Before commencing any development using Django, it is recommended to review the list of suggested Django packages below. These libraries provide a range of solutions to common business needs and have been 

• rigorously tested and endorsed by developers and the wider community 
   
• comprehensively documented 
   
• professionally supported
   
• regularly updated
   

Nonetheless, care should be taken to identify any potential drawbacks when utilizing them.

 

Internal development

1. Django-Extensions 

   This is is a package that adds various custom extensions to the Django web framework. ex: shell_plus (automatically import all models for the django python shell), graph_models (generate the application database schema), run_script (run custom script)

   Pros
   - Includes many useful tools and utilities
   - Makes development faster and easier 
   - Allows easy integration of 3rd-party services

   Cons
   - Can be resource intensive 
   - Not always compatible with all versions of Django

2. Django-Debug-Toolbar

   This is a package that adds a toolbar to the Django web framework allowing developers to debug requests and responses.

   Pros
   - Easy to install and configure
   - Provides detailed information about requests and responses (number of queries, running time)
   - Helps to identify and debug performance issues

   Cons
   - Not suitable for production environments
   - Only available for web view

3. Django-Health-Check

   This is a Python package that helps developers check the health of their Django application.

   Pros
   - Allows developers to quickly check the health of their Django application by running health checks on the application's cache, database, storage, disk and memory utilization (via psutil), AWS S3 storage, Celery task queue, Celery ping, RabbitMQ, Migrations
   - Automatically runs health checks on a regular basis, helping to identify and fix any potential issues before they become major problems.

   Cons
   - May not be suitable for applications that require more complex health checks.

4. Django-Query-Inspector

   This is a package that provides a suite of diagnostic tools for detecting and debugging slow Django database queries.

   Pros
   - Helps developers identify and debug slow queries in the Django ORM.
   - Can detect potential query problems like excessive use of joins and subqueries.
   - Offers comprehensive diagnostic information to help developers quickly pinpoint and solve any query issues.

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to understand and use for beginners.
   - Not compatible with all versions of Django.

5. Python-Decouple

   This is a Python package that provides a way to manage sensitive configuration information in an environment-agnostic way.

   Pros
   - Allows a developer to create configuration files that are separate from the source code, making it easier to keep configuration information secure.
   - Easy to use and integrate with existing projects.
   - Supports multiple environment configurations.

   Cons
   - Not all configuration information can be stored in a decoupled configuration file.
   - Can lead to code bloat if not used judiciously.

6. Sentry

   This is a Django package that helps with debugging and monitoring errors in Django applications.

   Pros
   - Automatically monitors and tracks errors and logs in Django applications
   - Helps to quickly identify and address errors in applications
   - Easy to integrate with other third-party services and tools

   Cons
   - Limited documentation and support 
   - Not suitable for large applications and databases with high volume of data

7. Pre-commit + Fourmat 

   Those are packages for Django applications that helps ensure that code is properly formatted, and that code changes are committed to version control.

   Pros
   - Automates the formatting of code for improved readability and consistency
   - Automatically commits code changes to version control, ensuring that code changes are tracked
   - Can help reduce errors due to incorrectly formatted code

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to configure correctly
   - Can introduce a significant overhead in terms of time spent managing and configuring the package

8. Coverage

   This is a Python package used to measure the code coverage of a program.

   Pros
   - Easy to install and use
   - Provides a comprehensive report on code coverage
   - Supports multiple Python versions

   Cons
   - Can be slow when dealing with large programs 
   - May not be as accurate as other coverage tools

 

Authentication

1. Django-AllAuth

   This is a package that integrates set of Django applications addressing authentication, registration, account management as well as 3rd party (social) account authentication.

   Pros
   - Supports multiple providers for authentication (e.g. Facebook, Twitter, Google, etc.)
   - Supports multiple authentication methods (e.g. username/password, email/password, etc.)
   - Easy to integrate with other Django applications
   - Easy to customize and extend
   - Secure authentication

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to set up
   - May be difficult to troubleshoot when problems arise
   - Can be resource-intensive when using multiple providers

2. Django-OAuth-Toolkit

   This is a package for adding OAuth2 authentication to applications.

   Pros
   - It allows for easy integration of authentication with third-party services such as Google, Facebook, Twitter, and more.
   - It supports the OAuth2 standard and is compatible with a variety of frameworks.
   - It supports token-based authentication, which is a more secure way of authenticating users.
   - It is open source and actively maintained, with a large community of developers contributing to its development.

   Cons
   - It can be difficult to configure and requires a certain level of technical knowledge.
   - It requires a detailed setup process that can be time-consuming.
   - It is not suitable for all applications, as it requires certain technical configurations.

3. Django-Axes

   A security monitoring package for Django which allows to log and monitor failed and successful login attempts

   Pros
   - Logs user's IP address
   - Can be configured to lock out logins after a certain number of failed attempts 
   - Can also be configured to reset lockout after a certain amount of time

   Cons
   - Can add extra load to the server as it needs to store and query data
   - Can be misconfigured and could lead to false positives, blocking legitimate users

4. Django-Sesame
   - Allows authentication using a single sign-on (SSO) service
   - Supports popular SSO providers like GitHub, Google, and LDAP
   - Offers built-in support for two-factor authentication

   Pros
   - Easy integration with existing authentication systems
   - Improved security with two-factor authentication
   - Supports popular SSO providers

   Cons
   - Lack of flexibility when configuring authentication
   - Requires users to have an account with an SSO provider to use it
   - Limited customization options for authentication

 

Form

1. Django-Cripsy-Form

   This allows the user to quickly build and customize forms using the popular Bootstrap library. It provides a simple way to customize forms using the powerful and flexible Bootstrap library.

   Pros
   - Provides a simple and easy way to quickly create forms.
   - Highly customizable, allowing the user to create forms that look and behave according to their needs.
   - Offers a wide range of form elements, including radio buttons, checkboxes, text fields etc.
   - Integrates with other frameworks, such as Django-Rest-Framework.

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to configure for more complicated forms.
   - Can be time consuming to create forms for larger projects.
   - Limited support for customizing form elements.

 

Model

1. Django-Model-Utils

   This provides various utility functions for working with Django models. 

   Pros
   - Provides a simple and powerful API for working with Django models
   - Includes various utilities for querying, validating, and manipulating models 
   - Easy to use and integrate into existing Django projects 

   Cons
   - Does not provide support for advanced features such as database migrations or schema generation 
   - Limited to working with Django models only, so cannot be used with other frameworks or ORMs

2. Easy-Thumbnail

   This library creates thumbnails of images.

   Pros
   - Easy to use, with great documentation and support.
   - Supports basic image manipulation.
   - Can generate thumbnails of any size and aspect ratio.
   - Supports multiple output formats, including PNG, JPEG, and GIF.
   - Flexible and extensible.

   Cons
   - May be slow for large images.
   - May not be as robust as some other thumbnail libraries.

3. Django-Simple-History

   This allows for the tracking of object changes over time.

   Pros
   - Easy to install and use
   - Easily track object changes over time
   - Can be used to keep a version control system for applications
   - Can be used to audit changes to objects

   Cons
   - May not be as powerful as other version control systems 
   - May not be suitable for applications that require a lot of customization or complex tracking of object changes

4. Pillow

   Python Imaging Library (PIL) adds support for the latest Python 3.x releases and Pillow’s own features, such as access to EXIF metadata.

   Pros
   - Supports the latest Python 3.x releases
   - Has access to EXIF metadata
   - Offers many built-in image processing functions
   - Easy to extend with custom algorithms

   Cons
   - Supports only a limited set of image formats
   - Requires an installation of the Python Imaging Library (PIL) 
   - Limited ability to handle large images

5. Django-VersatileImageField

   This enables developers to add a flexible, intuitive and easily-extensible image field to their Django models.

   Pros
   - Supports multiple image sizes and formats, including GIF, PNG, and JPEG
   - Automatically creates thumbnails for all uploaded images
   - Allows for easy replacement of existing images
   - Automatically stores images in an optimized format for fast loading
   - Easily extensible for custom image processing tasks

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to set up for complex image processing tasks
   - May require additional packages to support certain image formats

6. Django-Imagekit

   This processes images and allows users to easily add image manipulation functionality to their Django models and forms. 

   Pros
   - Easy to use and setup 
   - Offers many image manipulation features 
   - Has an extensive library of image manipulation tools 
   - Allows for custom image manipulation 
   - Easy to integrate into existing Django projects 

   Cons
   - Does not support animated GIFs 
   - Can be slow when dealing with large images 
   - Some features might be too complicated for some users

7. Django-Widget-Tweaks

   This allows customizing form field rendering in templates without having to create custom form widgets.

   Pros
   - Allows more control over how form fields are rendered in templates
   - Easy to customize a variety of form fields, such as text input, radio buttons and checkboxes 
   - Adds HTML attributes to form fields 

   Cons
   - Does not allow customizing form field validation behavior 
   - May not be compatible with other form customization packages

8. Django-Taggit

   This allows you to add tagging to any model.

   Pros
   - Easy to use
   - Allows you to quickly add tags to different models
   - Supports custom tag models and custom tag managers
   - Includes a built-in template tag library for displaying tags in templates

   Cons
   - May be difficult to integrate with other Django applications
   - Does not support more advanced tagging features such as auto-complete, filtering, or type-ahead

9. Django-Phonenumber-Field

   This allows developers to store and validate international phone numbers in a Django model field.

   Pros
   - It allows developers to easily implement a form field that validates user input as a valid phone number.
   - It can handle different countries and their respective phone number formats.
   - It is lightweight and easy to use.

   Cons
   - It does not provide any UI components and the user must manually enter the phone number in the provided field.
   - It does not offer any features to easily format the phone number in a specific way.

 

Admin

1. Django-Import-Export

   This support import and export data from the Django models.

   Pros
   - Supports multiple formats, including CSV, JSON, YAML, and XLS.
   - Offers admin integration for importing and exporting data.
   - Allows for bulk operations.

   Cons
   - Requires manual configuration for different data formats.
   - Can be complex to use for complex data sets.
   - May require additional customization for specific user needs.

2. Django-Storage

   This provides an easy way to manage different types of files and store them in a remote storage system.

   Pros
   - Easy to deploy and use.
   - Supports a range of different storage systems, including Amazon S3, Azure Blob Storage, and Rackspace Cloud Files.
   - Allows for the easy integration of other storage systems.
   - Supports secure data transfer and storage.

   Cons 
   - Can be difficult to configure and maintain.
   - Requires a good understanding of the different storage systems.

3. Django-Admin-Interface

   This allows users to customize the Django administration interface to suit their specific needs.

   Pros
   - Allows users to customize the look/theme and feel of their admin interface 
   - Easy to use
   - Allows users to create custom dashboards

   Cons
   - May be difficult to learn for beginners
   - May require some technical knowledge to customize the interface

4. Django-Admin-Chart

   This allows developers to create chart widgets for their Django admin pages. 

   Pros 
   - Easy to install and configure.
   - Allows the creation of powerful visualizations of data.
   - Makes it easier to quickly view and analyze data.

   Cons
   - Limited customization options.
   - Not as feature-rich as some other charting libraries.
   - Some reports may require coding to create.

5. Django-Json-Widget

   This provides an easy way to provide an HTML form for a JSON field in Django.

   Pros
   - Supports multiple languages
   - Easy to use
   - Provides a convenient way to manage JSON data
   - Supports multi-level nesting

   Cons
   - Limited customization options
   - Not suitable for complex JSON data structures

6. Django-Ckeditor

   This enables developers to add a rich text editor to their Django app.

   Pros
   - Easily integrated with existing Django projects
   - Supports a wide range of browser compatibility 
   - Includes a variety of customization options 
   - Has a large selection of plugins and add-ons
   - Has a comprehensive documentation

   Cons
   - Must be kept up-to-date with regular security patches 
   - Can be resource-intensive to run 
   - Certain plugins and add-ons may not be compatible with certain operating systems or web browsers

 

Test

1. Pytest-Django

   This is a plugin for the pytest framework that enables testing for Django projects.

   Pros
   - Easy to use and setup
   - More powerful and flexible than the default Django testing framework
   - Can be used for both unit and functional testing
   - Supports all Django versions

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to debug
   - Can be slow to run tests
   - Not as well-documented as other testing frameworks

2. Django-Factory-Boy

   This provides easy/quick test fixtures creation for Django applications. 

   Pros
   - Easy to use and configure
   - Can easily create complex test data
   - Can speed up test execution

   Cons
   - Can be complicated to debug when things go wrong 
   - Can be time consuming to set up

3. Pytest-Xdist

   This supports and allows running pytest concurrently.

   Pros
   - Allows tests to run faster
   - Can be used to run tests on multiple machines
   - Can be used to run tests in parallel

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to debug when tests fail
   - Cannot be used to run tests on different versions of Python
   - May require multiple machines for optimal performance

4. Pytest-Mock

   This simplifies the process of mocking objects in the unit tests.

   Pros
   - Allows developers to control the behavior of objects without changing the code
   - Makes it easier to write unit tests
   - Can be used in a variety of Python projects

   Cons
   - Learning curve can be steep for users unfamiliar with mocking
   - Can be difficult to debug failing tests due to mocking
   - Can be difficult to maintain with larger projects as the complexity increases

 

RESTFUL APIs

1. Django-Rest-Framework (DRF)

   This is a POWERFUL package for building web APIs in Django. It provides a robust and flexible toolkit for developing RESTful APIs quickly and easily.

   Pros
   - Easy to use and get started with
   - Offers a wide range of features such as authentication, serialization, request/response handling, versioning, and more
   - Highly customizable
   - Supports a wide range of clients, from web browsers and single-page apps to mobile and desktop apps

   Cons
   - Not as feature-rich as some other frameworks
   - Can be difficult to debug and maintain due to its complexity
   - Poor documentation and support
   - Sometimes slow due to Select COUNT(*)

2. Django-Filter

   This allows users to filter queryset dynamically. This is a MUST package with DRF

   Pros
   - Easy to use and allows users to easily create filters for querysets 
   - Allows users to filter by multiple criteria
   - Is highly customizable and allows users to create custom filters

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to debug and set up 
   - Can cause performance issues if not used correctly 
   - Can be difficult to understand for new users

3. Djangorestframework-Simplejwt

   This provides a set of tools for implementing JSON Web Tokens authentication (JWT).

   Pros
   - Provides secure authentication for APIs
   - Flexible and easy to use
   - Supports various authentication strategies
   - Offers a wide range of features and customization options

   Cons
   - May be complex for beginners to use
   - Is limited to only being used with Django REST framework

4. Drf-Yasg (DRF Yet Another Swagger Generator)

   This helps to automatically generate Swagger/OpenAPI documentation for APIs built using Django Rest Framework.

   Pros
   - Automatically generates Swagger/OpenAPI documentation for APIs built using Django Rest Framework. 
   - Enables developers to easily generate interactive API documentation. 
   - Allows users to easily test APIs from the documentation. 

   Cons
   - Documentation that is generated is not always accurate and may require manual editing.
   - It does not support all versions of Django Rest Framework.

5. Drf-nested-routers

   This allows for creating nested routes for Django applications. It makes it easy to create nested routes and handle multiple levels of nesting.

   Pros
   - Easy to use nested routes
   - Easy to handle multiple levels of nesting
   - Flexible and extensible

   Cons
   - Limited documentation 
   - Not supported by all versions of Django 
   - May require manual configuration to get the desired results.

 

Background Tasks

1. Django-Celery

   This integrates Celery with Django and allows you to easily use Celery to manage tasks in your Django projects.

   Pros
   - Easy to integrate with existing Django applications.
   - Allows for asynchronous tasks to be run within your application.
   - Allows for scalability due to the distributed task architecture.
   - Can be used to run periodic tasks with ease.

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to debug due to the distributed architecture.
   - Can be difficult to integrate with other applications.
   - Can be difficult to manage due to the complexity of the Celery architecture.

2. Django-Celery-Result

   This provides a bridge between Celery and Django, allowing Django to use Celery to run tasks asynchronously.

   Pros
   - Allows for asynchronous task execution, allowing for faster processing of tasks.
   - Can be used to handle large amounts of data, as tasks can be distributed across multiple machines.
   - Provides an easy-to-use interface to interact with Celery from within Django.

   Cons
   - Can be difficult to configure and set up.
   - Requires knowledge of both Django and Celery in order to use effectively.
   - Can be difficult to debug, as it relies heavily on Celery.

3. Django-Redis

   This is a full featured connector for using Redis with Django. It provides a high-level API that allows developers to easily access Redis databases and leverage its features.

   Pros
   - Offers a high-level API that simplifies interactions with Redis
   - Supports multiple Redis databases
   - Provides a powerful and versatile connection between Django and Redis
   - Easily integrates with other Django libraries and frameworks

   Cons
   - Requires a certain level of expertise to configure and use
   - Not as well documented as other Django package

 

Notification

1. Django-Notification

   This allows users to be notified of events in the system via a variety of methods.

   Pros
   - Easy to set up and configure
   - Supports multiple notification channels (e.g. email, SMS, etc.)
   - Allows for customisable notifications
   - Offers a range of notification options (e.g. immediate, delayed, etc.)

   Cons
   - Limited support for customisation of notifications
   - Requires some technical knowledge to setup and configure

 

Socket

1. Django-Channels

   This is an asynchronous framework for handling WebSockets and other types of background tasks in Django.

   Pros
   - Allows for asynchronous communication between the client and server.
   - Helps to keep webpages up to date with real-time data.
   - Easier to handle long-running tasks than traditional request-response cycle.

   Cons
   - Can be more complex to set up and debug than the traditional request-response cycle.
   - May require more resources to handle the extra load of the asynchronous requests.

 

References

1. https://djangopackages.org/grids/