awesome-header-only-cpp

A collection of awesome header-only C++ libraries

Argument Parsing

• argh: Argh! A minimalist argument handler.

• argparse: Argument Parser for Modern C++

• args: A simple header-only C++ argument parser library. Supposed to be flexible and powerful, and attempts to be compatible with the functionality of the Python standard argparse library (though not necessarily the API).

• CLI11: CLI11 is a command line parser for C++11 and beyond that provides a rich feature set with a simple and intuitive interface.

• clipp: easy to use, powerful & expressive command line argument parsing for modern C++ / single header / usage & doc generation

• flags: ⛳ Simple, extensible, header-only C++17 argument parser released into the public domain.

• structopt: Parse command line arguments by defining a struct

Benchmarking

• nanobench: Simple, fast, accurate single-header microbenchmarking functionality for C++11/14/17/20

Compression

• gzip-hpp: Gzip header-only C++ library

• zstr: A C++ header-only ZLib wrapper

Data Formats

• cppcodec: Header-only C++11 library to encode/decode base64, base64url, base32, base32hex and hex (a.k.a. base16) as specified in RFC 4648, plus Crockford's base32. MIT licensed with consistent, flexible API.

• cpptoml: cpptoml is a header-only library for parsing TOML

• inih: This is a header only C++ version of inih.

• jsoncons: A C++, header-only library for constructing JSON and JSON-like data formats, with JSON Pointer, JSON Patch, JSONPath, JMESPath, CSV, MessagePack, CBOR, BSON, UBJSON

• nlohmann/json: JSON for Modern C++

• picojson: a header-file-only, JSON parser serializer in C++

• taocpp/json: C++ header-only JSON library

• toml11: TOML for Modern C++

• tomlplusplus: Header-only TOML config file parser and serializer for C++17 (and later!).

• valijson: Header-only C++ library for JSON Schema validation

• xml2json: A header-only C++ library converts XML to JSON

Data Mining, Machine Learning, and Deep Learning

• frugally-deep: Header-only library for using Keras models in C++.

• hnswlib: Header-only C++/python library for fast approximate nearest neighbors

• MiniDNN: A header-only C++ library for deep neural networks

• nanoflann: nanoflann: a C++11 header-only library for Nearest Neighbor (NN) search with KD-trees

• tiny-dnn: header only, dependency-free deep learning framework in C++14

Data Modeling

• HighFive: HighFive - Header-only C++ HDF5 interface

• sqlite_orm: SQLite ORM light header only library for modern C++

• units: a compile-time, header-only, dimensional analysis and unit conversion library built on c++14 with no dependencies.

Data Presentation

• cxx-prettyprint: A header-only library for C++(0x) that allows automagic pretty-printing of any container.

• matplotlib-cpp: Extremely simple yet powerful header-only C++ plotting library built on the popular matplotlib

Data Processing and Analysis

• libmorton: C++ header-only library with methods to efficiently encode/decode Morton codes in/from 2D/3D coordinates

• kalman: Header-only C++11 Kalman Filtering Library (EKF, UKF) based on Eigen3

• kfr: Fast, modern C++ DSP framework, FFT, Sample Rate Conversion, FIR/IIR/Biquad Filters (SSE, AVX, AVX-512, ARM NEON)

• spectra: A header-only C++ library for large scale eigenvalue problems

Data Structures

• concurrentqueue: A fast multi-producer, multi-consumer lock-free concurrent queue for C++11

• frozen: a header-only, constexpr alternative to gperf for C++14 users

• hopscotch-map: C++ implementation of a fast hash map and hash set using hopscotch hashing

• MPMCQueue: A bounded multi-producer multi-consumer concurrent queue written in C++11

• parallel-hashmap: A family of header-only, very fast and memory-friendly hashmap and btree containers.

• robin-hood-hashing: Fast & memory efficient hashtable based on robin hood hashing for C++11/14/17/20

• robin-map: C++ implementation of a fast hash map and hash set using robin hood hashing

Event Handling Mechanisms, State Machines, and Task Systems

• eventpp: Event Dispatcher and callback list for C++

• tinyfsm: A simple C++ finite state machine library

• transwarp: A header-only C++ library for task concurrency

File System

• filesystem: An implementation of C++17 std::filesystem for C++11 /C++14/C++17 on Windows, macOS, Linux and FreeBSD.

• mio: Cross-platform C++11 header-only library for memory mapped file IO

• tinydir: Lightweight, portable and easy to integrate C directory and file reader

Functional Programming

• FunctionalPlus: Functional Programming Library for C++. Write concise and readable C++ code.

GUI

• GuiLite: The smallest header-only GUI library(5 KLOC) for all platforms

Geometry, Graphics Processing, and Game Development

• cinolib: A generic programming header only C++ library for processing polygonal and polyhedral meshes

• cr: cr.h: A Simple C Hot Reload Header-only Library

• earcut.hpp: Fast, header-only polygon triangulation

• entt: Gaming meets modern C++ - a fast and reliable entity component system (ECS) and much more

• librg: 🚀 Making multi-player gamedev simpler since 2017

• nanort: NanoRT, single header only modern ray tracing kernel.

• tiny-differentiable-simulator: Tiny Differentiable Simulator is a header-only C++ physics library with zero dependencies.

• voxelizer: Header only mesh voxelizer in c99

• vuda: VUDA is a header-only library based on Vulkan that provides a CUDA Runtime API interface for writing GPU-accelerated applications.

HTTP and the Web

• cinatra: modern c++(c++17), cross-platform, header-only, easy to use http framework

• cpp-httplib: A C++11 single-file header-only cross platform HTTP/HTTPS library.

• crow: Crow is very fast and easy to use C++ micro web framework (inspired by Python Flask)

Language Bindings

• jni.hpp: A modern, type-safe, header-only, C++14 wrapper for JNI (Java Native Interface)

• Selene: Simple C++11 friendly header-only bindings to Lua

Logging

• plog: Portable, simple and extensible C++ logging library

• spdlog: Fast C++ logging library.

Mocking

• FakeIt: C++ mocking made easy. A simple yet very expressive, headers only library for c++ mocking.

• trompeloeil: Header only C++14 mocking framework

Networking

• brynet: A Header-Only cross-platform C++ TCP network library

• cppzmq: Header-only C++ binding for libzmq

• uvw: Header-only, event based, tiny and easy to use libuv wrapper in modern C++ - now available as also shared/static library!

Optimization

• ensmallen: A header-only C++ library for numerical optimization

Parsing Expression Grammars

• cpp-peglib: A single file C++ header-only PEG (Parsing Expression Grammars) library

• PEGTL: Parsing Expression Grammar Template Library

Querying

• boolinq: Simplest C++ header-only LINQ template library

Random

• random: Random for modern C++ with convenient API

Reflection

• better-enums: C++ compile-time enum to string, iteration, in a single header file

• magic_enum: Static reflection for enums (to string, from string, iteration) for modern C++, work with any enum type without any macro or boilerplate code

• meta: Header-only, non-intrusive and macro-free runtime reflection system in C++

• nameof: Nameof operator for modern C++, simply obtain the name of a variable, type, function, macro, and enum

• visit_struct: A miniature library for struct-field reflection in C++

Regular Expressions

• compile-time-regular-expressions: A Compile time PCRE (almost) compatible regular expression matcher.

Robitics

• manif: A small c++11 header-only library for Lie theory.

Security

• PicoSHA2: a header-file-only, SHA256 hash generator in C++

SIMD

• libsimdpp: Portable header-only C++ low level SIMD library

• tsimd: Fundamental C++ SIMD types for Intel CPUs (sse, avx, avx2, avx512)

Standard/Support Libraries

• expected-lite: expected lite - Expected objects in C++11 and later in a single-file header-only library

• gsl-lite: gsl-lite – A single-file header-only version of ISO C++ Guidelines Support Library (GSL) for C++98, C++11, and later

• hana: Your standard library for metaprogramming

• optional-lite: optional lite - A C++17-like optional, a nullable object for C++98, C++11 and later in a single-file header-only library

• span-lite: span lite - A C++20-like span for C++98, C++11 and later in a single-file header-only library

• string-view-lite: string_view lite - A C++17-like string_view for C++98, C++11 and later in a single-file header-only library

• variant-lite: variant lite - A C++17-like variant, a type-safe union for C++98, C++11 and later in a single-file header-only library

Statistics

• stats: A C++ header-only library of statistical distribution functions.

Templating Engines

• inja: A Template Engine for Modern C++

Terminal Utilities

• indicators: Activity Indicators for Modern C++

• rang: A Minimal, Header only Modern c++ library for terminal goodies 💄✨

• termcolor: Termcolor is a header-only C++ library for printing colored messages to the terminal. Written just for fun with a help of the Force.

Testing Frameworks

• Catch2: A modern, C++-native, header-only, test framework for unit-tests, TDD and BDD - using C++11, C++14, C++17 and later

• doctest: The fastest feature-rich C++11/14/17/20 single-header testing framework

• lest: A modern, C++11-native, single-file header-only, tiny framework for unit-tests, TDD and BDD (includes C++98 variant)

• ut: UT: C++20 μ(micro)/Unit Testing Framework