Comparing
A high-level Python web framework that encourages rapid development and clean, pragmatic design
The next generation HTTP client
| Metric | django | httpx |
|---|---|---|
| Ecosystem | Python | Python |
| Difficulty | Beginner ✓ | Intermediate |
| Weekly downloads | 9.9M | 119.1M↑ |
| Latest version | v6.0.3 | v0.28.1 |
| Recipes | 1 | 2↑ |
django only
Shared
httpx only
Use Django for full-stack web applications that need user accounts, an admin interface for content management, forms with validation, or an ORM for complex data relationships. It's the right choice when you want a complete, production-ready framework with a well-trodden path for common features.
Use httpx when building FastAPI or asyncio applications that call external APIs. Also reach for it when you need HTTP/2 support, a requests-compatible API with async support, or a single library that works in both sync and async contexts.
Django is heavy for pure REST APIs — the ORM, templates, and admin panel add weight you don't use. FastAPI is a better starting point for API-only projects. Django's synchronous-by-default nature (though async support has improved) can also be a constraint for highly concurrent applications.
For simple synchronous scripts where you already use requests, there's little reason to switch — requests has a larger ecosystem of auth libraries and middleware. For high-volume async scraping at scale, aiohttp's lower-level control may be more efficient.
django
httpx