Production-grade code protection, licensing, and auto-updates for Python desktop apps.

No. PyLocket works at the build layer. You build your app with PyInstaller, cx_Freeze or Briefcase as usual, then point our CLI at the build output. No decorators, no imports, no SDK. Your code stays 100% standard Python.

PyLocket targets modern Python: 3.12, 3.13, and 3.14. The hardened runtime requires a current CPython, so releases older than 3.12 are not supported.

Five targets: Windows x64, Linux (x64 and ARM64), and macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon). All from a single protect command.

No, and we won't insult your intelligence by claiming otherwise. No software protection is unbreakable. What PyLocket does is make reverse engineering expensive and time-consuming enough that the vast majority of pirates move on. Casual pirates are blocked entirely. Automated tools are rendered useless. Even skilled reversers face weeks or months of work instead of hours.

PyLocket includes built-in license enforcement. When a user launches your protected app, the runtime validates their license automatically. Features include device binding, offline grace periods, and remote revocation. You manage licenses through the dashboard or API. No code changes needed on your end.

Legitimate users get offline grace periods. The app continues to work without an internet connection for a configurable period. We believe protection should stop pirates, not punish your paying customers.

The JIT decryption adds minimal overhead, typically single-digit milliseconds per function call. For most desktop applications the impact is imperceptible. The native runtime loader is compiled and optimized, not interpreted.

Yes. PyLocket works with PyInstaller, cx_Freeze, BeeWare Briefcase, and other packaging tools, it does not replace them. You build your application with your preferred packaging tool first, then upload the output to PyLocket for protection. See the PyInstaller guide for a full walkthrough.

When you cancel, your subscription remains active until the end of the current billing period. After that, a grace period begins during which your customers' existing licenses continue to work normally. Once the grace period expires, end-user licenses become invalid and activation will fail. You cannot create new protected builds or issue new licenses after cancellation. If you resubscribe before the grace period ends, all licenses are restored automatically. Resubscribing forfeits any grandfathered subscription rate; a fresh subscription is billed at the current rate.

Yes. The free tier includes the full protection pipeline, all security layers, and all platform targets. You get up to 10 end-user licenses and 10 free downloads per app to use however you'd like: development, testing, or early distribution. End-user licenses issued on the free tier are valid for 30 days. A one-time $0.97 identity verification applies to all accounts; this keeps PyLocket from being used to protect malware. When you're ready for production, upgrade for unlimited builds and licenses with no expiry.

Strong protection is valuable to the wrong people too: the same tools that protect a legitimate app could, in the wrong hands, hide malware from analysis. A one-time $0.97 identity verification means every developer on the platform is who they say they are, and it lets us code-sign and scan every build. That is why PyLocket-protected apps are trusted by users and antivirus engines instead of flagged. You pay it once, and it covers you for life.

When you subscribe to PyLocket, you lock in your subscription rate for life. As we grow and add features, the subscription price will rise for new sign-ups, but your rate stays exactly where you started. Subscribing today means paying today's price years from now, no matter how much PyLocket has grown.

Sign up for a free account and install the PyLocket CLI with pip install pylocket. Register your app with pylocket apps create --name 'My App', then protect your built artifact with pylocket protect --app <APP_ID> --artifact dist/my-app.exe. That's the whole workflow: no configuration files, no build system changes, no learning curve.

Never. We charge a flat platform subscription plus $4 per license you activate. Your revenue is yours: sell a license for $50 or $5,000 and our cut is the same $4. We don't take a percentage, ever.

That criticism is fair, and it is aimed at tools that ship a static key inside the app. PyLocket doesn't. Keys are issued to each licensed device at activation, and offline grace runs on a signed, time-limited token, not a secret stored in your binary. When the grace window ends, the app revalidates with the server; a revoked license stops working, and a tampered token or a tampered app simply fails validation. None of this makes cracking impossible, but there is no static key sitting in the file for someone to study or patch around.

You do. PyLocket stores what license enforcement needs: license keys, device activations, and the customer email you attach for delivery. You manage and export licenses through the dashboard or the API, you keep the customer relationship, and we never sell your data. If you cancel, a grace period keeps your customers' licenses working while you transition.

No code changes. PyLocket protects the build artifact you already produce: remove the old tool from your pipeline, build with PyInstaller, cx_Freeze, or Briefcase as usual, and run one protect command on the output. Licensing, delivery pages, and updates are included, so you can also retire a separate license server if you run one. See the PyLocket vs PyArmor and PyLocket vs SOURCEdefender comparisons for the details.