Asynchronous Python client for WLED.
This package allows you to control and monitor WLED devices programmatically. It talks to the device's JSON API, can follow its state live over a WebSocket, and can upgrade its firmware. It is the library behind the WLED integration in Home Assistant.
pip install wledTo install with the optional CLI:
pip install "wled[cli]"The optional CLI lets you control WLED devices directly from the terminal.
The --host option can also be set with the WLED_HOST environment
variable, and the commands that show information take --json to print
machine-readable JSON instead of a table.
# Show device information
wled info --host wled-frenck.local
# Show the current state of the device and its segments
wled state --host wled-frenck.local
# Turn the light on or off, or set its brightness (0-255)
wled on --host wled-frenck.local
wled off --host wled-frenck.local
wled brightness --host wled-frenck.local --brightness 128
# List the effects, palettes, presets, and playlists on the device
wled effects --host wled-frenck.local
wled palettes --host wled-frenck.local
wled presets --host wled-frenck.local
wled playlists --host wled-frenck.local
# Activate a preset or playlist, by name or ID
wled preset --host wled-frenck.local --preset "Movie night"
wled playlist --host wled-frenck.local --playlist 1
# Show the latest WLED releases
wled releases
# Set the host once, and get JSON for scripting
export WLED_HOST=wled-frenck.local
wled state --json
# Upgrade the firmware, and restart the device
wled upgrade --host wled-frenck.local --version 0.15.3
wled reset --host wled-frenck.local
# Scan the network for WLED devices (uses mDNS/Zeroconf)
wled scanThe client is an async context manager; every API call is a coroutine.
update() returns a Device with the info, state, effects, palettes,
presets, and playlists of the device. Later calls update that same object
in place, so you can hold on to it.
import asyncio
from wled import WLED
async def main() -> None:
"""Show example of controlling your WLED device."""
async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
device = await led.update()
print(device.info.version)
# Turn the light on, at full brightness
await led.master(on=True, brightness=255)
if __name__ == "__main__":
asyncio.run(main())master() controls the light as a whole; segment() controls a single
segment. Effects and palettes can be given by name or by ID, and colors as
RGB or RGBW tuples. Transitions are in units of 100ms. Effects with more
settings than speed and intensity take custom1 to custom3 for their extra
sliders and option1 to option3 for their checkboxes.
async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
await led.update()
# Dim the whole light over 2 seconds
await led.master(brightness=64, transition=20)
# Set the first segment to a red, fast "Rainbow" effect
await led.segment(
0,
on=True,
color_primary=(255, 0, 0),
effect="Rainbow",
palette="Party",
speed=200,
)
# Activate a preset or a playlist, by name or ID
await led.preset("Movie night")
await led.playlist(1)
await led.next_playlist_entry()Each effect also tells which of those controls it uses, through
effect.metadata: its sliders and options with their labels, its color
slots, whether it uses a palette, needs a 2D matrix (see
device.info.leds.matrix), or reacts to sound. That's the information to
show only the controls that matter for the chosen effect. Segments do the
same for colors: segment.light_capabilities says whether the LEDs in it do
RGB, a white channel, or color temperature.
To change several segments at once, so they switch together with one
transition, pass a SegmentUpdate for each to segments():
from wled import SegmentUpdate
await led.segments(
[
SegmentUpdate(segment_id=0, effect="Rainbow"),
SegmentUpdate(segment_id=1, color_primary=(0, 0, 255)),
],
transition=10,
)async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
# Fade to a low brightness over 30 minutes
await led.nightlight(on=True, duration=30, fade=True, target_brightness=5)
# Send and receive UDP sync with other WLED devices
await led.sync(send=True, receive=True)
# Toggle the AudioReactive usermod, if the device has it
device = await led.update()
if device.state.audio_reactive is not None:
await led.audio_reactive(on=not device.state.audio_reactive.on)Instead of polling, you can follow the device over its WebSocket. The
callback receives the updated Device on every change.
import asyncio
from wled import WLED, Device
async def main() -> None:
"""Show example of following a WLED device live."""
async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
await led.update()
await led.connect()
def on_update(device: Device) -> None:
print(device.state.on, device.state.brightness)
# Runs until the connection closes
await led.listen(callback=on_update)
if __name__ == "__main__":
asyncio.run(main())upgrade() downloads the firmware from a GitHub release and uploads it to
the device. It checks the device's answer, and raises WLEDUpgradeError when
the device rejects the upload (for example, with OTA updates locked or from
outside its local subnet).
from wled import WLED, WLEDReleases
async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
device = await led.update()
# None when it isn't known where this device's firmware comes from
if device.info.repo:
async with WLEDReleases(repo=device.info.repo) as wled_releases:
releases = await wled_releases.releases()
# Only move forward: a device on a newer beta or nightly stays put
current = device.info.version
if releases.stable and current and releases.stable > current:
await led.upgrade(version=releases.stable)By default, the firmware comes from the repository the device reports as
device.info.repo. Not every build reports one: WLED only does since 0.15.2,
and a self-built firmware reports unknown. Upstream WLED then falls back to
wled/WLED, and older WLED-MM builds to MoonModules/WLED-MM. For any other
build, device.info.repo is None, and upgrade() needs repo to know
where to look. Pass repo to upgrade() to pick another one anyway.
Not every version in a release can be installed on every device: a custom
build, for example, has no firmware file in any release. To offer an upgrade
only when upgrade() can actually install it, ask first:
if await led.firmware_available(version=releases.stable):
...The release is looked up through the GitHub API, and the download is checked against the SHA256 digest GitHub publishes for it; a firmware file that doesn't match is never sent to the device. When GitHub's API can't be reached (for example, when rate limited), the upgrade continues without that check.
Vendors and integrators can distribute their own WLED builds through the same upgrade flow. Compile the firmware with metadata for the repository, brand, and release name, and attach it to a GitHub release, named after the WLED convention:
{brand}_{version}_{release}.bin
brand: the brand the device reports indevice.info.brand(WLEDby default).version: the release tag without the leadingv, like0.15.0for the tagv0.15.0.release: the release name the device reports indevice.info.release, likeESP32orESP32_Ethernet.
If your files keep the WLED_ prefix while the device reports another brand,
that works too, as long as only one file in the release matches the version
and release name. The official WLED releases show the format
in practice.
Everything the library raises derives from WLEDError:
WLEDConnectionError: the device couldn't be reached, withWLEDConnectionTimeoutErrorfor timeouts andWLEDConnectionClosedErrorfor a closed WebSocket.WLEDStatusError: the device answered with an HTTP error;statusandbodyhold what it said.WLEDResponseError: the device answered, but with nothing usable (WLEDEmptyResponseError,WLEDInvalidResponseError).WLEDUnsupportedVersionError: the firmware is older than this library supports.WLEDUpgradeError: a firmware upgrade failed.
WLEDStatusError and WLEDResponseError also carry the method and path
of the request that failed.
from wled import WLED, WLEDConnectionError, WLEDError
async with WLED("wled-frenck.local") as led:
try:
await led.update()
except WLEDConnectionError:
print("WLED is unreachable")
except WLEDError as err:
print(f"WLED had a problem: {err}")This repository keeps a change log using GitHub's releases functionality.
Releases are based on Semantic Versioning, and use the format
of MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH. In a nutshell, the version will be incremented
based on the following:
MAJOR: Incompatible or major changes.MINOR: Backwards-compatible new features and enhancements.PATCH: Backwards-compatible bugfixes and package updates.
This is an active open-source project. We are always open to people who want to use the code or contribute to it.
We've set up a separate document for our contribution guidelines.
Thank you for being involved! 😍
The easiest way to start is by opening a CodeSpace here on GitHub, or by using the Dev Container feature of Visual Studio Code.
This Python project is fully managed using the Poetry dependency manager but also relies on the use of Node.js for certain checks during development.
You need at least:
- Python 3.11+
- Poetry
- Node.js 24+ (including NPM)
To install all packages, including all development requirements:
npm install
poetry install --all-extrasAs this repository uses the prek framework, all changes are linted and tested with each commit. You can run all checks and tests manually, using the following command:
poetry run prek run --all-filesTo run just the Python tests:
poetry run pytestThe original setup of this repository is by Franck Nijhof.
For a full list of all authors and contributors, check the contributors' page.
MIT License
Copyright (c) 2019-2026 Franck Nijhof
Permission is hereby granted, free of charge, to any person obtaining a copy of this software and associated documentation files (the "Software"), to deal in the Software without restriction, including without limitation the rights to use, copy, modify, merge, publish, distribute, sublicense, and/or sell copies of the Software, and to permit persons to whom the Software is furnished to do so, subject to the following conditions:
The above copyright notice and this permission notice shall be included in all copies or substantial portions of the Software.
THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.