# Anthropic SDK review

> Anthropic SDK is the official Python library for calling the Claude API from Python applications.

Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026. Canonical page: https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/anthropic-sdk/

## TL;DR

Anthropic SDK, published on PyPI as anthropic, gives Python applications access to the Claude API. It is for Python 3.10+ developers building on Claude. The SDK includes tool helpers, browser and computer toolset classes, and native OpenTelemetry tracing of each API call.

## Anthropic SDK at a glance

- **Category:** [Model SDKs and gateways](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/categories/model-sdks-and-gateways/)
- **Maintained by:** Anthropic (organization, [@anthropics](https://github.com/anthropics) on GitHub)
- **License:** Apache 2.0
- **Language:** Python, Shell, Dockerfile
- **Repository:** [github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python)
- **npm package:** [@anthropic-ai/sdk](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@anthropic-ai/sdk) 1.1.0
- **PyPI package:** [anthropic](https://pypi.org/project/anthropic/) 2.1.0
- **Latest release:** [v2.1.0](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python/releases/tag/v2.1.0) on GitHub, Oct 21, 2026
- **First published:** Jan 17, 2023

## What Anthropic SDK does

- Anthropic SDK sends Messages API requests to Claude through a client object, for example client.messages.create with a model, max_tokens and messages.
- Anthropic SDK provides tool helpers, including the @beta_tool decorator, a tool runner and ToolError.
- Anthropic SDK includes browser and computer toolset classes, each with its own guide.
- Anthropic SDK reports each API call as an OpenTelemetry span when your application has registered a tracer provider.
- Anthropic SDK can optionally record prompts and completions in spans, with a configurable size limit per span.
- Anthropic SDK covers Admin API features such as spend limits, workspace rate-limit updates, telemetry destinations and user profiles.
- Anthropic SDK has Bedrock, Mantle and Google Cloud clients for reaching Claude through those platforms.

### How it works

Anthropic SDK is a Python package you import into your application. You create an Anthropic client, which reads the ANTHROPIC_API_KEY environment variable by default, then call methods such as messages.create. It depends on opentelemetry-api and emits spans to your registered tracer provider. Environment variables like ANTHROPIC_OPEN_TELEMETRY=false control tracing when no option is passed.

## How to install Anthropic SDK

**With pip**

```
pip install anthropic
```

### Requirements

- Python 3.10 or later
- A Claude API key, read from ANTHROPIC_API_KEY by default
- opentelemetry-api, installed as a required dependency

### First steps

1. Install the package with pip install anthropic.
2. Set the ANTHROPIC_API_KEY environment variable. The client reads it by default.
3. Create a client with Anthropic() and call client.messages.create with a model, max_tokens and a user message.
4. Print message.content to see Claude's reply.

## Who Anthropic SDK is for

- Python developers building applications that call the Claude API directly.
- Teams that want Claude API calls traced in their existing OpenTelemetry setup.
- Developers building tool-using or computer-use workflows with Claude in Python.

### Limitations

- Anthropic SDK v2.0.0 has breaking changes for API version 2026-10-21. Code written for 0.x releases needs the v1 migration guide.
- Anthropic SDK creates spans and adds trace context headers once your app registers a global tracer provider. Pass open_telemetry=False to disable this.
- Anthropic SDK requires a speed beta header on some models when using the speed parameter.

## Usage data (the week of Oct 25–31, 2026)

- Board rank: #149 overall, #5 in Model SDKs and gateways, momentum score 53
- Downloads that week: 111M (+14% vs 4-week average)
- New GitHub stars per week (last 12 weeks): Aug 9: 23; Aug 16: 25; Aug 23: 24; Aug 30: 16; Sep 6: 17; Sep 13: 13; Sep 20: 13; Sep 27: 24; Oct 4: 18; Oct 11: 21; Oct 18: 28; Oct 25: 29

## Anthropic SDK alternatives

| Rank | Tool | Stars | Downloads/wk |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | [thinking-orbs](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/jakubantalik-thinking-orbs/) | 3.9k | 1.4M |
| #2 | [Headroom](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/headroomlabs-ai-headroom/) | 78.5k | 125.8k |
| #3 | [LiteLLM](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/litellm/) | 62.5k | 23.1M |
| #4 | [Honcho](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/plastic-labs-honcho/) | 7.9k | – |
| #6 | [Hugging Face Hub](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/hf-hub/) | 4k | 68.3M |
| #7 | [OpenAI SDK](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/openai-sdk/) | 32k | 141.3M |

## Anthropic SDK FAQ

### Is Anthropic SDK free and open source?

Yes. Anthropic SDK's source code is on GitHub (anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python) under the Apache 2.0 license, so you can use it for free.

### How do I install Anthropic SDK?

Run `pip install anthropic`. The install section above has the other options from the project's README.

### Is Anthropic SDK still maintained?

Yes. The anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python repository was last updated on Oct 21, 2026, and the latest release, v2.1.0 on GitHub, came out on Oct 21, 2026.

### How popular is Anthropic SDK?

Anthropic SDK has 4k GitHub stars as of Nov 1, 2026. It gained 29 new stars in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, against a 12-week average of 21 a week. Its main package had about 111M downloads that week, +14% against its own 4-week average. That made it #5 among LLM SDKs and gateways on the Devtoolwatch Board.

### Anthropic SDK vs Claude Agent SDK: how do they compare?

Anthropic SDK and Claude Agent SDK are both tracked by Devtoolwatch. Anthropic SDK has 4k GitHub stars and Claude Agent SDK has 8.4k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Anthropic SDK's main package had 111M downloads and Claude Agent SDK's had 25.6M. Claude Agent SDK is a Python SDK for building agents that interact programmatically with Claude Code, including its tools, custom tools, and hooks. [Claude Agent SDK review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/claude-agent-sdk/)

### Anthropic SDK vs LangChain: how do they compare?

Anthropic SDK and LangChain are both tracked by Devtoolwatch. Anthropic SDK has 4k GitHub stars and LangChain has 148.8k. In the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, Anthropic SDK's main package had 111M downloads and LangChain's had 41.1M. [LangChain review](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/tools/langchain/)

### What are the best alternatives to Anthropic SDK?

Other LLM SDKs and gateways on the Devtoolwatch Board in the week of Oct 25–31, 2026, by momentum: thinking-orbs (#1), Headroom (#2), LiteLLM (#3), Honcho (#4), Hugging Face Hub (#6). The alternatives table above has their numbers.

### What is the difference between the Anthropic SDK and the Claude API?

Anthropic SDK is a Python library that gives access to the Claude API. The API is the service. The SDK wraps it in a client with methods such as messages.create and handles the API key from ANTHROPIC_API_KEY.

### How do I turn off OpenTelemetry tracing in the Anthropic SDK?

Anthropic SDK stops emitting spans when you pass open_telemetry=False to the client. You can also set ANTHROPIC_OPEN_TELEMETRY=false, which only applies when the client gets no open_telemetry option.

### Does the Anthropic SDK log my prompts in traces?

Anthropic SDK does not include prompts or completions in spans by default. Set content_mode to content, or ANTHROPIC_OPEN_TELEMETRY_TRACES_CONTENT_MODE=content, to add them. Content per span is capped at 750,000 bytes by default.

### Is there a TypeScript version of the Anthropic SDK?

Yes. Anthropic publishes @anthropic-ai/sdk on npm, described as the official TypeScript library for the Anthropic API.

### Does the Anthropic SDK support tool use?

Yes. Anthropic SDK provides tool helpers, including @beta_tool, a tool runner and ToolError. It also has browser and computer toolset classes, each documented in its own guide.

## Sources

1. [anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python on GitHub](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python)
2. [Anthropic SDK README](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python/blob/main/README.md)
3. [@anthropic-ai/sdk on npm](https://www.npmjs.com/package/@anthropic-ai/sdk)
4. [anthropic on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/anthropic/)
5. [Release v2.1.0 (Oct 21, 2026)](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python/releases/tag/v2.1.0)
6. [Release v2.0.0 (Oct 21, 2026)](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python/releases/tag/v2.0.0)
7. [Release v1.17.0 (Oct 20, 2026)](https://github.com/anthropics/anthropic-sdk-python/releases/tag/v1.17.0)
8. [Hacker News: Claude prompt-cache writes may not be immediately visible to the next request](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47925747)
9. [Devtoolwatch Board, the week of Oct 25–31, 2026](https://index.devtoolwatch.com/)