Freedom251 › Eye Tracking Software
Pupil Player
What Pupil Player is
Pupil Player is free, open-source software for viewing gaze visualizations from hardware input. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, so it can be used across those desktop operating systems. Its visualization options include circles, crosses, polylines, light points, heatmaps, and fixation overlays. These views present gaze information in several forms, from individual markers and paths to heatmaps and fixation overlays. Pupil Player can export MP4, CSV, NumPy, PNG, and GAZE.TLV files. The formats cover video, tabular data, arrays, images, and a gaze-specific format. The software is associated with Pupil Labs, which was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Berlin, Germany. Its documentation is available on the Pupil Labs website. With no purchase price and an open-source designation, Pupil Player brings multiple ways to view and export gaze information to users working with compatible hardware. Its listed platforms are Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Who it suits
Pupil Player suits people who use hardware input and need to view gaze information in different visual forms or export it in several formats. It is also a fit for users seeking free, open-source software on Windows, macOS, or Linux.
What it does well
- Free and open source.
- Runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux.
- Offers six listed gaze visualization types.
- Exports MP4, CSV, NumPy, PNG, and GAZE.TLV.
What to know first
- Hardware is the listed input method.
- Listed platforms are limited to Windows, macOS, and Linux.
Getting started
- Visit the Pupil Labs documentation website.
- Use a Windows, macOS, or Linux system.
- Connect the required hardware input.
- Open gaze visualizations or export data in a supported format.
Verdict
Choose Pupil Player if you need free, open-source software for gaze visualizations and exports across Windows, macOS, or Linux. Look elsewhere if you need an input method other than hardware or a platform outside those listed.
Questions
How much does Pupil Player cost?
Pupil Player is free.
Is Pupil Player open source?
Yes. It is listed as open source.
Which platforms does it support?
Windows, macOS, and Linux.
What input does it use?
Hardware is its listed input method.
Which formats can it export?
MP4, CSV, NumPy, PNG, and GAZE.TLV.
What gaze visualizations are available?
Circles, crosses, polylines, light points, heatmaps, and fixation overlays.
Facts from Pupil Player's own pages
- Analysis
- Available analysis plugins include post-hoc fixation and blink detection, pupil detection, gaze calibration, and head-pose tracking. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 8 Oct 2026
- Custom plugins
- Users can extend Pupil Core software with runtime-loaded Python plugin files, including third-party plugins from the pupil-community repository. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Exports
- The raw data exporter saves pupil and gaze data as CSV files, while video exporters can save video with timestamp files. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Export safety
- Exports are saved in an exports subdirectory, and the documentation says Player does not remove or overwrite capture raw data or overwrite exports. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Eye video requirement
- The eye-video overlay requires eye video to have been enabled during Pupil Capture recording. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 8 Oct 2026
- Founded
- 2014 · docs.pupil-labs.com, 28 Sept 2026
- Head-pose limit
- The head-pose tracker currently supports only the default tag36h11 marker family. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 8 Oct 2026
- Headquarters
- Berlin, Germany · docs.pupil-labs.com, 28 Sept 2026
- iMotions integration
- The iMotions Exporter creates data for use with iMotions, including undistorted world video and gaze data in a gaze.tlv file. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 8 Oct 2026
- Integration
- An iMotions exporter creates data for use with iMotions, including undistorted gaze data in a gaze.tlv file. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- Pupil Labs describes the Core documentation as serving users getting started with eye-tracking glasses and developers building eye-tracking applications and integrations. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Maker
- Pupil Labs says it was founded in 2014 and identifies its main office as Berlin, Germany. · pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Offline use
- Pupil Player exports into an exports subfolder and does not remove or overwrite raw capture data. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 8 Oct 2026
- Playback
- It can play recordings, scrub the timeline, step frame by frame, and change playback speed among 0.25x, 0.5x, 1x, 2x, and 4x. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Plugins
- Pupil Player uses the Pupil Capture plugin framework, and the documentation says Capture plugins can often work in Player with little or no modification. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Post-hoc analysis
- Plugins support post-hoc pupil detection and gaze calibration, mapping, and validation. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- Pupil Player is a media and data visualizer for viewing Pupil Capture recordings and exporting data. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Recording compatibility
- The documented plugin availability varies by recording product: Pupil Core, Pupil Invisible, and Pupil Mobile do not all support the same plugins. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Support
- The Core documentation directs users with issues or questions to the Pupil Labs Discord chat. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
- Visualization
- Visualization plugins can overlay gaze positions as circles, crosses, polylines, or light points. · docs.pupil-labs.com, 9 Oct 2026
Where Pupil Player stands on Freedom251
- Eye Tracking Software#25 of 27