How to install the Kakoune code editor on Linux
Kakoune is a modal code editor similar to VIM. It can handle multiple selections, is extremely fast, and requires fewer keystrokes than other editors. Here’s how to install Kakoune on your Linux PC.
Ubuntu installation instructions
Kakoune is available for Ubuntu, so if you use the Ubuntu operating system, you’ll be able to get the app working. However, you’ll need to launch a terminal window first. To open up a terminal window on the Ubuntu desktop, press Ctrl + Alt + T on the keyboard or search for “Terminal” in the app menu.
Once your terminal window is open on the Ubuntu desktop, use the apt install command to set up the “kakoune” package.
sudo apt install kakoune
Ubuntu will ask you for your password when the command above is entered. Using the keyboard, enter the password for your user account. After entering your password, you’ll be asked to press the Y button to confirm you want to install the Kakoune app on Ubuntu.
After installing Kakoune on your Ubuntu system, you can launch it in the terminal by executing the following command.
kak
Debian installation instructions
If you’re using Debian 11, 10, or Sid, you’ll be able to set up Kakoune. However, understand that the version of Kakoune is much older than the versions on other operating systems.
Note: if you require a newer version of Kakoune on your Debian Linux system, please follow the Flatpak or Snap package installation instructions instead of the native Debian instructions.
To set up the Kakoune app on Debian, use the apt-get install command on the “kakoune” package.
sudo apt-get install kakoune
After entering the command above, Debian will ask you to enter your password. Then, enter your user account password using the keyboard and press the Enter key.
Once you’ve pressed the Enter key on the keyboard, Debian will ask you to press Y to confirm you wish to install Kakoune. Do so to install the app.
Finally, when Kakoune is installed on Debian, you can launch it using the kak command.
kak
Arch Linux installation instructions
On Arch Linux, Kakoune is available in the “Community” software repository. To install the app on your system, ensure the “Community” repo is enabled in the /etc/pacman.conf file.
After enabling the repo, use the pacman -S command to install the “kakoune” package.
sudo pacman -S kakoune
Once you enter the command above, Arch Linux will ask you for your password. Using the keyboard, enter your user account password. When you’ve entered your password using the keyboard, Arch Linux will ask you to press the Y key to confirm that you wish to install the software.
After installing the Kakoune application on your Arch Linux system, you can execute the Kakoune application using the kak command.
kak
Fedora installation instructions
To install Kakoune on Fedora Linux, start by opening up a terminal window. You can open up a terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T on the keyboard or launching it from the app menu.
Once the terminal window is open, use the dnf install command to set up the “kakoune” package.
sudo dnf install kakoune
Upon writing the command above, Fedora will ask you for a password. Using your keyboard, enter the password associated with your Fedora user account. Then, press Enter to continue.
After pressing the Enter key, Fedora will ask you to press the Y to install Kakoune on Fedora. Once it is installed, you can execute the program using the kak command.
kak
OpenSUSE installation instructions
The Kakoune application is available for installation on all releases of OpenSUSE Linux. To set up the app on your computer, open a terminal window. You can open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T on the keyboard. Or, search for “Terminal” in the app menu and launch it that way.
With the terminal window open, use the zypper install command below and set up the “kakoune” package.
sudo zypper install kakoune
Once you enter the zypper install command, OpenSUSE will ask for a password. Use your keyboard and enter the password associated with your account. After entering the password, press the Y key to install the software.
When Kakoune is installed, you can launch it on OpenSUSE with the kak command.
kak
Snap installation instructions
Kakoune is installable as a Snap package from the Snap store. However, to install it, you must first enable the Snap package runtime. To do that, follow our guide on the subject.
Once the runtime is enabled, install Kakounewith the snap install command below.
sudo snap install kakoune --classic
Run Kakoune as a snap with nvim.
kak
