install

Additional install commands

macOS

Homebrewverified · 100%

brew install pngnq

local Homebrew formula metadata

Linux

Debian aptverified · 92%

sudo apt install pngnq

Debian stable package indexes · pngnq · source: deb.debian.org

Fedora dnfverified · 92%

sudo dnf install pngnq

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · pngnq · source: dl.fedoraproject.org

Nixverified · 92%

nix profile install nixpkgs#pngnq

nixpkgs package indexes · pkgs/by-name/pn/pngnq/package.nix · source: api.github.com

overview

Package summary

Tool for optimizing PNG images

Project links

Commands and aliases

pngcomp
pngnq

history

Project history and usage

pngnq is a command-line utility for converting RGBA PNG images to indexed palettes with two to 256 colors using a NeuQuant-derived neural-network algorithm.

Project history

Stuart Coyle created pngnq as an adaptation of Greg Roelofs's pngquant code using Anthony Dekker's NeuQuant algorithm, extended for four-channel RGBA data. The first release was 0.3 in June 2004; development resumed in 2006, the project moved to SourceForge in 2007, and improvements by Kornel Lesiński were merged for version 1.0 in 2009.

Adoption history

The project supplied binaries for Linux, macOS, BSD, and Windows and later entered several Unix-like package collections. Its official site records a move to SourceForge in 2007.

How it is used

Run pngnq on PNG files to produce reduced-palette output; the official example combines `pngnq -n 256` with pngcrush. The utility deliberately focuses on quantization rather than serving as an all-in-one compression pipeline.

Why package nerds care

pngnq represents the neural-network branch of classic PNG palette-reduction tools. It is interesting as a specialized alternative to pngquant's historically median-cut-derived approach and as a composable predecessor to later image-optimization pipelines.

Timeline

2004: Version 0.3 became the first release.
2006: Development resumed with fixes and expanded command-line functionality.
2007: The project moved to SourceForge.
2009: Improved quantization and dithering work was merged as version 1.0.

Related projects

pngquant: the other RGBA quantizer explicitly compared by the project.
pngcrush: recommended by the project for further lossless compression after quantization.
NeuQuant: Anthony Dekker's neural-network quantization algorithm underlying pngnq.

Sources

https://pngnq.sourceforge.net/

security posture

Risk level: blue

broad file, network, media, or database tool signal.

Risk classifier

blue risk · medium confidence · tool

Why

broad file, network, media, or database tool signal

Signals

text:image

Install behavior

No Homebrew post-install hook is recorded in formula metadata.
Homebrew bottle metadata is available for 6 platform targets.
Installs with 1 runtime dependencies.
Build metadata lists 1 build dependencies.

Recommended review

Before unattended agent use, check whether the tool reads plaintext credentials, writes remote state, publishes artifacts, or shells out to plugins.

executables

Installed executables

Command	Kind	Exposure	Note
`pngcomp`	cli	global executable
`pngnq`	cli	global executable

freshness

Version and freshness

These signals separate page generation age, package-manager activity, and upstream release comparison. Version lag is warned only when an evidence URL and comparable versions are present.

page generated2026-09-19

manager version1.1

manager updated2026-09-11

local dataok

upstreamnot checked

latest detectednot detected

https://pngnq.sourceforge.net/

infoRelease/tag comparison is only available for GitHub repositories.https://pngnq.sourceforge.net/none confidence

install metadata

Package metadata

Package key	brew:pngnq
Version	1.1
Package manager	Homebrew
Package manager page	https://formulae.brew.sh/formula/pngnq
Homepage	https://pngnq.sourceforge.net/
Upstream docs	https://pngnq.sourceforge.net/
License	BSD-3-Clause
Source archive	https://downloads.sourceforge.net/project/pngnq/pngnq/1.1/pngnq-1.1.tar.gz
Last updated	2026-09-11T13:21:29Z
Pulse	updated
Dependencies	libpng
Build dependencies	pkgconf
Bottle	available (on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux)
Homebrew post-install	not defined
Service	none declared

registry facts

Source database details

Source Database	Homebrew formula API
Tap	homebrew/core
Full Name	pngnq
Version Scheme	0
Revision	1
Bottle Stable Root URL	https://ghcr.io/v2/homebrew/core
Deprecated	no
Disabled	no
Keg Only	no
URL Keys	stable

source database matches

Other package-manager records

Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.

Debian apt95%

pngnq 1.1+ds-3

tool for optimizing PNG (Portable Network Graphics) images

http://pngnq.sourceforge.net

sudo apt install pngnq

Section: graphics
Architecture: amd64
3 dependencies
1 optional deps
normalized package name match
Matched by: Pngnq

Debian stable package indexes · deb.debian.org · Debian stable package indexes: pngnq from https://deb.debian.org/debian/dists/stable/main/binary-amd64/Packages.xz

Nix95%

pngnq

nix profile install nixpkgs#pngnq

normalized package name match
Matched by: Pngnq

nixpkgs package indexes · api.github.com · nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/pn/pngnq/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1

Ubuntu apt95%

pngnq 1.1+ds-3build1

tool for optimizing PNG (Portable Network Graphics) images

http://pngnq.sourceforge.net

sudo apt install pngnq

Section: universe/graphics
Architecture: amd64
3 dependencies
1 optional deps
normalized package name match
Matched by: Pngnq

Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes · archive.ubuntu.com · Ubuntu 24.04 LTS package indexes: pngnq from https://archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/dists/noble/universe/binary-amd64/Packages.gz

dnf95%

pngnq 1.1-39.fc45

Pngnq is a tool for quantizing PNG images in RGBA format

http://pngnq.sourceforge.net/

sudo dnf install pngnq

License: BSD-4-Clause and MIT and BSD-3-Clause
Category: Unspecified
Architecture: x86_64
Source Package: pngnq
5 dependencies
1 provides
normalized package name match
Matched by: Pngnq

Fedora Rawhide package metadata · dl.fedoraproject.org · Fedora Rawhide package metadata: pngnq from https://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/fedora/linux/development/rawhide/Everything/x86_64/os/repodata/652278618dec9c023176a80c435a32a2c8154869fb0eb662c267a54df28d77d9-primary.xml.zst

package graph

Links come from deterministic package relationships, av.db category and tag curation, ecosystem matches, and package hub membership.

source trail

Generated from repository data

This page is generated by av-web from the private package SQLite artifact built by scripts/generate-pkg-sqlite.py.

Combined YAML source

View the package source record on GitHub.

combined/pngnq.yml

Used sources

Geiger risk classifier
cross-ecosystem install command graph
curated package history
external package-manager database matches
package relationship graph
package version freshness
package-page enrichment
pkg.so package database
pkgdb category and tag curation

Install pngnq with Homebrew, apt, dnf, Nix