How to Install CUDA on Debian (13, 12, 11)

This guide shows you how to install CUDA on Debian so your NVIDIA GPU can accelerate machine learning training, video encoding, scientific simulations, and other parallel workloads. The toolkit includes the nvcc compiler plus GPU libraries and developer tools for CUDA development.

You will choose between Debian’s default repositories for stability and NVIDIA’s official CUDA repository for newer toolkit releases and GPU features. By the end, you will have a working CUDA development environment with verified drivers and compiler access ready for GPU-accelerated applications.

Install CUDA on Debian

Use the steps below to install CUDA on Debian with the method that matches your stability and version requirements. CUDA requires a supported NVIDIA GPU for accelerated workloads, so this guide assumes NVIDIA hardware is present in your system.

Choose Your CUDA Installation Method for Debian

Debian provides two paths for CUDA toolkit installation, each with different update cadence and maintenance trade-offs. The table below summarizes the differences so you can choose the method that matches your environment.

Method	Channel	Version	Updates	Best For
Debian default repository	Debian Packages	Distribution default (varies by release)	APT updates from Debian security and point releases	Production systems that prioritize distro-tested stability
NVIDIA CUDA repository	NVIDIA Repository	Latest supported CUDA release for your Debian version	APT updates from NVIDIA’s repository	Developers who need new CUDA features and GPU support

For most users, the NVIDIA CUDA repository is recommended because it delivers newer CUDA releases and driver updates with minimal delay. Debian’s default repository is still a strong choice when you value conservative, distribution-tested packages over the newest toolkit features.

These steps cover Debian 13 (Trixie), Debian 12 (Bookworm), and Debian 11 (Bullseye). NVIDIA’s repository ships the newest toolkits for Debian 12 and 13, while Debian 11 currently tops out at CUDA 12.6.x. Use the version checks in each method to confirm the exact candidate for your release and architecture.

Optional: Clean Up Previous NVIDIA Installations on Debian

Skip this section if you are installing CUDA on a fresh Debian system for the first time. Only use these cleanup steps if you are upgrading CUDA versions, reinstalling after a failed installation, switching from Nouveau to proprietary drivers, or removing a previous runfile installation.

Remove NVIDIA Packages Installed via APT

If you previously installed NVIDIA drivers or CUDA using APT, remove all related packages before proceeding. The quotes around the package patterns prevent shell glob expansion issues:

sudo apt remove 'cuda*' 'nvidia*' --purge
sudo apt autoremove --purge

The --purge flag removes configuration files along with the packages, ensuring a clean slate. After removal, update your package cache:

sudo apt update

Expected output will show the Debian repositories refreshing (your release name will differ):

Hit:1 http://deb.debian.org/debian [your-release] InRelease
Get:2 http://deb.debian.org/debian-security [your-release]-security InRelease [48.0 kB]
Get:3 http://deb.debian.org/debian [your-release]-updates InRelease [55.4 kB]
Reading package lists... Done

Remove NVIDIA Drivers Installed via Runfile

If you installed NVIDIA drivers using a .run file downloaded from NVIDIA, the standard APT removal process will not work. Instead, use the runfile’s built-in uninstaller:

sudo nvidia-installer --uninstall

This command removes the driver components and kernel modules the runfile installer created. If nvidia-installer is missing, the runfile installation may have been incomplete or already removed.

Remove CUDA Toolkit Installed via Runfile

Similarly, if you installed the CUDA toolkit using a separate runfile, remove it before installing from APT repositories. Replace X.Y with your installed CUDA version number:

sudo /usr/local/cuda-X.Y/bin/cuda-uninstaller

Common version paths include /usr/local/cuda-12.4, /usr/local/cuda-11.8, or similar. Check what exists in /usr/local/ if you are unsure which version is installed.

Pre-Installation Steps for CUDA on Debian

Update System Packages

First, update your package index and upgrade existing packages. This ensures kernel headers and dependencies match your current system state, which is important because NVIDIA drivers compile kernel modules during installation:

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade

If the upgrade installed a new kernel version, reboot before continuing so that the running kernel matches the installed headers.

Install Required Packages

Install the packages needed for repository configuration and GPG key handling:

sudo apt install ca-certificates curl gpg -y

The ca-certificates package enables HTTPS certificate validation, curl downloads repository keys (see the curl command guide if you want a refresher), and gpg converts ASCII-armored keys to the binary format APT requires. The -y flag auto-confirms the prompt, which is useful for scripted installs but means you will not review the package list before installation proceeds.

Enable Contrib and Non-Free Repositories

NVIDIA CUDA packages reside in Debian’s non-free repositories due to proprietary licensing. Before installation, you must enable the contrib and non-free repositories. The configuration method differs between Debian versions.

Debian 13 (Trixie) and Debian 12 (Bookworm) use DEB822 format configuration files. The sed command below edits the file in place (see the sed command guide if you want a quick refresher):

sudo sed -i 's/Components: main/Components: main contrib non-free non-free-firmware/' /etc/apt/sources.list.d/debian.sources

Debian 11 (Bullseye) uses the traditional sources.list format. Edit the file to add contrib and non-free to each line:

sudo sed -i 's/main$/main contrib non-free/' /etc/apt/sources.list

Debian 11 does not have a non-free-firmware component. This component was introduced in Debian 12 to separate firmware packages from other non-free software. If you add non-free-firmware on Debian 11, APT will report an error about a missing component.

After modifying the repository configuration, update your APT cache to load packages from the newly enabled components:

sudo apt update

Method 1: Install CUDA from Debian Default Repository

Debian’s default repository provides CUDA packages that have undergone distribution testing, making this method ideal for production environments where predictable behavior matters more than having the absolute latest version. This method requires no additional repository configuration beyond enabling non-free.

Before installing, check which CUDA version your Debian release will install:

apt-cache policy nvidia-cuda-toolkit

Expected output (Debian 13 example):

nvidia-cuda-toolkit:
  Installed: (none)
  Candidate: 12.4.131~12.4.1-2
  Version table:
     12.4.131~12.4.1-2 500
        500 http://deb.debian.org/debian trixie/non-free amd64 Packages

This example is from Debian 13 (Trixie). Debian 12 and Debian 11 will show different candidate versions and repository lines.

Install the CUDA toolkit and NVIDIA drivers from Debian’s repositories:

sudo apt install nvidia-cuda-toolkit nvidia-driver

This command installs the CUDA compiler (nvcc), development headers, runtime libraries, and the matching Debian-packaged NVIDIA drivers so you can compile and run CUDA workloads.

Debian’s packages place the nvcc wrapper in /usr/bin and install CUDA files under /usr/lib/cuda and /usr/lib/nvidia-cuda-toolkit, so PATH and library variables work by default. You do not need to configure environment variables if you use this installation method.

After installation completes, reboot your system to load the NVIDIA kernel modules and disable the Nouveau open-source driver:

sudo reboot

Once your system restarts, skip ahead to the verification section to confirm your installation works correctly.

Method 2: Install CUDA from NVIDIA Repository

The NVIDIA CUDA repository provides newer toolkit and driver releases than Debian’s default repository. It supports Debian 13 and Debian 12 on x86_64 and SBSA/ARM64, and Debian 11 on x86_64 only.

Import the NVIDIA GPG Key

Download and install the NVIDIA GPG signing key. Debian 13 uses a newer key than Debian 11 and 12, so choose the command matching your Debian version and architecture.

For Debian 13 Trixie (x86_64):

curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/x86_64/8793F200.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg

On Debian 13 Trixie (SBSA/ARM64):

curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/sbsa/8793F200.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg

For Debian 12 Bookworm (x86_64):

curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian12/x86_64/3bf863cc.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg

On Debian 12 Bookworm (SBSA/ARM64):

curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian12/sbsa/3bf863cc.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg

On Debian 11 Bullseye (x86_64):

curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian11/x86_64/3bf863cc.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg

The gpg --dearmor command converts the ASCII-armored key to binary format, which APT requires for signed repository verification.

Add the NVIDIA CUDA Repository

Add the NVIDIA CUDA repository using the DEB822 .sources format. Choose the command matching your Debian version and architecture.

For Debian 13 Trixie (x86_64):

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources
Types: deb
URIs: https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/x86_64/
Suites: /
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
EOF

On Debian 13 Trixie (SBSA/ARM64):

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources
Types: deb
URIs: https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/sbsa/
Suites: /
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
EOF

For Debian 12 Bookworm (x86_64):

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources
Types: deb
URIs: https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian12/x86_64/
Suites: /
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
EOF

On Debian 12 Bookworm (SBSA/ARM64):

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources
Types: deb
URIs: https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian12/sbsa/
Suites: /
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
EOF

On Debian 11 Bullseye (x86_64):

cat <<EOF | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources
Types: deb
URIs: https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian11/x86_64/
Suites: /
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
EOF

The NVIDIA repository uses a flat structure (Suites: /) rather than traditional Debian suites like stable or bookworm. This is why the DEB822 configuration does not include a Components field.

Update Package Cache

After adding the repository, refresh your package cache to make the NVIDIA packages available:

sudo apt update

Expected output will show the NVIDIA repository updating (your Debian release and architecture will differ):

Get:1 https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian[release]/x86_64  InRelease [1,581 B]
Hit:2 http://deb.debian.org/debian [your-release] InRelease
Reading package lists... Done

Verify Available CUDA Versions

Before installation, check which CUDA versions the NVIDIA repository provides:

apt-cache policy cuda

Expected output (Debian 13 example) showing the NVIDIA repository as the package source:

cuda:
  Installed: (none)
  Candidate: 13.1.1-1
  Version table:
     13.1.1-1 500
        500 https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/x86_64  Packages
     13.1.0-1 500
        500 https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/x86_64  Packages

The version and repository path will vary by Debian release and architecture (Debian 12 and 11 will list different candidate versions). Verify that the NVIDIA repository URL appears in the version table; if only Debian’s default repository appears, the NVIDIA repository was not added correctly.

Install CUDA Toolkit and NVIDIA Drivers

Install the CUDA toolkit metapackage along with the NVIDIA driver from the NVIDIA repository:

sudo apt install cuda nvidia-driver

The cuda metapackage installs the CUDA toolkit and core development libraries for your repository branch. Listing nvidia-driver explicitly ensures the driver package is installed from the same repository so the toolkit and driver stay aligned.

NVIDIA drivers use DKMS (Dynamic Kernel Module Support) to automatically rebuild kernel modules when you install kernel updates. This maintains driver functionality across kernel upgrades without manual intervention. For comprehensive driver troubleshooting and standalone driver installation options, see the NVIDIA drivers on Debian guide.

If your system has Secure Boot enabled, the NVIDIA driver installation will prompt you to create a Machine Owner Key (MOK) password. You must enroll this key during the next reboot by selecting “Enroll MOK” from the blue MOK management screen. Without MOK enrollment, the NVIDIA kernel modules will not load. Alternatively, you can disable Secure Boot in your BIOS/UEFI settings before installation.

Reboot to Activate the Drivers

After installation completes, reboot your system to load the NVIDIA kernel modules and disable the Nouveau driver:

sudo reboot

Verify Your CUDA Installation on Debian

Check NVIDIA Driver Status

After rebooting, verify that the NVIDIA driver loaded correctly and CUDA can access your GPU:

nvidia-smi

This output displays your GPU model, driver version, CUDA version, memory usage, and running processes:

+-----------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| NVIDIA-SMI 5xx.xx.xx   Driver Version: 5xx.xx.xx   CUDA Version: 13.x      |
|-------------------------------+----------------------+----------------------+
| GPU  Name        Persistence-M| Bus-Id        Disp.A | Volatile Uncorr. ECC |
| Fan  Temp  Perf  Pwr:Usage/Cap|         Memory-Usage | GPU-Util  Compute M. |
|===============================+======================+======================|
|   0  NVIDIA GeForce ...  Off  | 00000000:01:00.0 Off |                  N/A |
|  0%   35C    P8    10W / 250W |      1MiB /  8192MiB |      0%      Default |
+-------------------------------+----------------------+----------------------+

This output is an example. Your GPU name, driver version, and CUDA version values will differ.

This output confirms the driver loaded successfully and shows the GPU hardware details. If the CUDA Version value does not match nvcc --version, see the FAQ below for why the driver and toolkit can report different versions.

Verify the CUDA Compiler

Next, check that the CUDA compiler is accessible:

nvcc --version

Expected output shows the installed CUDA toolkit version:

nvcc: NVIDIA (R) Cuda compiler driver
Cuda compilation tools, release 13.x, V13.x.xx
Build cuda_13.x.r13.x/compiler.xxxxxxxx_0

The exact version string depends on your installation method and Debian release. Debian’s repository typically reports 11.x or 12.x toolkits, while the NVIDIA repository may report 12.x or 13.x depending on the branch available for your release.

If nvcc is not found, see the Configure CUDA Environment Variables section below.

Configure CUDA Environment Variables

When you install CUDA from the NVIDIA repository, the toolkit installs to /usr/local/cuda rather than system directories. As a result, you need to add CUDA to your PATH and library search path.

Skip this step if you installed from Debian’s default repository. The nvidia-cuda-toolkit package places binaries in /usr/bin and libraries in /usr/lib, which are already in your default paths.

Append the CUDA paths to your shell configuration (Bash by default). If you use Zsh or another shell, replace ~/.bashrc with the appropriate file (for example, ~/.zshrc).

echo 'export PATH=/usr/local/cuda/bin:$PATH' >> ~/.bashrc
echo 'export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/cuda/lib64:$LD_LIBRARY_PATH' >> ~/.bashrc

If you have already added these lines, remove duplicates so your PATH does not keep growing.

Apply the change to your current terminal session (or open a new terminal). For Zsh, run source ~/.zshrc instead.

source ~/.bashrc

The PATH addition allows running nvcc and other CUDA tools directly. The LD_LIBRARY_PATH addition ensures compiled CUDA programs find GPU-accelerated libraries at runtime.

Afterward, verify the configuration by checking which nvcc binary your shell finds:

which nvcc

Expected output for NVIDIA repository installations:

/usr/local/cuda/bin/nvcc

Test CUDA with a Sample Program on Debian

To confirm everything works, verify your CUDA installation by compiling and running a simple GPU program. This test confirms that nvcc can compile code, the driver can communicate with the GPU, and the runtime libraries are accessible.

Create a Hello World Program

Create a new file with the .cu extension using a heredoc so you can paste the program in one step:

cat <<'EOF' > helloworld.cu
#include <stdio.h>
#include <cuda_runtime.h>

__global__ void helloFromGPU(void) {
    printf("Hello World from GPU!\n");
}

int main(void) {
    printf("Hello World from CPU!\n");
    helloFromGPU <<<1, 10>>>();
    cudaDeviceSynchronize();
    return 0;
}
EOF

The __global__ keyword marks helloFromGPU as a GPU kernel function that runs on the graphics card. The <<<1, 10>>> launch syntax uses 1 block of 10 threads, so you will see the GPU message printed 10 times.

Compile and Run the Program

Then, compile the program using the NVIDIA CUDA compiler:

nvcc helloworld.cu -o helloworld

Once compilation succeeds without errors, run the compiled program:

./helloworld

Expected output:

Hello World from CPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!
Hello World from GPU!

The CPU message appears first, followed by 10 GPU messages (one per thread). This output confirms your CUDA installation is working correctly.

Troubleshooting CUDA on Debian

nvidia-smi Not Found or GPU Not Detected

When nvidia-smi returns “command not found” or shows no GPU, check whether the NVIDIA kernel modules loaded (the grep command filters the output; see the grep command guide if you need a refresher):

lsmod | grep nvidia

Expected output when drivers are loaded correctly:

nvidia_drm            114688  0
nvidia_modeset       1306624  1 nvidia_drm
nvidia_uvm           3158016  0
nvidia              62881792  2 nvidia_uvm,nvidia_modeset

If no output appears, the driver modules did not load. Check the kernel log for errors:

sudo dmesg | grep -i nvidia

Common causes include Secure Boot blocking unsigned modules, DKMS failing to compile the module, or kernel version mismatch. Therefore, try rebooting first, as some installations require a reboot for DKMS to finish building modules:

sudo reboot

nvcc Command Not Found

If nvcc --version returns “command not found”, check where nvcc should exist for your installation method:

NVIDIA repository installs:

ls /usr/local/cuda/bin/nvcc

Debian default repository installs:

ls /usr/bin/nvcc

If the file exists but nvcc is still not in your PATH, add the environment variables described in the Configure CUDA Environment Variables section above. If the file does not exist, reinstall the toolkit package for your method:

NVIDIA repository reinstall:

sudo apt install --reinstall cuda

Debian default repository reinstall:

sudo apt install --reinstall nvidia-cuda-toolkit

GPG Key or Repository Errors

When apt update shows “GPG error” or signature verification failures for the NVIDIA repository, the GPG key import may have failed. To fix this, remove the existing key and re-import it.

For Debian 13:

sudo rm -f /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian13/x86_64/8793F200.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
sudo apt update

On Debian 12:

sudo rm -f /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian12/x86_64/3bf863cc.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
sudo apt update

On Debian 11:

sudo rm -f /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
curl -fsSL https://developer.download.nvidia.com/compute/cuda/repos/debian11/x86_64/3bf863cc.pub | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
sudo apt update

Dependency Errors During Installation

When installation fails with “broken packages” or unmet dependencies, ensure the contrib and non-free repositories are properly enabled. To diagnose, check your sources configuration:

On Debian 13 and 12:

grep Components /etc/apt/sources.list.d/debian.sources

The output should include contrib non-free non-free-firmware. If not, run the sed command from the Pre-Installation Steps section again.

On Debian 11:

grep -E 'contrib|non-free' /etc/apt/sources.list

Each repository line should include contrib non-free. If not, run the sed command from the Pre-Installation Steps section again.

After fixing the components, refresh APT and repair any broken dependencies:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -f

Re-run the install command for your method:

NVIDIA repository install:

sudo apt install cuda nvidia-driver

Debian default repository install:

sudo apt install nvidia-cuda-toolkit nvidia-driver

Nouveau Driver Still Loaded

If the Nouveau open-source driver remains active after NVIDIA driver installation, the two drivers will conflict. Check whether Nouveau is loaded:

lsmod | grep nouveau

If Nouveau modules appear in the output, blacklist the driver and rebuild the initial ramdisk:

echo "blacklist nouveau" | sudo tee /etc/modprobe.d/nvidia-blacklist.conf
sudo update-initramfs -u
sudo reboot

After rebooting, verify that lsmod | grep nouveau produces no output and that lsmod | grep nvidia shows the NVIDIA modules.

FAQ: CUDA on Debian

Remove CUDA and NVIDIA Drivers on Debian

If you need to uninstall CUDA from your Debian system, remove the packages and clean up any repository configuration you added.

Uninstall Packages

Remove all CUDA and NVIDIA packages:

sudo apt remove 'cuda*' 'nvidia*' --purge
sudo apt autoremove --purge

The --purge flag removes configuration files, and autoremove cleans up orphaned dependencies that were installed alongside CUDA but are no longer needed.

Remove the NVIDIA Repository

If you added the NVIDIA CUDA repository, remove the repository file and GPG key:

sudo rm -f /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.sources /etc/apt/sources.list.d/nvidia-cuda.list
sudo rm -f /usr/share/keyrings/nvidia-cuda.gpg
sudo apt update

Verify Removal

Confirm CUDA is no longer installed:

nvcc --version

Expected output confirming removal:

bash: nvcc: command not found

You can also verify that the CUDA packages are no longer available from the NVIDIA repository:

apt-cache policy cuda

Expected output after successful removal and repository cleanup:

N: Unable to locate package cuda

If the output instead shows version information with the NVIDIA repository URL, the repository file was not removed correctly. Re-run the repository removal commands and then run sudo apt update before checking again.

Conclusion: CUDA on Debian

Your Debian system now runs a complete CUDA development environment with the nvcc compiler, GPU-accelerated libraries, and NVIDIA drivers ready for parallel computing workloads. Choose the Debian default repository for production stability or the NVIDIA repository for access to the latest toolkit features. To continue learning, explore the NVIDIA CUDA Samples repository or set up machine learning frameworks that can leverage your GPU acceleration.