diff --git a/benchmarks/README.md b/benchmarks/README.md
index 6c69a786b..9f8903620 100644
--- a/benchmarks/README.md
+++ b/benchmarks/README.md
@@ -14,25 +14,63 @@ pip install -e '.[docs,test,benchmark]'
 
 ## Usage
 
-Running all the benchmarks is usually not needed. You run the benchmark using `asv run`. See the [asv documentation](https://asv.readthedocs.io/en/stable/commands.html#asv-run) for interesting arguments, like selecting the benchmarks you're interested in by providing a regex pattern `-b` or `--bench` that links to a function or class method e.g. the option `-b timeraw_import_inspect` selects the function `timeraw_import_inspect` in `benchmarks/spatialdata_benchmark.py`. You can run the benchmark in your current environment with `--python=same`. Some example benchmarks:
+Running all the benchmarks is usually not needed. You run the benchmark using `asv run`. See the [asv documentation](https://asv.readthedocs.io/en/stable/commands.html#asv-run) for interesting arguments, like selecting the benchmarks you're interested in by providing a regex pattern `-b` or `--bench` that links to a function or class method. You can run the benchmark in your current environment with `--python=same`. Some example benchmarks:
 
-Importing the SpatialData library can take around 4 seconds:
+### Import time benchmarks
+
+Import benchmarks live in `benchmarks/benchmark_imports.py`. Each `timeraw_*` function returns a Python code snippet that asv runs in a fresh interpreter (cold import, empty module cache):
+
+Run all import benchmarks in your current environment:
 
 ```
-PYTHONWARNINGS="ignore" asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b timeraw_import_inspect
-Couldn't load asv.plugins._mamba_helpers because
-No module named 'conda'
-· Discovering benchmarks
-· Running 1 total benchmarks (1 commits * 1 environments * 1 benchmarks)
-[ 0.00%] ·· Benchmarking existing-py_opt_homebrew_Caskroom_mambaforge_base_envs_spatialdata2_bin_python3.12
-[50.00%] ··· Running (spatialdata_benchmark.timeraw_import_inspect--).
-[100.00%] ··· spatialdata_benchmark.timeraw_import_inspect                                                                            3.65±0.2s
+asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b timeraw
+```
+
+Or a single one:
+
+```
+asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b timeraw_import_spatialdata
+```
+
+### Comparing the current branch against `main`
+
+The simplest way is `asv continuous`, which builds both commits, runs the benchmarks, and prints the comparison in one shot:
+
+```bash
+asv continuous --show-stderr -v -b timeraw main faster-import
 ```
 
+Replace `faster-import` with any branch name or commit hash. The `-v` flag prints per-sample timings; drop it for a shorter summary.
+
+Alternatively, collect results separately and compare afterwards:
+
+```bash
+# 1. Collect results for the tip of main and the tip of your branch
+asv run --show-stderr -b timeraw main
+asv run --show-stderr -b timeraw HEAD
+
+# 2. Print a side-by-side comparison
+asv compare main HEAD
+```
+
+Both approaches build isolated environments from scratch. If you prefer to skip the rebuild and reuse your current environment (faster, less accurate):
+
+```bash
+asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b timeraw HEAD
+
+git stash && git checkout main
+asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b timeraw HEAD
+git checkout - && git stash pop
+
+asv compare main HEAD
+```
+
+### Querying benchmarks
+
 Querying using a bounding box without a spatial index is highly impacted by large amounts of points (transcripts), more than table rows (cells).
 
 ```
-$ PYTHONWARNINGS="ignore" asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b time_query_bounding_box
+$ asv run --python=same --show-stderr -b time_query_bounding_box
 
 [100.00%] ··· ======== ============ ============= ============= ==============
               --                filter_table / n_transcripts_per_cell
diff --git a/benchmarks/benchmark_imports.py b/benchmarks/benchmark_imports.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..e1a47ea8b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/benchmarks/benchmark_imports.py
@@ -0,0 +1,56 @@
+"""Benchmarks for import times of the spatialdata package and its submodules.
+
+Each ``timeraw_*`` function returns a snippet of Python code that asv runs in
+a fresh interpreter, so the measured time reflects a cold import with an empty
+module cache.
+"""
+
+from collections.abc import Callable
+from typing import Any
+
+
+def _timeraw(func: Any) -> Any:
+    """Set asv benchmark attributes for a cold-import timeraw function."""
+    func.repeat = 5  # number of independent subprocess measurements
+    func.number = 1  # must be 1: second import in same process hits module cache
+    return func
+
+
+@_timeraw
+def timeraw_import_spatialdata() -> str:
+    """Time a bare ``import spatialdata``."""
+    return """
+    import spatialdata
+    """
+
+
+@_timeraw
+def timeraw_import_SpatialData() -> str:
+    """Time importing the top-level ``SpatialData`` class."""
+    return """
+    from spatialdata import SpatialData
+    """
+
+
+@_timeraw
+def timeraw_import_read_zarr() -> str:
+    """Time importing ``read_zarr`` from the top-level namespace."""
+    return """
+    from spatialdata import read_zarr
+    """
+
+
+@_timeraw
+def timeraw_import_models_elements() -> str:
+    """Time importing the main element model classes."""
+    return """
+    from spatialdata.models import Image2DModel, Labels2DModel, PointsModel, ShapesModel, TableModel
+    """
+
+
+@_timeraw
+def timeraw_import_transformations() -> str:
+    """Time importing the ``spatialdata.transformations`` submodule."""
+    return """
+    from spatialdata.transformations import Affine, Scale, Translation, Sequence
+    """
diff --git a/benchmarks/spatialdata_benchmark.py b/benchmarks/spatialdata_benchmark.py
index 408ad14e8..4d1020fe8 100644
--- a/benchmarks/spatialdata_benchmark.py
+++ b/benchmarks/spatialdata_benchmark.py
@@ -20,13 +20,6 @@ def peakmem_list2(self):
         return sdata
 
 
-def timeraw_import_inspect():
-    """Time the import of the spatialdata module."""
-    return """
-    import spatialdata
-    """
-
-
 class TimeMapRaster:
     """Time the."""
 
diff --git a/docs/conf.py b/docs/conf.py
index 4ea29943b..6bd7b2430 100644
--- a/docs/conf.py
+++ b/docs/conf.py
@@ -4,6 +4,8 @@
 # list see the documentation:
 # https://www.sphinx-doc.org/en/master/usage/configuration.html
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 # -- Path setup --------------------------------------------------------------
 import sys
 from datetime import datetime
diff --git a/docs/extensions/typed_returns.py b/docs/extensions/typed_returns.py
index d044c6985..5eefc02a6 100644
--- a/docs/extensions/typed_returns.py
+++ b/docs/extensions/typed_returns.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 # code from https://github.com/theislab/scanpy/blob/master/docs/extensions/typed_returns.py
 # with some minor adjustment
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import re
 
 from sphinx.application import Sphinx
diff --git a/pyproject.toml b/pyproject.toml
index 89e9e0235..b3e539158 100644
--- a/pyproject.toml
+++ b/pyproject.toml
@@ -55,7 +55,6 @@ dependencies = [
 [project.optional-dependencies]
 dev = [
     "bump2version",
-    "sentry-prevent-cli",
 ]
 test = [
     "pytest",
@@ -79,6 +78,7 @@ docs = [
 benchmark = [
     "asv",
     "memray",
+    "profimp",
 ]
 torch = [
     "torch"
@@ -183,6 +183,9 @@ select = [
 ]
 unfixable = ["B", "C4", "UP", "BLE", "T20", "RET"]
 
+[tool.ruff.lint.isort]
+required-imports = ["from __future__ import annotations"]
+
 [tool.ruff.lint.pydocstyle]
 convention = "numpy"
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/__init__.py b/src/spatialdata/__init__.py
index bb24f04ed..349780287 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/__init__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/__init__.py
@@ -1,76 +1,227 @@
-from importlib.metadata import version
+from __future__ import annotations
 
-import spatialdata.models._accessor  # noqa: F401
+import importlib
+from importlib.metadata import version
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any
 
 __version__ = version("spatialdata")
 
-__all__ = [
+_submodules = {
+    "dataloader",
+    "datasets",
     "models",
     "transformations",
-    "datasets",
-    "dataloader",
+}
+
+_LAZY_IMPORTS: dict[str, str] = {
+    # _core._deepcopy
+    "deepcopy": "spatialdata._core._deepcopy",
+    # _core._utils
+    "sanitize_name": "spatialdata._core._utils",
+    "sanitize_table": "spatialdata._core._utils",
+    # _core.centroids
+    "get_centroids": "spatialdata._core.centroids",
+    # _core.concatenate
+    "concatenate": "spatialdata._core.concatenate",
+    # _core.data_extent
+    "are_extents_equal": "spatialdata._core.data_extent",
+    "get_extent": "spatialdata._core.data_extent",
+    # _core.operations.aggregate
+    "aggregate": "spatialdata._core.operations.aggregate",
+    # _core.operations.map
+    "map_raster": "spatialdata._core.operations.map",
+    "relabel_sequential": "spatialdata._core.operations.map",
+    # _core.operations.rasterize
+    "rasterize": "spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize",
+    # _core.operations.rasterize_bins
+    "rasterize_bins": "spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize_bins",
+    "rasterize_bins_link_table_to_labels": "spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize_bins",
+    # _core.operations.transform
+    "transform": "spatialdata._core.operations.transform",
+    # _core.operations.vectorize
+    "to_circles": "spatialdata._core.operations.vectorize",
+    "to_polygons": "spatialdata._core.operations.vectorize",
+    # _core.query._utils
+    "get_bounding_box_corners": "spatialdata._core.query._utils",
+    # _core.query.relational_query
+    "filter_by_table_query": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "get_element_annotators": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "get_element_instances": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "get_values": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "join_spatialelement_table": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "match_element_to_table": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "match_sdata_to_table": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    "match_table_to_element": "spatialdata._core.query.relational_query",
+    # _core.query.spatial_query
+    "bounding_box_query": "spatialdata._core.query.spatial_query",
+    "polygon_query": "spatialdata._core.query.spatial_query",
+    # _core.spatialdata
+    "SpatialData": "spatialdata._core.spatialdata",
+    # _io._utils
+    "get_dask_backing_files": "spatialdata._io._utils",
+    # _io.format
+    "SpatialDataFormatType": "spatialdata._io.format",
+    # _io.io_zarr
+    "read_zarr": "spatialdata._io.io_zarr",
+    # _utils
+    "get_pyramid_levels": "spatialdata._utils",
+    "unpad_raster": "spatialdata._utils",
+    # config
+    "settings": "spatialdata.config",
+}
+
+__all__ = [
+    # _core._deepcopy
+    "deepcopy",
+    # _core._utils
+    "sanitize_name",
+    "sanitize_table",
+    # _core.centroids
+    "get_centroids",
+    # _core.concatenate
     "concatenate",
+    # _core.data_extent
+    "are_extents_equal",
+    "get_extent",
+    # _core.operations.aggregate
+    "aggregate",
+    # _core.operations.map
+    "map_raster",
+    "relabel_sequential",
+    # _core.operations.rasterize
     "rasterize",
+    # _core.operations.rasterize_bins
     "rasterize_bins",
     "rasterize_bins_link_table_to_labels",
+    # _core.operations.transform
+    "transform",
+    # _core.operations.vectorize
     "to_circles",
     "to_polygons",
-    "transform",
-    "aggregate",
-    "bounding_box_query",
-    "polygon_query",
+    # _core.query._utils
+    "get_bounding_box_corners",
+    # _core.query.relational_query
+    "filter_by_table_query",
     "get_element_annotators",
     "get_element_instances",
     "get_values",
     "join_spatialelement_table",
     "match_element_to_table",
-    "match_table_to_element",
     "match_sdata_to_table",
-    "filter_by_table_query",
+    "match_table_to_element",
+    # _core.query.spatial_query
+    "bounding_box_query",
+    "polygon_query",
+    # _core.spatialdata
     "SpatialData",
-    "get_extent",
-    "get_centroids",
+    # _io._utils
+    "get_dask_backing_files",
+    # _io.format
     "SpatialDataFormatType",
+    # _io.io_zarr
     "read_zarr",
-    "unpad_raster",
+    # _utils
     "get_pyramid_levels",
-    "get_dask_backing_files",
-    "are_extents_equal",
-    "relabel_sequential",
-    "map_raster",
-    "deepcopy",
-    "sanitize_table",
-    "sanitize_name",
+    "unpad_raster",
+    # config
     "settings",
 ]
 
-from spatialdata import dataloader, datasets, models, transformations
-from spatialdata._core._deepcopy import deepcopy
-from spatialdata._core._utils import sanitize_name, sanitize_table
-from spatialdata._core.centroids import get_centroids
-from spatialdata._core.concatenate import concatenate
-from spatialdata._core.data_extent import are_extents_equal, get_extent
-from spatialdata._core.operations.aggregate import aggregate
-from spatialdata._core.operations.map import map_raster, relabel_sequential
-from spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize import rasterize
-from spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize_bins import rasterize_bins, rasterize_bins_link_table_to_labels
-from spatialdata._core.operations.transform import transform
-from spatialdata._core.operations.vectorize import to_circles, to_polygons
-from spatialdata._core.query._utils import get_bounding_box_corners
-from spatialdata._core.query.relational_query import (
-    filter_by_table_query,
-    get_element_annotators,
-    get_element_instances,
-    get_values,
-    join_spatialelement_table,
-    match_element_to_table,
-    match_sdata_to_table,
-    match_table_to_element,
-)
-from spatialdata._core.query.spatial_query import bounding_box_query, polygon_query
-from spatialdata._core.spatialdata import SpatialData
-from spatialdata._io._utils import get_dask_backing_files
-from spatialdata._io.format import SpatialDataFormatType
-from spatialdata._io.io_zarr import read_zarr
-from spatialdata._utils import get_pyramid_levels, unpad_raster
-from spatialdata.config import settings
+_accessor_loaded = False
+
+
+def __getattr__(name: str) -> Any:
+    global _accessor_loaded
+    if not _accessor_loaded:
+        _accessor_loaded = True
+        import spatialdata.models._accessor  # noqa: F401
+
+    if name in _submodules:
+        return importlib.import_module(f"spatialdata.{name}")
+    if name in _LAZY_IMPORTS:
+        mod = importlib.import_module(_LAZY_IMPORTS[name])
+        attr = getattr(mod, name)
+        globals()[name] = attr
+        return attr
+    try:
+        return globals()[name]
+    except KeyError as e:
+        raise AttributeError(f"module 'spatialdata' has no attribute {name!r}") from e
+
+
+def __dir__() -> list[str]:
+    return __all__ + ["__version__"]
+
+
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    # submodules
+    from spatialdata import dataloader, datasets, models, transformations
+
+    # _core._deepcopy
+    from spatialdata._core._deepcopy import deepcopy
+
+    # _core._utils
+    from spatialdata._core._utils import sanitize_name, sanitize_table
+
+    # _core.centroids
+    from spatialdata._core.centroids import get_centroids
+
+    # _core.concatenate
+    from spatialdata._core.concatenate import concatenate
+
+    # _core.data_extent
+    from spatialdata._core.data_extent import are_extents_equal, get_extent
+
+    # _core.operations.aggregate
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.aggregate import aggregate
+
+    # _core.operations.map
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.map import map_raster, relabel_sequential
+
+    # _core.operations.rasterize
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize import rasterize
+
+    # _core.operations.rasterize_bins
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.rasterize_bins import rasterize_bins, rasterize_bins_link_table_to_labels
+
+    # _core.operations.transform
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.transform import transform
+
+    # _core.operations.vectorize
+    from spatialdata._core.operations.vectorize import to_circles, to_polygons
+
+    # _core.query._utils
+    from spatialdata._core.query._utils import get_bounding_box_corners
+
+    # _core.query.relational_query
+    from spatialdata._core.query.relational_query import (
+        filter_by_table_query,
+        get_element_annotators,
+        get_element_instances,
+        get_values,
+        join_spatialelement_table,
+        match_element_to_table,
+        match_sdata_to_table,
+        match_table_to_element,
+    )
+
+    # _core.query.spatial_query
+    from spatialdata._core.query.spatial_query import bounding_box_query, polygon_query
+
+    # _core.spatialdata
+    from spatialdata._core.spatialdata import SpatialData
+
+    # _io._utils
+    from spatialdata._io._utils import get_dask_backing_files
+
+    # _io.format
+    from spatialdata._io.format import SpatialDataFormatType
+
+    # _io.io_zarr
+    from spatialdata._io.io_zarr import read_zarr
+
+    # _utils
+    from spatialdata._utils import get_pyramid_levels, unpad_raster
+
+    # config
+    from spatialdata.config import settings
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/__main__.py b/src/spatialdata/__main__.py
index 22b62cc1c..6d15de398 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/__main__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/__main__.py
@@ -6,6 +6,8 @@
 the contents of a SpatialData .zarr dataset. Additional CLI functionalities will be implemented in the future.
 """
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from typing import Literal
 
 import click
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/_deepcopy.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/_deepcopy.py
index 67d709f0a..9e2e7f00c 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/_deepcopy.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/_deepcopy.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from copy import deepcopy as _deepcopy
 from functools import singledispatch
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/_elements.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/_elements.py
index 88205c7eb..a3267a701 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/_elements.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/_elements.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """SpatialData elements."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections import UserDict
 from collections.abc import Iterable, KeysView, ValuesView
 from typing import TypeVar
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/_utils.py
index a6806334d..a55815655 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Iterable
 
 from anndata import AnnData
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/centroids.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/centroids.py
index cd43fb2fb..24ea616c6 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/centroids.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/centroids.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections import defaultdict
 from functools import singledispatch
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/concatenate.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/concatenate.py
index f90043604..b0639eacc 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/concatenate.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/concatenate.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections import defaultdict
 from collections.abc import Callable, Iterable
 from copy import copy  # Should probably go up at the top
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/data_extent.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/data_extent.py
index 6abd46ca8..6504bb082 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/data_extent.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/data_extent.py
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 # Functions to compute the bounding box describing the extent of a SpatialElement or SpatialData object
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections import defaultdict
 from functools import singledispatch
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/aggregate.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/aggregate.py
index 131b8d7f3..d0c4741e7 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/aggregate.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/aggregate.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import warnings
 from typing import Any
 
@@ -9,10 +11,8 @@
 import pandas as pd
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
-from scipy import sparse
 from shapely import Point
 from xarray import DataArray, DataTree
-from xrspatial import zonal_stats
 
 from spatialdata._core.operations._utils import _parse_element
 from spatialdata._core.operations.transform import transform
@@ -270,6 +270,9 @@ def _aggregate_image_by_labels(
     -------
     AnnData of shape `(by.shape[0], len(agg_func)]`.
     """
+    from scipy import sparse
+    from xrspatial import zonal_stats
+
     if isinstance(by, DataTree):
         assert len(by["scale0"]) == 1
         by = next(iter(by["scale0"].values()))
@@ -468,6 +471,8 @@ def _aggregate_shapes(
             columns_categories * (numel // len(columns_categories)), categories=columns_categories
         )
 
+    from scipy import sparse
+
     X = sparse.coo_matrix(
         (
             aggregated_values.ravel(),
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/map.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/map.py
index 823295e10..0f5a380a9 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/map.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/map.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 import operator
 from collections.abc import Callable, Iterable, Mapping
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize.py
index 12bbb68fe..d5b28c281 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
-import dask_image.ndinterp
-import datashader as ds
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
+
 import numpy as np
 from dask.array import Array as DaskArray
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
@@ -7,6 +9,9 @@
 from shapely import Point
 from xarray import DataArray, DataTree
 
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    import datashader as ds
+
 from spatialdata._core.operations._utils import _parse_element
 from spatialdata._core.operations.transform import transform
 from spatialdata._core.operations.vectorize import to_polygons
@@ -505,6 +510,8 @@ def rasterize_images_labels(
     target_height: float | None = None,
     target_depth: float | None = None,
 ) -> DataArray:
+    import dask_image.ndinterp
+
     min_coordinate = _parse_list_into_array(min_coordinate)
     max_coordinate = _parse_list_into_array(max_coordinate)
     # get dimensions of the target image
@@ -624,6 +631,8 @@ def rasterize_shapes_points(
     agg_func: str | ds.reductions.Reduction | None = None,
     return_single_channel: bool | None = None,
 ) -> DataArray:
+    import datashader as ds
+
     min_coordinate = _parse_list_into_array(min_coordinate)
     max_coordinate = _parse_list_into_array(max_coordinate)
     target_width, target_height, target_depth = _compute_target_dimensions(
@@ -737,6 +746,8 @@ def rasterize_shapes_points(
 def _default_agg_func(
     data: DaskDataFrame | GeoDataFrame, value_key: str | None, return_single_channel: bool
 ) -> ds.reductions.Reduction:
+    import datashader as ds
+
     if value_key is None:
         return ds.count()
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize_bins.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize_bins.py
index f61d1758c..87af14de7 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize_bins.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/rasterize_bins.py
@@ -9,9 +9,7 @@
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
 from numpy.random import default_rng
-from scipy.sparse import csc_matrix
 from shapely import MultiPolygon, Point, Polygon
-from skimage.transform import estimate_transform
 from xarray import DataArray
 
 from spatialdata._core.query.relational_query import get_values
@@ -126,6 +124,8 @@ def rasterize_bins(
         transformations = get_transformation(element, get_all=True)
         assert isinstance(transformations, dict)
     else:
+        from skimage.transform import estimate_transform
+
         # get the transformation
         if table.n_obs < 6:
             raise ValueError("At least 6 bins are needed to estimate the transformation.")
@@ -177,6 +177,8 @@ def rasterize_bins(
 
     keys = ([value_key] if isinstance(value_key, str) else value_key) if value_key is not None else table.var_names
 
+    from scipy.sparse import csc_matrix
+
     if (value_key is None or any(key in table.var_names for key in keys)) and not isinstance(
         table.X, csc_matrix | np.ndarray
     ):
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/vectorize.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/vectorize.py
index 40d3e31f4..414584589 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/vectorize.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/operations/vectorize.py
@@ -1,17 +1,20 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from functools import singledispatch
-from typing import Any
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, Any
 
 import dask
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
 import shapely
-import skimage.measure
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
 from shapely import MultiPolygon, Point, Polygon
-from skimage.measure._regionprops import RegionProperties
 from xarray import DataArray, DataTree
 
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from skimage.measure._regionprops import RegionProperties
+
 from spatialdata._core.centroids import get_centroids
 from spatialdata._core.operations.aggregate import aggregate
 from spatialdata._logging import logger
@@ -226,6 +229,8 @@ def _vectorize_chunk(chunk: np.ndarray, yoff: int, xoff: int) -> GeoDataFrame:
 
 
 def _region_props_to_polygon(region_props: RegionProperties) -> MultiPolygon | Polygon:
+    import skimage.measure
+
     mask = np.pad(region_props.image, 1)
     contours = skimage.measure.find_contours(mask, 0.5)
 
@@ -244,6 +249,8 @@ def _region_props_to_polygon(region_props: RegionProperties) -> MultiPolygon | P
 def _vectorize_mask(
     mask: np.ndarray,  # type: ignore[type-arg]
 ) -> GeoDataFrame:
+    import skimage.measure
+
     if mask.max() == 0:
         return GeoDataFrame({"label": []}, geometry=[])
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/_utils.py
index 5ab904d96..f66679ca2 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from typing import Any
 
 import numba as nb
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/relational_query.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/relational_query.py
index 01cfb745b..c83cd770e 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/relational_query.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/relational_query.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 import warnings
 from collections import defaultdict
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/spatial_query.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/spatial_query.py
index b112b68c5..c29e3bc0e 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/query/spatial_query.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/query/spatial_query.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import warnings
 from abc import abstractmethod
 from collections.abc import Callable, Mapping
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_core/validation.py b/src/spatialdata/_core/validation.py
index 50e1b65d5..df354fc3b 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_core/validation.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_core/validation.py
@@ -1,9 +1,12 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Collection
 from types import TracebackType
-from typing import NamedTuple, cast
+from typing import TYPE_CHECKING, NamedTuple, cast
 
-import pandas as pd
-from anndata import AnnData
+if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    import pandas as pd
+    from anndata import AnnData
 
 
 class ErrorDetails(NamedTuple):
@@ -278,7 +281,7 @@ def __call__(
         self,
         location: str | tuple[str, ...] = (),
         expected_exception: type[BaseException] | tuple[type[BaseException], ...] | None = None,
-    ) -> "_ErrorDetailsCollector":
+    ) -> _ErrorDetailsCollector:
         """
         Set or override error details in advance before an exception is raised.
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_docs.py b/src/spatialdata/_docs.py
index b8e13bc79..691ed765b 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_docs.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_docs.py
@@ -1,4 +1,6 @@
 # from https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10307696/how-to-put-a-variable-into-python-docstring
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Callable
 from typing import Any, TypeVar
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/__init__.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/__init__.py
index b0dc914e6..38ff8c6bb 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/__init__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata._io._utils import get_dask_backing_files
 from spatialdata._io.format import SpatialDataFormatType
 from spatialdata._io.io_points import write_points
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/_utils.py
index b58d67445..6690d1118 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import filecmp
 import os.path
 import re
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/format.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/format.py
index cce6654ef..cfb5be1b6 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/format.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/format.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Iterator
 from typing import Any
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_points.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_points.py
index 5f42497c7..b47fc418c 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_points.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_points.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 
 import zarr
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_raster.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_raster.py
index 86b537d0c..df7e1cb8f 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_raster.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_raster.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any, Literal
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_shapes.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_shapes.py
index 65cb099a0..b07256273 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_shapes.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_shapes.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any, Literal
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_table.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_table.py
index d2e5c3cca..8cd7b8385 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_table.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_table.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_zarr.py b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_zarr.py
index 0312dc965..4c410fab0 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_io/io_zarr.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_io/io_zarr.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import os
 import warnings
 from collections.abc import Callable
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_logging.py b/src/spatialdata/_logging.py
index c49c1c884..0b117a7a8 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_logging.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_logging.py
@@ -1,8 +1,10 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import logging
 import os
 
 
-def _setup_logger() -> "logging.Logger":
+def _setup_logger() -> logging.Logger:
     from rich.console import Console
     from rich.logging import RichHandler
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_types.py b/src/spatialdata/_types.py
index e1415f74c..c5bd76de9 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_types.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_types.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from typing import Any, TypeAlias
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/_utils.py
index 64dd76389..3df133854 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import functools
 import re
 import warnings
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/config.py b/src/spatialdata/config.py
index dab848b35..35b96e5f7 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/config.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/config.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from dataclasses import dataclass
 from typing import Literal
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/dataloader/datasets.py b/src/spatialdata/dataloader/datasets.py
index 4bf14a916..6a105b681 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/dataloader/datasets.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/dataloader/datasets.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import warnings
 from collections.abc import Callable, Mapping
 from functools import partial
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/datasets.py b/src/spatialdata/datasets.py
index de144be74..cb7a7b55b 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/datasets.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/datasets.py
@@ -1,19 +1,19 @@
 """SpatialData datasets."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import warnings
 from typing import Any, Literal
 
 import dask.dataframe.core
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
-import scipy
 from anndata import AnnData
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
 from numpy.random import default_rng
 from shapely.affinity import translate
 from shapely.geometry import MultiPolygon, Point, Polygon
-from skimage.segmentation import slic
 from xarray import DataArray, DataTree
 
 from spatialdata._core.operations.aggregate import aggregate
@@ -89,6 +89,9 @@ def raccoon(
         self,
     ) -> SpatialData:
         """Raccoon dataset."""
+        import scipy.datasets
+        from skimage.segmentation import slic
+
         im_data = scipy.datasets.face()
         im = Image2DModel.parse(im_data, dims=["y", "x", "c"])
         labels_data = slic(im_data, n_segments=100, compactness=10, sigma=1)
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/io/__init__.py b/src/spatialdata/io/__init__.py
index a23181cad..eba096e3e 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/io/__init__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/io/__init__.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """Experimental bridge to the spatialdata_io package."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 try:
     from spatialdata_io import *  # noqa: F403
 except ImportError as e:
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/__init__.py b/src/spatialdata/models/__init__.py
index ba064e0a6..2f25b4f3c 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/__init__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata._core.validation import check_target_region_column_symmetry
 from spatialdata.models._utils import (
     C,
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/_accessor.py b/src/spatialdata/models/_accessor.py
index a8b19653d..1b635427c 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/_accessor.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/_accessor.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Iterator, MutableMapping
 from typing import Any, Literal
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/models/_utils.py
index 6631f6c9d..26e9aafea 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/_utils.py
@@ -8,7 +8,6 @@
 import geopandas
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
-from anndata import AnnData
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
 from shapely.geometry import MultiPolygon, Point, Polygon
@@ -29,6 +28,8 @@
 X = "x"
 
 if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    from anndata import AnnData
+
     from spatialdata.models.models import RasterSchema
 
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/chunks_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/models/chunks_utils.py
index 14ac208e8..474067011 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/chunks_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/chunks_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Mapping, Sequence
 from typing import Any, TypeAlias
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/models.py b/src/spatialdata/models/models.py
index c8001a847..16883c6aa 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/models.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/models.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """Models and schema for SpatialData."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import warnings
 from collections.abc import Mapping, Sequence
 from functools import singledispatchmethod
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/models/pyramids_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/models/pyramids_utils.py
index 8a0a0ba1b..bef7dfb3e 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/models/pyramids_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/models/pyramids_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Sequence
 from typing import Any
 
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/testing.py b/src/spatialdata/testing.py
index 1d1455479..17945818a 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/testing.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/testing.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from anndata import AnnData
 from anndata.tests.helpers import assert_equal as assert_anndata_equal
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/transformations/__init__.py b/src/spatialdata/transformations/__init__.py
index f6affcafe..e95a92766 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/transformations/__init__.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/transformations/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata.transformations.operations import (
     align_elements_using_landmarks,
     get_transformation,
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/_utils.py b/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/_utils.py
index 4d0eaf216..07dff152c 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/_utils.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import copy
 
 from spatialdata.models import C, X, Y, Z
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/ngff_transformations.py b/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/ngff_transformations.py
index 6e25646f9..1758159bf 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/ngff_transformations.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/transformations/ngff/ngff_transformations.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 from abc import ABC, abstractmethod
 from numbers import Number
@@ -71,11 +73,11 @@ def __repr__(self) -> str:
 
     @classmethod
     @abstractmethod
-    def _from_dict(cls, d: Transformation_t) -> "NgffBaseTransformation":
+    def _from_dict(cls, d: Transformation_t) -> NgffBaseTransformation:
         pass
 
     @classmethod
-    def from_dict(cls, d: Transformation_t) -> "NgffBaseTransformation":
+    def from_dict(cls, d: Transformation_t) -> NgffBaseTransformation:
         """
         Initialize a transformation from the Python dict of its json representation.
 
@@ -134,7 +136,7 @@ def _update_dict_with_input_output_cs(self, d: Transformation_t) -> None:
                 d["output"] = d["output"].to_dict()
 
     @abstractmethod
-    def inverse(self) -> "NgffBaseTransformation":
+    def inverse(self) -> NgffBaseTransformation:
         """Return the inverse of the transformation."""
 
     @abstractmethod
@@ -156,7 +158,7 @@ def transform_points(self, points: ArrayLike) -> ArrayLike:
         """
 
     @abstractmethod
-    def to_affine(self) -> "NgffAffine":
+    def to_affine(self) -> NgffAffine:
         """Convert the transformation to an affine transformation, whenever the conversion can be made."""
 
     def _validate_transform_points_shapes(self, input_size: int, points_shape: tuple[int, ...]) -> None:
@@ -177,7 +179,7 @@ def _validate_transform_points_shapes(self, input_size: int, points_shape: tuple
             )
 
     # order of the composition: self is applied first, then the transformation passed as argument
-    def compose_with(self, transformation: "NgffBaseTransformation") -> "NgffBaseTransformation":
+    def compose_with(self, transformation: NgffBaseTransformation) -> NgffBaseTransformation:
         """
         Compose the transfomation object with another transformation
 
@@ -343,7 +345,7 @@ def transform_points(self, points: ArrayLike) -> ArrayLike:
         assert isinstance(res, np.ndarray)
         return res
 
-    def to_affine(self) -> "NgffAffine":
+    def to_affine(self) -> NgffAffine:
         return NgffAffine(
             self.affine,
             input_coordinate_system=self.input_coordinate_system,
@@ -381,7 +383,7 @@ def from_input_output_coordinate_systems(
         cls,
         input_coordinate_system: NgffCoordinateSystem,
         output_coordinate_system: NgffCoordinateSystem,
-    ) -> "NgffAffine":
+    ) -> NgffAffine:
         input_axes = input_coordinate_system.axes_names
         output_axes = output_coordinate_system.axes_names
         m = cls._affine_matrix_from_input_and_output_axes(input_axes, output_axes)
diff --git a/src/spatialdata/transformations/operations.py b/src/spatialdata/transformations/operations.py
index 15fe3d57c..31bd5cccb 100644
--- a/src/spatialdata/transformations/operations.py
+++ b/src/spatialdata/transformations/operations.py
@@ -3,16 +3,16 @@
 import contextlib
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
 
-import networkx as nx
 import numpy as np
 from dask.dataframe import DataFrame as DaskDataFrame
 from geopandas import GeoDataFrame
-from skimage.transform import estimate_transform
 
 from spatialdata._logging import logger
 from spatialdata.transformations._utils import _get_transformations, _set_transformations
 
 if TYPE_CHECKING:
+    import networkx as nx
+
     from spatialdata._core.spatialdata import SpatialData
     from spatialdata.models._utils import SpatialElement
     from spatialdata.transformations.transformations import Affine, BaseTransformation
@@ -194,6 +194,8 @@ def remove_transformation(
 
 
 def _build_transformations_graph(sdata: SpatialData) -> nx.Graph:
+    import networkx as nx
+
     g = nx.DiGraph()
     gen = sdata._gen_spatial_element_values()
     for cs in sdata.coordinate_systems:
@@ -236,6 +238,8 @@ def get_transformation_between_coordinate_systems(
     -------
     The transformation to map the source coordinate system to the target coordinate system.
     """
+    import networkx as nx
+
     from spatialdata.models._utils import has_type_spatial_element
     from spatialdata.transformations import Identity, Sequence
 
@@ -373,6 +377,8 @@ def get_transformation_between_landmarks(
     >>> references_coords = PointsModel(points_reference)
     >>> transformation = get_transformation_between_landmarks(references_coords, moving_coords)
     """
+    from skimage.transform import estimate_transform
+
     from spatialdata import transform
     from spatialdata.models import get_axes_names
     from spatialdata.transformations.transformations import Affine, Sequence
diff --git a/tests/conftest.py b/tests/conftest.py
index 7149b4e72..c97939129 100644
--- a/tests/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/conftest.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from collections.abc import Sequence
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import Any
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_aggregations.py b/tests/core/operations/test_aggregations.py
index eb2ed089c..d471b79cc 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_aggregations.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_aggregations.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import geopandas
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_map.py b/tests/core/operations/test_map.py
index a032d381b..cde00fd31 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_map.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_map.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 import re
 
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize.py b/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize.py
index a2ffde3d4..53d362d15 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import dask.dataframe as dd
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize_bins.py b/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize_bins.py
index b99508efa..2918855db 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize_bins.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_rasterize_bins.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import logging
 import re
 
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_spatialdata_operations.py b/tests/core/operations/test_spatialdata_operations.py
index 6ea4661d3..68b538e0a 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_spatialdata_operations.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_spatialdata_operations.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_transform.py b/tests/core/operations/test_transform.py
index 1bb494fb7..e006cf280 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_transform.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_transform.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 import tempfile
 from pathlib import Path
diff --git a/tests/core/operations/test_vectorize.py b/tests/core/operations/test_vectorize.py
index cf5e2794c..ae83f6c95 100644
--- a/tests/core/operations/test_vectorize.py
+++ b/tests/core/operations/test_vectorize.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/tests/core/query/test_relational_query.py b/tests/core/query/test_relational_query.py
index 3267b1e55..63e7a6f19 100644
--- a/tests/core/query/test_relational_query.py
+++ b/tests/core/query/test_relational_query.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import annsel as an
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
diff --git a/tests/core/query/test_relational_query_match_sdata_to_table.py b/tests/core/query/test_relational_query_match_sdata_to_table.py
index 6d4fcadf3..0c47ca914 100644
--- a/tests/core/query/test_relational_query_match_sdata_to_table.py
+++ b/tests/core/query/test_relational_query_match_sdata_to_table.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import pytest
 
 from spatialdata import SpatialData, concatenate, match_sdata_to_table
diff --git a/tests/core/query/test_spatial_query.py b/tests/core/query/test_spatial_query.py
index d7147dbfb..7dadc6f63 100644
--- a/tests/core/query/test_spatial_query.py
+++ b/tests/core/query/test_spatial_query.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from dataclasses import FrozenInstanceError
 
 import dask.dataframe as dd
diff --git a/tests/core/test_centroids.py b/tests/core/test_centroids.py
index aa332f9da..94cd40b09 100644
--- a/tests/core/test_centroids.py
+++ b/tests/core/test_centroids.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/tests/core/test_data_extent.py b/tests/core/test_data_extent.py
index de5875cfa..4d2316acc 100644
--- a/tests/core/test_data_extent.py
+++ b/tests/core/test_data_extent.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import math
 
 import numpy as np
diff --git a/tests/core/test_deepcopy.py b/tests/core/test_deepcopy.py
index b21cc9259..b63b43616 100644
--- a/tests/core/test_deepcopy.py
+++ b/tests/core/test_deepcopy.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pandas.testing import assert_frame_equal
 
 from spatialdata import SpatialData
diff --git a/tests/core/test_get_attrs.py b/tests/core/test_get_attrs.py
index aedf32711..a6b467fa9 100644
--- a/tests/core/test_get_attrs.py
+++ b/tests/core/test_get_attrs.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import pandas as pd
 import pytest
 
diff --git a/tests/core/test_validation.py b/tests/core/test_validation.py
index 258c14711..bb612a4e3 100644
--- a/tests/core/test_validation.py
+++ b/tests/core/test_validation.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import pytest
 
 from spatialdata._core.validation import ValidationError, raise_validation_errors
diff --git a/tests/dataloader/__init__.py b/tests/dataloader/__init__.py
index 328f74034..c2a5fdd8e 100644
--- a/tests/dataloader/__init__.py
+++ b/tests/dataloader/__init__.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 try:
     from spatialdata.dataloader.datasets import ImageTilesDataset
 except ImportError as e:
diff --git a/tests/dataloader/test_datasets.py b/tests/dataloader/test_datasets.py
index 48881b0b0..6b6607e80 100644
--- a/tests/dataloader/test_datasets.py
+++ b/tests/dataloader/test_datasets.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import numpy as np
 import pytest
 
diff --git a/tests/datasets/test_datasets.py b/tests/datasets/test_datasets.py
index e22182b44..2237e253c 100644
--- a/tests/datasets/test_datasets.py
+++ b/tests/datasets/test_datasets.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata.datasets import blobs, raccoon
 
 
diff --git a/tests/io/test_attrs_io.py b/tests/io/test_attrs_io.py
index 4dda6f0d5..1f9895eaa 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_attrs_io.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_attrs_io.py
@@ -1,5 +1,7 @@
 """Test attrs read/write for all SpatialData container formats."""
 
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import tempfile
 from pathlib import Path
 
diff --git a/tests/io/test_format.py b/tests/io/test_format.py
index c8d9f04c1..3ef1319c3 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_format.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_format.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import json
 import tempfile
 from pathlib import Path
diff --git a/tests/io/test_metadata.py b/tests/io/test_metadata.py
index bb993b00d..dd0ae704f 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_metadata.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_metadata.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import logging
 import os
 import tempfile
diff --git a/tests/io/test_multi_table.py b/tests/io/test_multi_table.py
index 5c90109d8..abaaea8d2 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_multi_table.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_multi_table.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 
 import pandas as pd
diff --git a/tests/io/test_pyramids_performance.py b/tests/io/test_pyramids_performance.py
index 875879541..82501ae87 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_pyramids_performance.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_pyramids_performance.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from pathlib import Path
 from typing import TYPE_CHECKING
 
@@ -18,7 +20,7 @@
 
 
 @pytest.fixture
-def sdata_with_image(request: "_pytest.fixtures.SubRequest", tmp_path: Path) -> SpatialData:
+def sdata_with_image(request: _pytest.fixtures.SubRequest, tmp_path: Path) -> SpatialData:
     params = request.param if request.param is not None else {}
     width = params.get("width", 2048)
     chunksize = params.get("chunk_size", 1024)
diff --git a/tests/io/test_readwrite.py b/tests/io/test_readwrite.py
index af028d29c..b46620f4d 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_readwrite.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_readwrite.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import json
 import os
 import tempfile
diff --git a/tests/io/test_utils.py b/tests/io/test_utils.py
index 57bfe6e42..1f7be3581 100644
--- a/tests/io/test_utils.py
+++ b/tests/io/test_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import os
 import tempfile
 from contextlib import nullcontext
diff --git a/tests/models/test_accessor.py b/tests/models/test_accessor.py
index 7356f52cc..6f21a1905 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_accessor.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_accessor.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import dask.dataframe as dd
 import pandas as pd
 import pytest
diff --git a/tests/models/test_chunks_utils.py b/tests/models/test_chunks_utils.py
index 5bfcfa812..a450ec664 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_chunks_utils.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_chunks_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import pytest
 
 from spatialdata.models.chunks_utils import Chunks_t, normalize_chunks
diff --git a/tests/models/test_models.py b/tests/models/test_models.py
index e2087ace0..348db1b2e 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_models.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_models.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import os
 import re
 import tempfile
diff --git a/tests/models/test_pyramids_utils.py b/tests/models/test_pyramids_utils.py
index da0a33547..5d5e96086 100644
--- a/tests/models/test_pyramids_utils.py
+++ b/tests/models/test_pyramids_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import numpy as np
 import pytest
 from multiscale_spatial_image.to_multiscale.to_multiscale import Methods
diff --git a/tests/test_init.py b/tests/test_init.py
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..94107c937
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/test_init.py
@@ -0,0 +1,25 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
+import spatialdata
+
+
+def test_package_has_version() -> None:
+    assert spatialdata.__version__
+
+
+def test_all_matches_lazy_imports() -> None:
+    """Ensure __all__ and _LAZY_IMPORTS stay in sync."""
+    assert set(spatialdata.__all__) == set(spatialdata._LAZY_IMPORTS.keys())
+
+
+def test_all_are_importable() -> None:
+    """Every name in __all__ should be accessible on the module."""
+    for name in spatialdata.__all__:
+        assert hasattr(spatialdata, name), f"{name!r} listed in __all__ but not resolvable"
+
+
+def test_all_are_in_dir() -> None:
+    """dir(spatialdata) should expose everything in __all__."""
+    module_dir = dir(spatialdata)
+    for name in spatialdata.__all__:
+        assert name in module_dir, f"{name!r} missing from dir()"
diff --git a/tests/transformations/ngff/conftest.py b/tests/transformations/ngff/conftest.py
index cc0089cd3..a5ce90247 100644
--- a/tests/transformations/ngff/conftest.py
+++ b/tests/transformations/ngff/conftest.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata.transformations.ngff.ngff_coordinate_system import (
     NgffAxis,
     NgffCoordinateSystem,
diff --git a/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_coordinate_system.py b/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_coordinate_system.py
index 6a8474b71..ae1412fcc 100644
--- a/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_coordinate_system.py
+++ b/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_coordinate_system.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import copy
 import json
 
diff --git a/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_transformations.py b/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_transformations.py
index 8e1ea0f3c..7051f3646 100644
--- a/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_transformations.py
+++ b/tests/transformations/ngff/test_ngff_transformations.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import contextlib
 import copy
 import json
diff --git a/tests/transformations/test_transformations.py b/tests/transformations/test_transformations.py
index b8571dc9a..a8de25f47 100644
--- a/tests/transformations/test_transformations.py
+++ b/tests/transformations/test_transformations.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from contextlib import nullcontext
 from copy import deepcopy
 
diff --git a/tests/transformations/test_transformations_utils.py b/tests/transformations/test_transformations_utils.py
index 2c69d96e8..dc5f884b9 100644
--- a/tests/transformations/test_transformations_utils.py
+++ b/tests/transformations/test_transformations_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 from spatialdata.transformations._utils import convert_transformations_to_affine
 from spatialdata.transformations.operations import get_transformation, set_transformation
 from spatialdata.transformations.transformations import Affine, Scale, Sequence, Translation
diff --git a/tests/utils/test_element_utils.py b/tests/utils/test_element_utils.py
index 1bfd20aa4..341f66872 100644
--- a/tests/utils/test_element_utils.py
+++ b/tests/utils/test_element_utils.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import itertools
 
 import dask_image.ndinterp
diff --git a/tests/utils/test_sanitize.py b/tests/utils/test_sanitize.py
index b61f19084..6b2fd3150 100644
--- a/tests/utils/test_sanitize.py
+++ b/tests/utils/test_sanitize.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import numpy as np
 import pandas as pd
 import pytest
diff --git a/tests/utils/test_testing.py b/tests/utils/test_testing.py
index a181c87ff..322b6ad50 100644
--- a/tests/utils/test_testing.py
+++ b/tests/utils/test_testing.py
@@ -1,3 +1,5 @@
+from __future__ import annotations
+
 import copy
 
 import numpy as np