---
title: "Anki development"
---

## Packaged betas

For non-developers who want to try beta versions, the easiest way is to use a
packaged version - please see:

https://betas.ankiweb.net/

## Pre-built Python wheels

Pre-built Python packages are available on PyPI. They are useful if you wish to:

- Run Anki from a local Python installation without building it yourself
- Get code completion when developing add-ons
- Make command line scripts that modify .anki2 files via Anki's Python libraries

You will need the 64 bit version of Python 3.9 or later installed. 3.9 is
recommended, as Anki has only received minimal testing on 3.10+ so far, and some
dependencies have not been fully updated yet. You can install Python from python.org
or from your distro.

For further instructions, please see https://betas.ankiweb.net/#via-pypipip. Note that
in the provided commands, `--pre` tells pip to fetch alpha/beta versions. If you remove
`--pre`, it will download the latest stable version instead.

## Building from source

Clone the git repo into a folder of your choosing. The folder path must not
contain spaces, and should not be too long if you are on Windows.

On all platforms, you will need to install:

- Rustup (https://rustup.rs/). The Rust version pinned in rust-toolchain.toml
  will be automatically downloaded if not yet installed. If removing that file
  to use a distro-provided Rust, newer Rust versions will typically work for
  building but may fail tests; older Rust versions may not work at all.
- N2 or Ninja. N2 gives better status output. You can install it with `tools/install-n2`,
  or `bash tools\install-n2` on Windows. If you want to use Ninja, it can be downloaded
  from https://github.com/ninja-build/ninja/releases/tag/v1.11.1 and
  placed on your path, or from your distro/homebrew if it's 1.10+.
    - On Windows, if you have WSL installed, it may conflict with MSYS2 bash. If you are getting an error, try running `C:\msys64\usr\bin\bash.exe tools/install-n2` instead.
- (Optional) [just](https://just.systems/man/en/packages.html) command runner.
  Install with `brew install just` or `uv tool install just`.
  We are experimenting with `just` as the official tool for running
  Anki-specific commands, and it will likely become the source of truth
  in the future.

Platform-specific requirements:

- [Windows](./windows)
- [Mac](./mac)
- [Linux](./linux)

## Running Anki during development

From the top level of Anki's source folder:

```
./run
```

(`.\run` on Windows)

This will build Anki and run it in place.

The first build will take a while, as it downloads and builds a bunch of
dependencies. When the build is complete, Anki will automatically start.

If Anki fails to start, you may need to install [extra libraries](/manual/platform/linux/missing-libraries).

## Running tests/checks

To run all tests at once, from the top-level folder:

```
./ninja check
```

(`tools\ninja check` on Windows).

You can also run specific checks. For example, if you see during the checks
that `check:svelte:editor` is failing, you can use `./ninja check:svelte:editor`
to re-run that check, or `./ninja check:svelte` to re-run all Svelte checks.

## Fixing formatting

When formatting issues are reported, they can be fixed with

```
./ninja format
```

## Fixing ruff/eslint/copyright header issues

```
./ninja fix
```

## Fixing clippy issues

```
cargo clippy --fix
```

## Excluding your own untracked files from formatting and checks

If you want to add files or folders to the project tree that should be excluded from version tracking and not be matched by formatters and checks, place them in an `extra` folder and they will automatically be ignored.

## Optimized builds

The `./run` command will create a non-optimized build by default. This is faster
to compile, but will mean Anki will run slower.

To run Anki in optimized mode, use:

```
./tools/runopt
```

Or set RELEASE=1 or RELEASE=2. The latter will further optimize the output, but make
the build much slower.

## Building redistributable wheels

The `./run` method described in the platform-specific instructions is a shortcut
for starting Anki directly from the build folder. For regular study, it's recommended
you build Python wheels and then install them into your own python venv. This is also
a good idea if you wish to install extra tools from PyPi that Anki's build process
does not use.

To build wheels on Mac/Linux:

```
./tools/build
```

(on Windows, `.\tools\build.bat`)

The generated wheels are in out/wheels. You can then install them by copying the paths into a pip install command.
Follow the steps [on the beta site](https://betas.ankiweb.net/#via-pypipip), but replace the
`pip install --upgrade --pre aqt` line with something like:

```
/my/pyenv/bin/pip install --upgrade out/wheels/*.whl
```

(On Windows you'll need to list out the filenames manually instead of using a wildcard).

## Cleaning up build files

Apart from submodule checkouts, most build files go into the `out/` folder (and
`node_modules` on Windows). You can delete that folder for a clean build, or
to free space.

Cargo, yarn and pip all cache downloads of dependencies in a shared cache that
other builds on your system may use as well. If you wish to clear up those caches,
they can be found in `~/.rustup`, `~/.cargo` and `~/.cache/{yarn,pip}`. On
Windows, Yarn cache can be found in `%LOCALAPPDATA%\Yarn`.

If you invoke Rust outside of the build scripts (eg by running cargo, or
with Rust Analyzer), output files will go into `target/` unless you have
overriden the default output location.

## IDEs

Please see [this separate page](./editing) for setting up an editor/IDE.

## Making changes to the build

See [this page](./build)

## Generating documentation

Build and view the documentation site:

```
just docs
```

For Rust API docs:

```
just docs-rust
```

## Environmental Variables

If ANKIDEV is set before starting Anki, some extra log messages will be printed on stdout,
and automatic backups will be disabled - so please don't use this except on a test profile.
It is automatically enabled when using ./run.

If TRACESQL is set, all SQL statements will be printed as they are executed.

If LOGTERM is set before starting Anki, warnings and error messages that are normally placed
in the collection2.log file will also be printed on stdout.

If ANKI_PROFILE_CODE is set, Python profiling data will be written on exit.

## Installer

Run `tools/build-installer` to build the installer.

Depending on your operating system, this produces a file under `out/installer/dist`:

- An MSI installer on Windows.
- A .dmg file on macOS.
- A tarball on Linux.

### Issues During Building

If you are experiencing issues building the installer, make sure that all dependencies
are installed. See [Building from source](#building-from-source) for more info.

## Releasing

See [Releasing](./releasing).

# Mixing development and study

You may wish to create a separate profile with File>Switch Profile for use
during development. You can pass the arguments "-p [profile name]" when starting
Anki to load a specific profile.

If you're using PyCharm:

- right click on the "run" file in the root of the PyCharm Anki folder
- click "Edit 'run'..." - in Script options and enter:
  "-p [dev profile name]" without the quotes
- click "Ok"
