macOS
Homebrewverified · 100%
brew install lizard-analyzerlocal Homebrew formula metadata
MacPortsverified · 94%
sudo port install lizardMacPorts ports tree · archivers/lizard/Portfile · source: api.github.com
brew / rank 2971
Install lizard-analyzer with Homebrew, MacPorts
Extensible Cyclomatic Complexity Analyzer. Version 1.23.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-06-03. Also installable with macports: sudo port install lizard.
install
Additional install commands
overview
Package summary
Extensible Cyclomatic Complexity Analyzer
Project links
Commands and aliases
- lizard
history
Project history and usage
Lizard is a Python-based cyclomatic-complexity and static-analysis command-line tool. Its package history is mildly confusing because Homebrew names this formula lizard-analyzer while the executable is lizard, avoiding collision with a separate compression utility also named lizard.
Project history
The terryyin/lizard repository was created on GitHub in June 2012. The README describes the tool as an extensible cyclomatic complexity analyzer for many programming languages, with an emphasis on scanning C/C++ without needing complete header search paths and Java without resolving all imports.
Over time the tool expanded beyond basic cyclomatic complexity counts into duplicate-code detection and other static-code metrics. Its language list in the README spans C/C++, Java, Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Go, Rust, Swift, Solidity, Zig, and other languages.
Adoption history
The README documents both direct script usage and installation through pip, which made Lizard convenient for CI jobs and local quality gates before language-specific static-analysis suites were always present in package-manager workflows.
Homebrew packaging under lizard-analyzer gives macOS users a CLI install path while avoiding the formula-name collision with the unrelated lizard compressor.
How it is used
Lizard is commonly used as a lightweight metric pass over source trees: run lizard on a path, optionally select languages, exclude paths, and fail builds when complexity or parameter-count thresholds are exceeded.
Because it intentionally measures how complex code looks rather than trying to fully compile or semantically resolve a project, it fits quick scans, pre-commit checks, and repository audits where low setup cost matters.
Why package nerds care
The formula is a small example of package-manager disambiguation: the upstream project, command name, and common Python package name are lizard, but Homebrew has to call the formula lizard-analyzer because brew:lizard is already the compression tool.
It also shows how scripting-language tools enter Unix package managers even when pip installation is available, because packaging the CLI gives users a repeatable system-level binary without managing a Python environment by hand.
Timeline
- 2012: terryyin/lizard repository created on GitHub.
- 2026: GitHub releases 1.20.0 and 1.23.0 were published for the analyzer.
- 2026: Homebrew formula lizard-analyzer identified the executable as lizard and the package as an extensible cyclomatic complexity analyzer.
Related projects
- The package sits near linters, static analyzers, and code-metric tools such as cloc, radon, cppcheck, and language-specific complexity plugins.
- It is unrelated to brew:lizard, the compression utility packaged in the same batch.
Sources
security posture
Risk level: green
narrow executable package without higher-risk signals.
Risk classifier
green risk · low confidence · appliance
Why
- narrow executable package without higher-risk signals
Signals
- metadata:no-higher-risk-signals
Install behavior
- No Homebrew bottle metadata was recorded.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
lizard | executable | indexed executable | Discovered from the local executable index. |
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 generated2026-08-03
manager version1.23.0
manager updated2026-06-03
local dataunknown
upstreamnot available
latest detectednot detected
- okNo freshness warnings were generated.
install metadata
Package metadata
| Package key | brew:lizard-analyzer |
|---|---|
| Version | 1.23.0 |
| Package manager | Homebrew |
| Homepage | https://github.com/terryyin/lizard |
| Last updated | 2026-06-03T09:53:20Z |
| Pulse | updated |
| Bottle | not recorded |
| Service | none declared |
source database matches
Other package-manager records
Matches are pulled from external package-manager indexes and kept separate from local Automic Vault package links.
MacPorts94%
lizard
sudo port install lizard- installed executable or alias match
- Matched by: Lizard
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.
Used sources
- Geiger risk classifier
- cross-ecosystem install command graph
- curated package history
- external package-manager database matches
- pkg.so package database
- pkgdb category and tag curation