Installing DuckDB

Before we start writing queries, we need to install DuckDB. According to the official DuckDB 2.0 documentation, the latest stable version is 2.0.0 (LTS). DuckDB is available on many platforms and programming languages.

Fastest Installation Method (CLI)

If you want to try DuckDB straight from the terminal, use the official install script:

curl https://install.duckdb.org | bash

This script detects your operating system and downloads the appropriate DuckDB CLI.

Installation by Platform

macOS

Download directly or use the install script:

curl https://install.duckdb.org | bash

Or via Homebrew:

brew install duckdb

The CLI file for macOS is available as duckdb-cli-osx-universal.tar.gz from install.duckdb.org.

Linux

curl https://install.duckdb.org | bash

Available for amd64 and arm64 architectures through direct downloads from install.duckdb.org/v2.0.0/.

Windows

Run the following command from the Run menu (Win+R) or Command Prompt:

powershell -NoExit -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Command "irm https://install.duckdb.org/install.ps1 | iex"

Note: DuckDB on Windows requires Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable.

Installation with Docker

If you use Docker, run the DuckDB CLI in a container:

docker run --rm -it -v "$(pwd):/workspace" -w /workspace duckdb/duckdb:2.0.0

This command mounts the current folder to /workspace inside the container, so the .duckdb database files you create will be saved on the host machine.

Installation for Programming Languages

DuckDB also has clients for various languages. Here are some common installation examples:

Python

pip install --upgrade duckdb

Node.js

npm install @duckdb/node-api

Go

go get github.com/duckdb/duckdb-go/v2

R

install.packages("duckdb")

Java (JDBC)

Add the dependency to pom.xml (Maven):

<dependency>
    <groupId>org.duckdb</groupId>
    <artifactId>duckdb_jdbc</artifactId>
    <version>2.0.0.1</version>
</dependency>

Verifying the Installation

After installing the CLI, try running DuckDB in the terminal:

duckdb

If the installation was successful, you'll see the DuckDB prompt, like this:

v2.0.0
Enter ".help" for usage hints.
Connected to a transitory in-memory database.

Type .exit to leave the DuckDB prompt.

Summary

DuckDB 2.0 (LTS) is easy to install via the official script, a package manager, Docker, or a programming language library. Once installed, you're ready to run your first query.

In the next chapter, we'll run our first query and read a CSV file directly using the DuckDB CLI.