How to install Gradle on Ubuntu

Gradle is a powerful build automation tool used for Java, Kotlin, and other JVM languages. Whether you’re building Android apps or Java libraries, Gradle is often the go-to. Here’s how to install it cleanly on Ubuntu.

✅ Prerequisites

Make sure you have:

• A system running Ubuntu 18.04 or newer
• sudo access
• Java installed (Gradle needs it)

You can check if Java is installed:

java -version

If it’s not, install it:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install openjdk-17-jdk -y

🔧 Step 1: Download the Latest Gradle Release

First, check the Gradle releases page for the latest version. At the time of writing, it’s 8.5.

Then, download and extract it:

wget https://services.gradle.org/distributions/gradle-8.5-bin.zip -P /tmp
sudo unzip -d /opt/gradle /tmp/gradle-8.5-bin.zip

This installs Gradle under /opt/gradle.

⚙️ Step 2: Set Up Environment Variables

Create a new file to load Gradle into your shell:

sudo nano /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh

Paste this in:

export GRADLE_HOME=/opt/gradle/gradle-8.5
export PATH=${GRADLE_HOME}/bin:${PATH}

Save and exit. Then apply the changes:

sudo chmod +x /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh
source /etc/profile.d/gradle.sh

✅ Step 3: Verify the Installation

Run:

gradle -v

You should see version info and system environment details. That means it worked.

🚀 You’re Done

Gradle is now installed and ready to go. From here, you can create a new project or import one that uses a build.gradle file. Simple.

Need a quick Gradle init?

gradle init

It’ll guide you through setting up a basic project.

Let me know in the comments if you hit any snags, or want help setting up your first Gradle build.