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Install

Packages for Crystal releases are available from different sources. There are official ones provided the Crystal project, system packages and community-maintained packages. This page gives an overview of available installation methods.

Linux

Many Linux distribution provide Crystal in their system packages. It might not be the most recent version though. Third party package managers are typically more up to date.

DEB and RPM packages are available in our own package repository and we provide an installer script for convenience.

Crystal

Installer (DEB & RPM) x86_64 Latest version: 1.12.2
curl -fsSL https://crystal-lang.org/install.sh | sudo bash
Repo info
Tarball (.tar.gz) x86_64 x86_64-bundled Latest version: 1.12.2

System

APT (Debian, Ubuntu, etc.) x86_64 Version information on Repology
apt install crystal
Repo info
Apk (Alpine Linux) x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology
apk add crystal shards
Repo info
Pacman (Arch Linux) x86_64 Version information on Repology
pacman -S crystal shards
Repo info
Emerge (Gentoo) x86_64 Version information on Repology
emerge -a dev-lang/crystal
Repo info

Community

Homebrew/Linuxbrew x86_64 Version information on Repology
brew install crystal
Repo info
asdf x86_64
asdf plugin add crystal
asdf install crystal latest
Repo info
Snapcraft x86_64
snap install crystal --classic
Repo info
Nix x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology

crystal package

Repo info
84codes (DEB & RPM) x86_64 aarch64
Repo info

Linux-based Docker images and developer tools are also available.

Read more about installing on Linux

MacOS

The Crystal project provides universal archives for MacOS that work on both, Apple Silicon and Intel.

The most popular installation method is via Homebrew.

Crystal

Tarball (.tar.gz) universal Latest version: 1.12.2

Download: universal

Community

Homebrew x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology
brew install crystal
Repo info
asdf universal
asdf plugin add crystal
asdf install crystal latest
Repo info
Nix x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology

crystal package

Repo info
MacPorts x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology
port install crystal
Repo info

Crystal is also available in developer tooling on macOS.

Read more about installing on MacOS

Windows (preview)

Note

Windows support is currently a preview and not yet complete, but largely usable.

Official builds are available as a ZIP archive or installer.

Crystal

Installer (.exe) x86_64 Latest version: 1.12.2

Download: x86_64

Portable Archive (.zip) x86_64 Latest version: 1.12.2

Download: x86_64

Community

Scoop x86_64
scoop install git
scoop bucket add crystal-preview https://github.com/neatorobito/scoop-crystal
scoop install vs_2022_cpp_build_tools crystal
Repo info
WinGet x86_64 Version information on Repology
Repo info

Crystal is also available in developer tooling on Windows.

Read more about installing on Windows

FreeBSD

System

Package x86_64 aarch64
sudo pkg install -y crystal shards
Port x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology
sudo make -C/usr/ports/lang/crystal reinstall clean
sudo make -C/usr/ports/devel/shards reinstall clean
Repo info

Read more about installing on FreeBSD

OpenBSD

System

Package x86_64 aarch64
doas pkg_add crystal
Port x86_64 aarch64 Version information on Repology
doas make -C/usr/ports/lang/crystal clean install
Repo info

Read more about installing on OpenBSD

Android

Community

Termux aarch64 Version information on Repology
pkg install crystal
Repo info

Docker

Crystal

crystallang x86_64 Latest version: 1.12.2
docker pull crystallang/crystal
Repo info

Community

84codes x86_64 aarch64
docker pull 84codes/crystal
Repo info

Developer Tools

Crystal

GitHub Actions x86_64 aarch64
- uses: crystal-lang/install-crystal@v1
Repo info

Community

devenv.sh x86_64 aarch64
languages.crystal.enable = true
Repo info

Nightly builds

Nightly builds are the bleeding-edge version of Crystal, being a daily snapshot of the current development status in the master branch. This is inherently less stable than proper a release, but allows trying out new features and testing compatibility with existing code bases. It’s recommended to test against nightlies regularly in order to notice any issues timely and avoid surprises after the next release.

Read more about Nightly Builds

Building from Source

The Crystal compiler is self-hosted, so in order to build it you need a Crystal compiler. Hence from source installation is not an ideal way to get Crystal in the first place. However it is possible to bootstrap from a different platform through cross-compiling.

Read more about Building from Source


Done installing?

Once you have Crystal installed, follow the first steps to get started.

Learn Crystal
Having trouble?

Get help about installing Crystal in the community forum.

Ask for support