How to install Kodi 18 on Linux
The Kodi project has released Kodi 18, code name, Leia. This new release is out on Linux, as well as other platforms and is packed with excellent new features including things like retro video game support, an improved user interface, better music playback support, live TV fixes and much more! In this guide, we’ll show you how to install the latest release of Kodi, Kodi 18 on Linux operating systems like Ubuntu, Debian, Arch Linux, Fedora, and OpenSUSE. Also, we’ll show you how to get Kodi 18 on Flatpak if your OS doesn’t have Leia just yet.
Ubuntu Instructions
Kodi comes in the default Ubuntu Linux software sources. Despite this fact, Canonical and the Ubuntu developers haven’t gotten around to updating the package to version 18. So, if you’re managing your favorite TV shows, movies, and stuff like that on an Ubuntu PC and are interested in getting the newest version, you’ll need to take matters into your own hands.
The best way to install Kodi 18 Leia on Ubuntu Linux, as well as any Linux operating system that uses Ubuntu as a base, is to add the official third-party PPA for Kodi. If you add this PPA, you’ll quickly get access to the new release, as well as regular software updates and patches much faster than the Ubuntu developers can give you. To add the third-party software PPA, launch a terminal window by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T or Ctrl + Shift + T on the keyboard. Then, enter the following apt-add-repository command below.
sudo add-apt-repository ppa:team-xbmc/ppa
After adding the new software repository to your Ubuntu Linux computer, you’ll need to run the update command, so that Ubuntu can finish setting up the new Kodi software PPA.
sudo apt update
Let the update run. Then, when the terminal prompt stops moving, enter the upgrade command to install any pending software upgrades and patches.
Note: if you already have Kodi 17 on your Ubuntu PC, the upgrade command will automatically update Kodi 17 to Kodi 18.
sudo apt upgrade -y
Upgrading usually takes a bit of time, so be patient. When the process is complete, it’s finally time to install Kodi 18 using the Apt package manager.
sudo apt install kodi
Debian Instructions
Though Debian Linux isn’t known for having the newest software, users will be happy to learn that the upcoming release of Debian 10 Buster (aka testing) has support for Kodi 18. Though, to get it working, you’ll need to use a third-party software repository.
Note: Debian 9 Stretch doesn’t have Kodi 18, and probably never will. Therefore, if you’re a diehard Debian fan looking to try the new Kodi, you must first upgrade to Debian 10 Buster. For more information on upgrading to new releases, click here.
Adding the third-party software repository for Kodi on Debian requires editing the /etc/apt/sources.list file. To start the editing, launch a terminal session by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T or Ctrl + Shift + T. Then, elevate your terminal to Root with the su command and open the sources file in Nano.
su - nano -w /etc/apt/sources.list
Once your sources file is open up in Nano, scroll all the way to the bottom of the file and paste the following code:
# Debian Multimedia Repo
deb https://www.deb-multimedia.org buster main
Save the Nano text editor with Ctrl + O and exit it with Ctrl + X. Then, run the apt-get update command to set up the new software source.
apt-get update
When the Debian Multimedia repository is done updating, it’s time to set up the Multimedia’s GPG key.
sudo apt-get install deb-multimedia-keyring
Finally, install Kodi 18 on Debian.
sudo apt-get install kodi
Or, if you already have Kodi 17 installed on Buster, run the upgrade command to transition version 17 to 18.
sudo apt-get upgrade -y
Arch Linux Instructions
Strangely, Arch Linux doesn’t yet have Kodi 18 in their package repositories. However, if you’re on Arch and want to get your hands on Kodi 18 right away, it’s possible to install the Kodi development package, which is version 18.
Installing the Kodi development package on Arch Linux requires interacting with the AUR. The easiest and quickest way to do this is with the Trizen AUR helper, as it can automatically build and install the seemingly endless amount of dependencies required to run most software.
To get Trizen on Arch, do the following:
sudo pacman -S git base-devel git clone https://aur.archlinux.org/trizen.git cd trizen makepkg -sri
Now that the Trizen AUR helper is installed, you’ll be able to get the Kodi development release working quickly.
trizen -S kodi-devel
Please keep in mind that the Kodi Development package is unstable. If you have issues, we recommend waiting it out for version 18 to hit the central Arch Linux software sources. Or, try out the Flatpak release instead!
Fedora Instructions
Fedora Linux doesn’t have Kodi 18 in their primary software sources, as the Fedora project doesn’t distribute the Kodi Media Center application. With that said, it’s very easy to install the Leia release, as RPMFusion distributes it.
To enable RPM Fusion, open up a terminal on your Fedora Linux PC. Then, use the DNF package manager to install the RPM Fusion packages.
Note: please replace X in the command below with the release number
sudo dnf install https://download1.rpmfusion.org/free/fedora/rpmfusion-free-release-X.noarch.rpm -y
With RPM Fusion set up on Fedora, Kodi 18 can be quickly installed with:
sudo dnf install kodi -y
OpenSUSE Instructions
Both OpenSUSE Leap and OpenSUSE Tumbleweed do not have Kodi 18 Leia in their software sources. For this reason, we highly recommend uninstalling Kodi from OpenSUSE and instead using the Flatpak release. To uninstall Kodi 17, launch a terminal window and enter the Zypper command below.
sudo zypper remove Kodi
Flatpak Instructions
Version 18 of the Kodi Media Center is on Flathub as a Flatpak package. As a result, even if you’re using a Linux distribution that has yet to provide version 18, you’ll still be able to try it out. However, keep in mind that to install the Kodi Flatpak release, you must enable the Flatpak runtime on your system first. Unsure about how to set up Flatpak? Check out our guide on the subject!
When you’re done setting up the Flatpak runtime, you must open up a terminal window and enable the Flathub repository.
flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo
Then, install Kodi 18 with:
flatpak install flathub tv.kodi.Kodi
