; TAR; VCS repositories
- Supported platforms
- PHP; Windows; Linux; macOS
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan AndroidiOSLinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- C/C++ libraries
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux, Android, iOS
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- source packages, system libraries, binary targets, package registry archives
- Supported platforms
- macOS, Linux, Windows; packages can target Apple platforms
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- Nix expressions, derivations, flakes
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows through WSL2
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About NixVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- R packages; Python packages
- Supported platforms
- Windows, macOS, Linux
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatformsFree About renvVisit site - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- registered Julia packages, Git repositories, local path packages, package artifacts
- Supported platforms
- Linux, macOS, Windows, FreeBSD
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms - Free plan LinuxmacOSWindows
- Free plan
- Yes
- Package formats
- .cabal files; .tar.gz source distributions; RPM; Debian packages; Windows installers
- Supported platforms
- Linux; macOS; FreeBSD; Windows
- Dependency resolution
- Yes
- Lockfile support
- Yes
RecognisedDocumentedFree planFree trialPlatforms
Is your platform on this list?
Numbered spots on this list can be sponsored. They are labelled, and the editorial order and scores never change for payment.
Questions about this list
Which package manager is ranked first on The Geeks Club?
npm is ranked #1 of 93 with a score of 8.8. Conan is second and pnpm third.
How many of these have a free plan?
25 of the 25 on this page publish a free plan on their own pricing pages.
Which is the cheapest paid option?
On this page, Chocolatey has the lowest first paid tier we found: $1.50/mo.
How is this list ranked?
Ranked on how quickly a newcomer can get going: documentation depth, a free tier or trial, and the platforms it runs on. Paid placements never change a rank.
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