The Computational Geometry Algorithms Library (CGAL) is a C++ library that aims to provide easy access to efficient and reliable algorithms in computational geometry.

CGAL Releases

The primary vector of distribution of CGAL are source tarballs, released twice a year, announced on the web site of CGAL.

Getting Started with CGAL

Since version 5.0, CGAL is a header-only library, meaning that it is no longer needed to build CGAL libraries before it can be used.

Head over to the CGAL manual for usage guides and tutorials that will get you started smoothly.

License

See the file LICENSE.md.

CGAL Git Repository Layout

The Git repository of CGAL has a different layout from release tarballs. It contains a CMakeLists.txt file that serves as anchor for configuring and building programs, and a set of subfolders, so called packages. Most packages implement a data structure or an algorithm for CGAL (e.g., Convex_hull_2, or Triangulation_3); however some packages serve special needs:

• Installation - meta-files and CMake-support
• Maintenance - infrastructural support
• Core, CGALimageIO, Qt_widget, GraphicsView - component libraries
• Scripts - scripts to simplify developer's and user's work
• Testsuite - infrastructure for testsuite
• Documentation - infrastructure for CGAL's manual
• STL_Extension - extensions to the standard template library

More Information

• The CGAL web site
• Documentation of the latest CGAL release
• Documentation of the CGAL main branch (updated weekly)
• CGAL daily testsuite results
• Guidelines for CGAL developers and Information for new developers