Django 6.1 is now available. The release landed on August 5, 2026, and the official Django 6.1 release notes are the right place to check the full list of changes before you upgrade.
For Vanta users, the upgrade is straightforward: Vanta Admin 0.22.0 supports Django 6.1 and is fully compatible with the new release. You can update Django and keep the Vanta admin experience you already use.
What changes in Django 6.1?
Django 6.1 adds useful improvements across the ORM, email, security, and admin. The changes most likely to matter during a normal upgrade include:
- Model field fetch modes:
QuerySet.fetch_mode()gives you more control over when unfetched model fields are loaded.FETCH_PEERScan help avoid repeated queries in the right situation. - Database-level delete options:
ForeignKey.on_deletecan useDB_CASCADE,DB_SET_NULL, andDB_SET_DEFAULTwhen the database should handle deletion directly. - The new mailers setting:
MAILERSlets a project configure multiple email backends. ExistingEMAIL_*settings continue to work in Django 6.1, but they now raise deprecation warnings because Django 7.0 will remove them. - Admin form accessibility: Django's built-in admin now places form fields below their labels, with help text and validation errors in a clearer order.
Django 6.1 also supports Python 3.12, 3.13, and 3.14. The release notes include the backwards-incompatible changes, database version requirements, deprecations, and removals that deserve a closer look before a production upgrade.
Django 6.1 release notes: official release details and upgrade changes.
A sensible upgrade check
- Read the Django 6.1 release notes and upgrade guide from the version you are currently running.
- Check that your Python and database versions are supported by Django 6.1.
- Update Django and related packages together, then run your project checks, migration checks, and test suite.
- Review deprecation warnings, especially around email settings and custom admin templates.
Vanta Admin 0.22.0 supports Django 6.1
Vanta Admin has been updated for Django 6.1 and is fully compatible with it. The current Vanta release supports Python 3.12+ and Django 6.0–6.1, with Django 6.1 tested on Python 3.13.
That means you can upgrade the framework without replacing your admin theme. Vanta keeps Django admin's server-rendered foundation while giving the everyday admin experience a darker, cleaner layout, focused navigation, denser tables and forms, responsive behavior, and clearer controls.
If you want to move to Django 6.1 and keep an admin that feels deliberate rather than default, Vanta Admin is ready for the upgrade.