How to Install Git on Windows and Linux (Step by Step)

Before you can use Git, it has to be installed on your computer. This lesson walks you through installing Git on Windows (with the installer or winget) and on the most popular Linux distributions, with the installer options that matter and fixes for common problems.

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✅ Before You Start

Check whether Git is already installed. Open a terminal (Command Prompt, PowerShell or Windows Terminal on Windows; Terminal on Linux) and run:

git --version

If you see something like git version 2.47.1, Git is installed; you can still follow this lesson to update it. If you see “command not found” or “‘git’ is not recognized”, install it now.

On a Mac? Follow Install Git on macOS instead, then continue with Configure Git.

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🪟 Install Git on Windows (Installer)

1. Go to git-scm.com and click Download for Windows. Choose the 64-bit Git for Windows Setup installer.
2. Run the installer. Most default options are fine; these are the important screens:

Installer screen	Recommended choice	Why
Choosing the default editor	Visual Studio Code (or Notepad++)	The default, Vim, is hard for beginners
Adjusting the name of the initial branch	Override… and use “main”	GitHub uses main as the default branch name
Adjusting your PATH environment	Git from the command line and also from 3rd-party software	Lets you use git in PowerShell, CMD and VS Code
SSH executable	Use bundled OpenSSH	Works with the SSH lesson
Line ending conversions	Checkout Windows-style, commit Unix-style	Avoids line-ending problems with teammates on macOS and Linux
Terminal emulator	Use MinTTY	Better Git Bash terminal
Default behaviour of git pull	Fast-forward or merge (default)	Explained in fetch vs pull
Credential helper	Git Credential Manager	Signs in to GitHub securely in the browser

1. Click Install, then Finish.
2. Open a new terminal and verify:

git --version

What did the installer add?

• Git Bash: a Linux-style terminal for Windows. Commands in this course such as ls, cat and touch work there. See Essential Terminal Commands for Git.
• Git GUI: a simple graphical tool (rarely needed).
• Git Credential Manager: stores your GitHub login securely.

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⚡ Install Git on Windows with winget

Prefer the command line? Windows 10 and 11 include the winget package manager:

winget install --id Git.Git -e --source winget

Close and reopen the terminal, then run git --version. winget uses the installer defaults, so set the default branch name and editor in the next lesson.

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🐧 Install Git on Linux

Use your distribution’s package manager:

# Ubuntu, Debian, Linux Mint
sudo apt update
sudo apt install git

# Fedora
sudo dnf install git

# CentOS Stream, RHEL, Rocky, AlmaLinux
sudo dnf install git

# Arch Linux, Manjaro
sudo pacman -S git

# openSUSE
sudo zypper install git

Verify:

git --version

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🔄 Updating Git Later

Platform	Update command
Windows (Git for Windows 2.16.1 or newer)	git update-git-for-windows
Windows (winget)	winget upgrade --id Git.Git
Ubuntu or Debian	sudo apt update && sudo apt install --only-upgrade git
Fedora	sudo dnf upgrade git

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🐞 Troubleshooting

Problem	Fix
'git' is not recognized on Windows	Reopen the terminal; re-run the installer with the PATH option “from the command line and also from 3rd-party software”
VS Code does not find Git	Restart VS Code; check Settings, git.path
Permission denied on Linux	Use sudo for the install command
Old version on Linux	Use the distribution’s backports or the Git PPA (Ubuntu)
Corporate proxy blocks downloads	Ask IT for the approved installer, or download on another network

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📝 Assignment

1. Install Git on your computer and paste the output of git --version into a notes file.
2. On Windows, open Git Bash and run pwd, ls and cd ~. What does each command show?
3. Open VS Code, open any folder, and check that the Source Control panel (Ctrl + Shift + G) no longer says Git is missing.
4. Write down which line-ending option you chose during installation, and why it matters for teams.

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❓ FAQ

🤔 How do I install Git on Windows?

Download Git for Windows from git-scm.com, run the installer (choose VS Code as editor, “main” as the default branch and the recommended PATH option), then check git --version in a new terminal. Or run winget install --id Git.Git -e --source winget.

🤔 How do I install Git on Ubuntu?

Run sudo apt update and sudo apt install git, then verify with git --version.

🤔 How do I check if Git is installed?

Open a terminal and run git --version. If it prints a version number, Git is installed.

🤔 What is Git Bash?

A terminal installed with Git for Windows that supports Linux-style commands such as ls, cat and rm, which makes following Git tutorials easier on Windows.

🤔 Do I need a GitHub account to install Git?

No. Git works without an account. You will create a GitHub account in Lesson 6 to share your repositories online.

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🎯 Next Steps

• 🍎 Install Git on macOS
• ⚙️ Configure Git: Name, Email, Editor and Defaults
• 📘 Git and GitHub Tutorial: full course