Vulkan AlternativesGraphics Libraries and other similar apps like Vulkan

Vulkan is described as 'New generation graphics and compute API that provides high-efficiency, cross-platform access to modern GPUs used in a wide variety of devices from PCs and consoles to mobile phones and embedded platforms' and is a popular graphics library in the development category. There are more than 10 alternatives to Vulkan for a variety of platforms, including Mac, Windows, Linux, iPhone and BSD apps. The best Vulkan alternative is OpenGL, which is both free and Open Source. Other great apps like Vulkan are DirectX, WebGL, SDL and ANGLE.

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Alternatives list

  1. OpenGL icon

    OpenGL

     188 likes
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    OpenGL is the premier environment for developing portable, interactive 2D and 3D graphics applications. Since its introduction in 1992, OpenGL has become the industry's most widely used and supported 2D and 3D graphics application programming interface (API), bringing...

    10 OpenGL alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • BSD
    • Haiku
    Project64 (Nintendo 64 emulator) with the Glide64 video plugin (which uses OpenGL) playing Super Mario 64.
     
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    • Almost everyone thinks OpenGL is a great Vulkan alternative.

    • OpenGL is the most popular Windows, Android, Mac & iPhone alternative to Vulkan.

    • OpenGL is the most popular Open Source & free alternative to Vulkan.

    • OpenGL is Free and Open SourceVulkan is also Free and Open Source
  2. DirectX icon

    DirectX

     42 likes
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    DirectX is a set of components in Windows that allows software, primarily and especially games, to work directly with your video and audio hardware.

    12 DirectX alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Proprietary

    Platforms

    • Windows
    DirectX screenshot 1
     
  4. WebGL icon

    WebGL

     26 likes
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    WebGL is a cross-platform, royalty-free web standard for a low-level 3D graphics API based on OpenGL ES 2.0, exposed through the HTML5 Canvas element as Document Object Model interfaces. Developers familiar with OpenGL ES 2.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Online
     

    • WebGL is the most popular Web-based alternative to Vulkan.

    • WebGL is Free and Open SourceVulkan is also Free and Open Source
  5. SDL icon

    SDL

     35 likes
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    Simple DirectMedia Layer is a cross-platform multimedia library designed to provide low level access to audio, keyboard, mouse, joystick, 3D hardware via OpenGL, and 2D video framebuffer. It is used by MPEG playback software, emulators, and many popular games, including the...

    33 SDL alternatives

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • Windows Mobile
    • iPhone
    • Symbian S60
    • BSD
    • iPad
    • Haiku
     
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    Comments about SDL as an Alternative to Vulkan
    aaronfranke
    Negative
    0

    SDL handles everything (input, sound, files) and wraps around graphics APIs like Vulkan. Not the same thing.

    Vulkan Icon
    SDL icon

    • SDL is the most popular iPad alternative to Vulkan.

    • SDL is Free and Open SourceVulkan is also Free and Open Source
  6. ANGLE icon

    ANGLE

     1 like
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    The goal of ANGLE is to allow users of multiple operating systems to seamlessly run WebGL and other OpenGL ES content by translating OpenGL ES API calls to one of the hardware-supported APIs available for that platform. ANGLE currently provides translation from OpenGL ES 2.0, 3.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Platforms

    • Windows
    • Mac
    • Linux
    • Android
    • iPhone
    • iPad
    • Android Tablet
    ANGLE screenshot 1
     

    • ANGLE is the most popular Android Tablet alternative to Vulkan.

    • ANGLE is Free and Open SourceVulkan is also Free and Open Source
  7. Metal icon

    Metal

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    Metal provides near-direct access to the graphics processing unit (GPU), enabling you to maximize the graphics and compute potential of your apps on iOS, macOS, and tvOS. Building on an approachable, low-overhead architecture with precompiled GPU shaders, fine-grained resource...

    Cost / License

    • Pay once
    • Proprietary

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    Metal screenshot 1
     

    • Metal is the most popular commercial alternative to Vulkan.

    • Metal is Paid and ProprietaryVulkan is Free and Open Source
  9. Allegro icon

    Allegro

     12 likes
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    Allegro 4 and Allegro 5 are cross-platform, libraries mainly aimed at video game and multimedia programming. They handle common, low-level tasks such as creating windows, accepting user input, loading data, drawing images, playing sounds, etc.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application types

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    • iPhone
     
  10. ModernGL icon

    ModernGL

     1 like
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    OpenGL is a great environment for developing portable, platform independent, interactive 2D and 3D graphics applications. The API implementation in Python is cumbersome, resulting in applications with high latency.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    ModernGL screenshot 1
     
  11. PyOpenGL icon

    PyOpenGL

     3 likes
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    Python bindings for OpenGL API.

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
     
  12. Crystal Space icon

    Crystal Space

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    Crystal Space is a mature, full-featured Software Development Kit (SDK) providing real-time 3D graphics for applications such as games and virtual reality. It is free (LGPL) and cross-platform (Windows, GNU/Linux, Mac OS X).

    Cost / License

    • Free
    • Open Source

    Application type

    Alerts

    • Discontinued

    Platforms

    • Mac
    • Windows
    • Linux
    Yo Frankie!
     
10 of 10 Vulkan alternatives