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Raylib nuklear

Nuklear immediate mode GUI for raylib

From RobLoach·Updated May 30, 2026·View on GitHub·

Use the [Nuklear](https://github.com/Immediate-Mode-UI/Nuklear) immediate mode cross-platform GUI library in [raylib](https://www.raylib.com/). The project is written primarily in C, distributed under the zlib License license, first published in 2020. Key topics include: nuklear, raylib.

Latest release: v6.0.1
May 11, 2026View Changelog →

raylib-nuklear

Tests

Use the Nuklear immediate mode cross-platform GUI library in raylib.

raylib-nuklear-example Screenshot

Usage

  1. Since this is a header-only library, you must first define RAYLIB_NUKLEAR_IMPLEMENTATION in one of your .c files...
    c
    #define RAYLIB_NUKLEAR_IMPLEMENTATION
  2. Include the raylib-nuklear.h file...
    c
    #include "path/to/raylib-nuklear.h"
  3. Use InitNuklear(fontSize) or InitNuklearEx(font, fontSize) to create the nuklear context...
    c
    struct nk_context *ctx = InitNuklear(10);
  4. Build your Nuklear GUI through the standard Nuklear API
  5. Update the input for the GUI using UpdateNuklear(ctx)
  6. Render the context using DrawNuklear(ctx)
  7. Destroy the nuklear context with UnloadNuklear(ctx)

Example

c
#define RAYLIB_NUKLEAR_IMPLEMENTATION #include "raylib-nuklear.h" int main() { InitWindow(640, 480, "raylib-nuklear example"); // Create the Nuklear Context int fontSize = 10; struct nk_context *ctx = InitNuklear(fontSize); while (!WindowShouldClose()) { // Update the Nuklear context, along with input UpdateNuklear(ctx); // Nuklear GUI Code // https://github.com/Immediate-Mode-UI/Nuklear/wiki/Window if (nk_begin(ctx, "Nuklear", nk_rect(100, 100, 220, 220), NK_WINDOW_BORDER|NK_WINDOW_MOVABLE|NK_WINDOW_CLOSABLE)) { nk_layout_row_static(ctx, 50, 150, 1); if (nk_button_label(ctx, "Button")) { // Button was clicked! } } nk_end(ctx); // Render BeginDrawing(); ClearBackground(RAYWHITE); // Render the Nuklear GUI DrawNuklear(ctx); EndDrawing(); } // De-initialize the Nuklear GUI UnloadNuklear(ctx); CloseWindow(); return 0; }

API

c
struct nk_context* InitNuklear(int fontSize); // Initialize the Nuklear GUI context using raylib's font struct nk_context* InitNuklearEx(Font font, float fontSize); // Initialize the Nuklear GUI context, with a custom font bool IsNuklearValid(struct nk_context* ctx); // Check if the Nuklear context is valid Font LoadFontFromNuklear(int fontSize); // Loads the default Nuklear font void UpdateNuklear(struct nk_context* ctx); // Update the input state and internal components for Nuklear void UpdateNuklearEx(struct nk_context* ctx, float deltaTime); // Update the input state and internal components for Nuklear, with a custom frame time void DrawNuklear(struct nk_context* ctx); // Render the Nuklear GUI on the screen void UnloadNuklear(struct nk_context* ctx); // Deinitialize the Nuklear context struct nk_color ColorToNuklearColor(Color color); // Convert a raylib Color to a Nuklear color object struct nk_colorf ColorToNuklearColorF(Color color); // Convert a raylib Color to a Nuklear floating color struct Color NuklearColorToColor(struct nk_color color); // Convert a Nuklear color to a raylib Color struct Color NuklearColorFToColor(struct nk_colorf color); // Convert a Nuklear floating color to a raylib Color struct Rectangle NuklearRectToRectangle(struct nk_context* ctx, struct nk_rect rect); // Convert a Nuklear rectangle to a raylib Rectangle struct nk_rect RectangleToNuklearRect(struct nk_context* ctx, Rectangle rect); // Convert a raylib Rectangle to a Nuklear Rectangle struct nk_image TextureToNuklearImage(Texture tex); // Get a Nuklear image from a Texture void SetNuklearScaling(struct nk_context * ctx, float scaling); // Sets the scaling for the given Nuklear context float GetNuklearScaling(struct nk_context * ctx); // Retrieves the scaling of the given Nuklear context

See the Nuklear API documenation for more how to use Nuklear.

Comparision

There are a few other graphical user interface solutions out there for use with raylib. raygui, Nuklear, and ImGui with rlImGui, are popular choices. It's best to choose the GUI that fits your needs best. Generally, if you're unsure which GUI to use with raylib, use raygui.

NuklearrayguirlImGui
Only C:white_check_mark::white_check_mark:C++
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Automatic Layouts:white_check_mark::x::white_check_mark:
Advanced Controls:white_check_mark::x::white_check_mark:
Documentation:white_check_mark::x::white_check_mark:
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Easy to Use:x::white_check_mark::x:

Development

While this project uses CMake, CMake is not required in order to use raylib-nuklear.

git submodule update --init
mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
make
./example/raylib-nuklear-example
make test

License

raylib-nuklear is licensed under an unmodified zlib/libpng license, which is an OSI-certified, BSD-like license that allows static linking with closed source software. Check LICENSE for further details.

Contributors

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This article is auto-generated from RobLoach/raylib-nuklear via the GitHub API.Last fetched: 6/1/2026