Download and Install

TIP

These are daily build download links with the latest features. If you are looking for the last stable release, see the stable docs.

TIP

See Troubleshooting QGC Setup if QGroundControl doesn't start and run properly after installation!

System Requirements

QGC should run well on any modern computer or mobile device. Performance will depend on the system environment, 3rd party applications, and available system resources. More capable hardware will provide a better experience. A computer with at least 8Gb RAM, an SSD, Nvidia or AMD graphics and an i5 or better CPU will be suitable for most applications.

For the best experience and compatibility, we recommend you the newest version of your operating system.

Windows

Supported versions: Windows 10 (1809 or later), Windows 11:

1. Download the installer:
   • x86_64
   • Arm64
2. Double click the executable to launch the installer.

INFO

The Windows installer creates 3 shortcuts: QGroundControl, GPU Compatibility Mode, GPU Safe Mode. Use the first shortcut unless you experience startup or video rendering issues. For more information see Troubleshooting QGC Setup > Windows: UI Rendering/Video Driver Issues.

Mac OS

Supported versions: macOS 13 (Ventura) or later:

1. Download QGroundControl.dmg.
2. Double-click the .dmg file to mount it, then drag the QGroundControl application to your Application folder.

INFO

QGroundControl continues to not be signed. You will not to allow permission for it to install based on your macOS version.

Ubuntu Linux

Supported versions: Ubuntu 22.04, 24.04:

Ubuntu comes with a serial modem manager that interferes with any robotics related use of a serial port (or USB serial). Before installing QGroundControl you should remove the modem manager and grant yourself permissions to access the serial port. You also need to install GStreamer in order to support video streaming.

Before installing QGroundControl for the first time:

1. Enable serial-port access Add your user to the dialout group so you can talk to USB devices without root:

sudo usermod -aG dialout "$(id -un)"

INFO

At login, your shell takes a snapshot of your user and group memberships. Because you just changed groups, you need a fresh login shell to pick up “dialout” access. Logging out and back in reloads that snapshot, so you get the new permissions.

1. (Optional) Disable ModemManager On some Ubuntu-based systems, ModemManager can claim serial ports that QGC needs. If you don't use it elsewhere, mask or remove it.

# preferred: stop and mask the service
sudo systemctl mask --now ModemManager.service

# or, if you’d rather remove the package
sudo apt remove --purge modemmanager

1. On the command prompt, enter:

sudo apt install gstreamer1.0-plugins-bad gstreamer1.0-libav gstreamer1.0-gl -y
sudo apt install python3-gi python3-gst-1.0 -y
sudo apt install libfuse2 -y
sudo apt install libxcb-xinerama0 libxkbcommon-x11-0 libxcb-cursor-dev -y

To install QGroundControl:

1. Download the AppImage for your architecture:

   • Linux x86_64
   • Linux aarch64

2. Make the AppImage executable

chmod +x QGroundControl-<arch>.AppImage

1. Run QGroundControl Either double-click the AppImage in your file manager or launch it from a terminal:

./QGroundControl-<arch>.AppImage

Android

Supported versions: Android 9 (API 28) or later (arm 32/64):

• Android APK

::: important The version of Qt used by QGroundControl requires Android 9 (API 28) as the minimum supported version. It is not possible to support older Android releases. This means that some integrated controllers running older versions of Android are no longer compatible with current builds of QGroundControl. QGroundControl 5.0 stable is the last release that supports these older devices. Note that 5.0 may not fully support firmware versions released after it, so users on older controllers may experience limited compatibility with newer autopilot firmware. :::

Old Stable Releases

Old stable releases can be found on GitHub.