Claude Code on Linux: Desktop App (Beta) or CLI, and How to Install Each

Yes, Claude Code runs on Linux, and you have two ways to use it. The first is the Claude desktop app, which is in beta on Linux for Ubuntu 22.04 or later and Debian 12 or later, on x86_64 or arm64. It gives you the same Code tab as on Mac and Windows: parallel sessions, visual diff review, an integrated terminal and editor, and live app preview. The second is the Claude Code CLI, which runs in your terminal and supports a wider range of distributions, including Fedora, RHEL and Alpine. Both run the same Claude Code engine.

My recommendation: if you are on a supported Ubuntu or Debian release, start with the desktop app. It is the friendliest way to review what Claude changed before you keep it. Use the CLI if your distribution is not supported by the desktop beta, or if you work over SSH on a server with no desktop at all.

Either way, Claude Code itself needs a Pro, Max, Team or Enterprise plan. The desktop app does not accept a Console API key, so if you bill through an API key, the CLI is your path. If you are on Windows with WSL 2, do not install the Linux app inside WSL. Install the Windows desktop app and run sessions in your WSL distribution instead.

Anthropic installs the Linux app from its own apt repository, so updates arrive with the rest of your system. Open a terminal once for setup. After that you can launch Claude from your application launcher like any other app.

To update later, run sudo apt update && sudo apt upgrade, or let your graphical software updater do it. The Linux app does not update itself the way the Mac and Windows versions do.

The quickest route is Anthropic's native installer: curl -fsSL https://claude.ai/install.sh | bash. It shows no progress while it downloads. When it finishes, open a new terminal and run claude --version. If you get claude: command not found, the install folder is not on your PATH yet, and Anthropic's install troubleshooting page has the fix. The native install keeps itself updated in the background.

If you prefer your package manager, Anthropic publishes signed apt (Debian and Ubuntu), dnf (Fedora and RHEL) and apk (Alpine) repositories. Each has a stable channel, which runs about a week behind and skips releases with major regressions, and a latest channel that gets every release as it ships. For most people, stable is the right pick. Package manager installs update with your normal system upgrades, not on their own.

Once it is installed, cd into your project folder and run claude. If the terminal is new to you, Claude Code terminal setup covers the basics, and Claude Code day one setup covers what to do in your first session.

The Cowork tab has its own requirements on Linux. It runs tasks in a virtual machine, so it needs hardware virtualization turned on, the QEMU packages that apt installs by default, and your user in the kvm group (sudo usermod -aG kvm $USER, then log out and back in). That only matters for Cowork. The Code tab does not need it.

My take: a beta label should not stop you. The Code tab is where most of the value is, and on Linux it has the features I care about day to day, especially the visual diff and parallel sessions. If you hit a gap, the CLI is one command away and runs the same engine, so you are never stuck. One Linux upside worth knowing: Claude Code's sandbox is supported on Linux, which makes it easier to let Claude run commands with fewer prompts.