Manim
Hacker ApprovedAnimation library in Developer tools
A Python library for generating polished math animations, often used to explain math concepts. People also like its 1:1 API compatibility in browser ports. Some find the setup too heavy for small needs.
A Python library for generating polished math animations, often used to explain math concepts. People also like its 1:1 API compatibility in browser ports. Some find the setup too heavy for small needs.
18 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 15
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 83%
Recommended in 5 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 15 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 5 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Polished math animation output
“Manim is a python library created by Grant Sanderson to create really great math animations”
Comment from 9 Jan 2026 in “Manim Has Been Hacked” “3b1b's excellent python library for generating maths visualisations”
Comment from 1 Jul 2026 in “Waveloop: What Fable Left Me” “using the great Manim library”
Comment from 1 Apr 2026 in “Low energy transfers in space: getting to the Moon with Lagrange points” Works with AI-generated animations
“you can ask claude to make manim animations for you and it will”
Comment from 25 Feb 2026 in “I asked Claude for 37,500 random names, and it can't stop saying Marcus” “Being able to create manim animations at scale is a value-add”
Comment from 19 Jul 2026 in “LLM-Integrated Multivariable Calculus Course” Keeps 1:1 API compatibility
“The effort you're cloning -- manim -- did exactly that. The result was a synergistic, friendly, manim-ce.”
Comment from 19 Jul 2026 in “LLM-Integrated Multivariable Calculus Course” “Our goal is 1:1 API compatibility, so people can continue using the API they already know.”
Comment from 29 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Manim (3Blue1Brown's animation engine) in the browser via WebGPU”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Laggy in Chrome, smooth in Firefox
“For some reason is pretty laggy on Chrome (macbook air M1) but Firefox is super smooth.”
Comment from 29 Jul 2026 in “Show HN: Manim (3Blue1Brown's animation engine) in the browser via WebGPU” Heavy setup and dependencies
“the Manim setup was too much friction for what I needed”
Comment from 28 Feb 2026 in “Show HN: I ported Manim to TypeScript (run 3b1B math animations in the browser)” “with much lighter-weight dependencies”
Comment from 25 Oct 2026 in “Ask HN: What are your most ambitious projects in 2026?”
What people recommend instead
The same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ManimThis page | 15 | 3 | 83% | 5 | — | Approved |
| Manim TypeScript port | 6 | 1 | 86% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
16 of the 19 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“with much lighter-weight dependencies”
“3b1b should have used "centripetal parameterization" for manim”
“that homepage zoom from the app screenshot straight into the experience was SMOOTH”
“Our goal is 1:1 API compatibility, so people can continue using the API they already know.”
“For some reason is pretty laggy on Chrome (macbook air M1) but Firefox is super smooth.”
“The effort you're cloning -- manim -- did exactly that. The result was a synergistic, friendly, manim-ce.”
“You had no problem taking advantage of Manim to profit”
“Being able to create manim animations at scale is a value-add”
“has yielded impressive results”
“3b1b's excellent python library for generating maths visualisations”
“incredibly useful to use Desmos or Manim to explain certain mathematical concepts”
“using the great Manim library”
“the Manim setup was too much friction for what I needed”
“Manim is kind of easy to install in its own docker”
“you can ask claude to make manim animations for you and it will”
“Manim is a python library created by Grant Sanderson to create really great math animations”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.