Winget package manager makes it easy to install, update, and uninstall applications in Windows. Here’s how to install Winget in Windows 11.
Many power users have wanted a simple yet powerful package manager for Windows for a long time now. With the new client tool called Winget from Microsoft, that need is met. Though the Winget tool is still in the beta stage (as of writing), it got an overwhelmingly positive response from the Windows community. Winget makes it easy to search for an application and install, update, or uninstall with a single command if you don’t know. You don’t have to go through an installation wizard to install the target application.
To use Winget in Windows 11, you have to install it via the Microsoft Store or GitHub. Once installed, you can use the Winget tool from Command Prompt or PowerShell to find and install your favorite applications. Hopefully, the Winget client tool will be included by default in the future versions of Windows, just like the Windows Terminal.
So, without further delay, this easy how-to guide will show you how to install Winget in Windows 11 operating system.
What is Winget?
Unlike the older Windows versions, Windows 10 and Windows 11 have a package manager. Though the package manager is not fully functional by default unless you update it, it will be in future versions of Windows. Winget is a command-line interface client tool designed to interact with the Windows package manager to install, upgrade, and uninstall applications.
Unlike the old way where you have to download the application’s EXE or MSI file from the developer website and follow the wizard to install it, you can do all that with a single command using Winget. The primary purpose of Winget is to make the whole application installation, upgradation, and uninstallation process seamless.
Most of all, you can automate things with Winget. For example, you can make it so that all the applications are automatically updated, create scripts to install your favorite applications in one go, uninstall useless applications with a single command, etc.
All in all, Winget is a welcome feature in Windows 11. Sure, there is a bit of a learning curve, but once you know the basics, it will be a breeze to install, update, and uninstall applications and apps from Windows 11 operating system.
Install Winget from Microsoft Store
To use Winget in Windows 11, you have to install the App Installer bundle from Microsoft. Once you do that and restart the system, you can start using Winget. Here is how to do it.
- Go to the official App Installer page.
- Click on the “Get” button.
- When prompted, click the “Open Microsoft Store” button.
- Click the “Update” or “Install” button.
- The above action will install App Installer.
- Restart the computer.
- With that, you have installed Winget in Windows 11.
Detailed steps:
First, go to this page and click the “Get” button. When prompted, click on the “Open Microsoft Store” button. This action will open the App Installer page in the Microsoft Store application. Alternatively, you can search for “App Installer” directly in the Store itself.
Next, click on the “Update” button. This action will trigger the update process to install the latest iteration of App Installer, which includes Winget and all its components.
Once that is done, close the Microsoft Store and reboot the computer. After rebooting, you can open Command Prompt and start using the Winget tool to install, upgrade, and uninstall applications on your Windows 11 computer.
Install Winget from GitHub
Being an open-source project by Microsoft, you can download the latest version of App Installer from the official GitHub page and install it manually. Here is how.
- Go to this GitHub page.
- Expand the “Assets” section.
- Click on the “Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller_8wekyb3d8bbwe.msixbundle” link.
- Double-click on the downloaded file.
- Click the “Update” or “Reinstall” button.
- The above action will install App Installer.
- Restart the computer.
- With that, you have installed Winget in Windows 11.
That is it. It is that simple to download and install Winget in Windows 11.
I hope that helps.
If you are stuck or need some help, comment below, and I will try to help as much as possible.