ocornut/imgui

Analysis updated 2026-06-20

★ 73,025C++Audience · developerComplexity · 2/5Setup · moderate

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it Does
      Immediate mode UI
      Per-frame redraw
      Minimal dependencies
    Use Cases
      Debug panels
      Property editors
      In-game tools
    Tech Stack
      C++
      Any renderer
    Audience
      Game developers
      Engine programmers
    Setup
      Drop into project
      Needs render loop

mindmap root((repo)) What it Does Immediate mode UI Per-frame redraw Minimal dependencies Use Cases Debug panels Property editors In-game tools Tech Stack C++ Any renderer Audience Game developers Engine programmers Setup Drop into project Needs render loop

Click or tap to explore — scroll the page freely

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Add a real-time debugging panel to your C++ game engine to inspect and tweak variables while the game runs.

USE CASE 2

Build a property editor or settings window inside a game without pulling in a heavy UI framework.

USE CASE 3

Drop lightweight developer tools into any existing C++ project with minimal dependency overhead.

What is it built with?

C++

How does it compare?

	ocornut/imgui	tesseract-ocr/tesseract	protocolbuffers/protobuf
Stars	73,025	73,936	71,187
Language	C++	C++	C++
Setup difficulty	moderate	moderate	moderate
Complexity	2/5	3/5	3/5
Audience	developer	developer	developer

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · moderate Time to first run · 30min

Must be integrated into an existing C++ rendering loop, there is no standalone executable to run.

No license information is specified in the repository description.

In plain English

Dear ImGui is a C++ library for building graphical user interfaces with minimal setup overhead. The name stands for "Immediate Mode GUI," a style where the interface is redrawn from scratch every frame rather than being built from a persistent tree of objects, which simplifies the code needed to display and update UI elements. It is designed for game development and game engine tooling, where developers often need debugging panels, property editors, or in-app tools without the weight of a full UI framework. The description highlights that it has minimal dependencies and avoids unnecessary bulk, making it straightforward to drop into an existing C++ project. The README does not provide further detail about its features, architecture, supported platforms, or use cases, so a complete explanation is not possible from the provided data alone.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

Show me how to add a Dear ImGui debug window to my OpenGL C++ project that displays FPS and lets me adjust a float variable with a slider.

Prompt 2

How do I integrate Dear ImGui into my existing C++ project using CMake? Give me a minimal working setup.

Prompt 3

Create a Dear ImGui panel with a slider, a checkbox, and a button that I can call inside my game loop every frame.

Prompt 4

How do I style a Dear ImGui window with a dark color scheme to match my game's visual design?

Frequently asked questions

What is imgui?

Dear ImGui is a lightweight C++ library for building in-game debugging panels and developer tools with minimal setup, using an immediate-mode approach that redraws the UI every frame.

What language is imgui written in?

Mainly C++. The stack also includes C++.

What license does imgui use?

No license information is specified in the repository description.

How hard is imgui to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated moderate, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is imgui for?

Mainly developer.

Open on GitHub → Explain another repo

This repo across BitVibe Labs

Scan in gitsafehub Deploy in gitdeployhub ocornut on gitmyhub

Verify against the repo before relying on details.