How to Install Joplin on Ubuntu (26.04, 24.04, 22.04)

Keeping notes in plain Markdown is easier when the app is not tied to one sync service or one device. If you need to install Joplin on Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04, or 22.04, the main choice is whether you want the upstream AppImage script, a native APT package, or a sandboxed build from Snap or Flatpak.

Ubuntu does not include Joplin in its default repositories, so the practical Linux paths come from upstream or community packaging instead. The official script is the main Linux path, while the community APT repo, Snap, and Flatpak cover readers who want package-managed alternatives.

Install Joplin on Ubuntu

Each method installs the same desktop note-taking app, but updates and system integration differ.

Method	Channel	Version	Updates	Best For
Official AppImage script	Joplin install docs	Latest stable	Re-run script	Readers who want the upstream Linux method
Community APT repo	SourceForge DEB repo	Latest stable	Automatic via APT	Readers who want a native .deb
Snap	Snapcraft	Latest stable	Automatic	Readers already using Snap on Ubuntu
Flatpak	Flathub	Latest stable	flatpak update	Readers who prefer Flatpak sandboxing

For most Ubuntu systems, use the official script. Joplin documents it as the main Linux method, and it creates the desktop launcher for you. On current Ubuntu releases, it also adds the --no-sandbox flag the raw AppImage needs. Choose the community APT repo when native apt updates matter more than following Joplin’s default Linux path.

Commands below work on Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04, and 22.04. The community APT repo currently provides Joplin 3.5.13 on all three releases. The AppImage method needs libfuse2t64 on Ubuntu 26.04 and 24.04, and libfuse2 on Ubuntu 22.04.

Install Joplin on Ubuntu with the official script

The official script downloads the current AppImage into ~/.joplin, installs the icon, and creates a launcher in ~/.local/share/applications. This is the closest match to Joplin’s own Linux guidance.

sudo apt update

This guide uses sudo for package commands. If your account does not have sudo access yet, follow the guide to add a new user to sudoers on Ubuntu before you continue.

Install the FUSE 2 package that matches your Ubuntu release, and include wget in the same step so the upstream command works on minimal images.

Ubuntu 26.04 and 24.04:

sudo apt install libfuse2t64 wget -y

Ubuntu 22.04:

sudo apt install libfuse2 wget -y

Ubuntu renamed the package from libfuse2 to libfuse2t64 starting in 24.04. Joplin’s script still checks for the libfuse.so.2 library, so the newer package name is expected on Ubuntu 24.04 and 26.04.

Run the installer as your regular user, not with sudo. The script refuses root unless you deliberately override it, and a normal desktop install does not need that.

wget -O - https://raw.githubusercontent.com/laurent22/joplin/dev/Joplin_install_and_update.sh | bash

Confirm the AppImage and version file were created in your home directory:

ls -la ~/.joplin/
cat ~/.joplin/VERSION

total 154148
drwxr-xr-x 2 user user      4096 Mar 10 09:33 .
drwxr-x--- 4 user user      4096 Mar 10 09:33 ..
-rwxr-xr-x 1 user user 157832791 Feb 26 02:10 Joplin.AppImage
-rw-r--r-- 1 user user         7 Mar 10 09:33 VERSION
3.5.13

The script also writes ~/.local/share/applications/appimagekit-joplin.desktop, and on current Ubuntu releases that launcher already includes the --no-sandbox flag the AppImage needs.

Install Joplin on Ubuntu from the community APT repo

This path adds the community Joplin DEB repo directly with a DEB822 .sources file, which keeps the key and source path explicit on Ubuntu. It is not the default Linux method on Joplin’s website, but it is a clean option if you want native apt updates from a normal system repo.

If you added Joplin through Extrepo before, remove /etc/apt/sources.list.d/extrepo_joplin.sources first. The old Extrepo file and the manual DEB822 file point to the same repo with different Signed-By paths, which can break apt update.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install curl gpg -y

Download the repo signing key into Ubuntu’s system keyring directory:

curl -fsSL https://gitlab.com/LFd3v/joplin-desktop-linux-package/-/raw/master/pub.gpg | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/joplin-desktop-linux-package.gpg

This keeps the Joplin repo key separate from your personal GnuPG keyring and follows Ubuntu’s normal repository pattern.

Create the DEB822 source file for the repo:

sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/joplin-desktop-linux-package.sources >/dev/null <<'EOF'
Types: deb
URIs: https://sourceforge.net/projects/joplin-desktop-linux-package/files/deb-repo
Suites: packages
Components: main
Architectures: amd64
Signed-By: /usr/share/keyrings/joplin-desktop-linux-package.gpg
EOF

The sudo tee command writes the file as root. A plain > redirection would still run as your normal user and fail on a system-owned path like /etc/apt/sources.list.d/.

Refresh package metadata so Ubuntu reads the new source:

sudo apt update

Hit:4 https://sourceforge.net/projects/joplin-desktop-linux-package/files/deb-repo packages InRelease
Reading package lists...
Building dependency tree...
Reading state information...

Install Joplin from the newly added repo:

sudo apt install joplin -y

The package installs under /opt/Joplin and exposes the launcher as /usr/bin/joplin.

Verify that Ubuntu is pulling Joplin from the community repo and not from the default archives:

apt-cache policy joplin

joplin:
  Installed: 3.5.13
  Candidate: 3.5.13
  Version table:
 *** 3.5.13 500
        500 https://sourceforge.net/projects/joplin-desktop-linux-package/files/deb-repo packages/main amd64 Packages
        100 /var/lib/dpkg/status

Install Joplin on Ubuntu with Snap

The Snap build is maintained on Snapcraft by James Carroll, so treat it as a community package rather than Joplin’s default Linux path. It fits best on Ubuntu desktops where Snap is already part of your workflow.

Ubuntu desktop already includes snapd. On minimal or server images, install it first:

sudo apt install snapd -y

Install the current stable Snap package:

sudo snap install joplin-desktop

Confirm that Snap installed the package and channel you expect:

snap list joplin-desktop

Name            Version  Rev  Tracking       Publisher       Notes
joplin-desktop  v3.5.13  136  latest/stable  james-carroll*  -

Install Joplin on Ubuntu with Flatpak

The Flathub build is another community path for readers who already use Flatpak and want Joplin isolated from the rest of the system. Ubuntu does not install Flatpak by default, so add it first if needed.

If Flatpak is new on this system, follow the guide to install Flatpak on Ubuntu for the full setup flow, including desktop integration.

sudo apt install flatpak -y
sudo flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

The --if-not-exists flag keeps the remote-add command safe to repeat if Flathub is already configured.

sudo flatpak install flathub net.cozic.joplin_desktop -y

Check the installed Flatpak metadata after the download finishes:

flatpak info net.cozic.joplin_desktop

Joplin - open source note taking and to-do application

          ID: net.cozic.joplin_desktop
         Ref: app/net.cozic.joplin_desktop/x86_64/stable
        Arch: x86_64
      Branch: stable
     Version: 3.5.13
     License: MIT
      Origin: flathub
  Collection: org.flathub.Stable
Installation: system

Launch Joplin on Ubuntu

Every method creates a desktop launcher, but the terminal command depends on how you installed Joplin.

Launch Joplin from Ubuntu’s app menu

Open Joplin from the app menu the same way you would launch any other desktop application.

• Click Show Applications in the Ubuntu dock.
• Type Joplin into the search box.
• Select the Joplin icon when it appears.

Launch Joplin from the Ubuntu terminal

Use the launcher command that matches your install method.

Official AppImage script:

~/.joplin/Joplin.AppImage --no-sandbox

Community APT repo:

joplin

Snap:

snap run joplin-desktop

Flatpak:

flatpak run net.cozic.joplin_desktop

If you installed Joplin with the official script, keep the --no-sandbox flag when you launch the AppImage manually. The desktop file created by the installer uses the same flag on current Ubuntu releases.

Update or Remove Joplin on Ubuntu

Update Joplin on Ubuntu

Use the update command that matches the way you installed Joplin.

Official AppImage script:

wget -O - https://raw.githubusercontent.com/laurent22/joplin/dev/Joplin_install_and_update.sh | bash

Community APT repo:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install --only-upgrade joplin -y

Snap:

sudo snap refresh joplin-desktop

Flatpak:

sudo flatpak update net.cozic.joplin_desktop -y

Remove Joplin from Ubuntu

Export any notes you want to keep before you remove Joplin. The app stores notebooks, attachments, and settings in your home directory, so a full cleanup can remove more than the package itself.

Joplin can export a full backup from File > Export all > JEX. Create that export before you remove any app data directories.

Official AppImage script:

rm -rf ~/.joplin/
rm -f ~/.local/share/applications/appimagekit-joplin.desktop
rm -f ~/.local/share/icons/hicolor/512x512/apps/joplin.png
rm -rf ~/.config/joplin-desktop ~/.config/Joplin

Community APT repo:

sudo apt remove --purge joplin -y
sudo apt autoremove -y
sudo rm -f /etc/apt/sources.list.d/joplin-desktop-linux-package.sources
sudo rm -f /usr/share/keyrings/joplin-desktop-linux-package.gpg
sudo apt update
rm -rf ~/.config/joplin-desktop ~/.config/Joplin

Snap:

sudo snap remove joplin-desktop
rm -rf ~/snap/joplin-desktop/

Flatpak:

sudo flatpak uninstall net.cozic.joplin_desktop -y
sudo flatpak uninstall --unused -y
rm -rf ~/.var/app/net.cozic.joplin_desktop/

Verify Joplin removal on Ubuntu

Use the matching check after you remove Joplin to confirm the package or runtime is gone.

Official AppImage script:

ls -d ~/.joplin ~/.config/joplin-desktop ~/.config/Joplin 2>/dev/null

No output

Community APT repo:

apt-cache policy joplin

No output

Snap:

snap list joplin-desktop

error: no matching snaps installed

Flatpak:

flatpak info net.cozic.joplin_desktop

error: net.cozic.joplin_desktop/*unspecified*/*unspecified* not installed

Fix Joplin problems on Ubuntu

Most Joplin install problems on Ubuntu come from the AppImage runtime or an incomplete Flatpak setup.

Fix Joplin AppImage FUSE errors on Ubuntu

If the official script stops before the download starts, it usually means the FUSE 2 runtime is missing.

Error: Can't get libfuse2 on system, please install libfuse2

Install the matching package for your Ubuntu release, then run the script again.

Ubuntu 26.04 and 24.04:

sudo apt install libfuse2t64 -y

Ubuntu 22.04:

sudo apt install libfuse2 -y

Fix Joplin AppImage sandbox errors on Ubuntu

A raw AppImage launch can fail on current Ubuntu releases if you skip the sandbox flag that Joplin’s installer already writes into the desktop file.

FATAL:sandbox/linux/suid/client/setuid_sandbox_host.cc:166] The SUID sandbox helper binary was found, but is not configured correctly.

Launch the AppImage with the same flag the official desktop entry uses:

~/.joplin/Joplin.AppImage --no-sandbox

If you installed Joplin with the official script and you launch it from Ubuntu’s app menu, the generated desktop file already adds --no-sandbox for you.

Fix missing Flathub remotes for Joplin on Ubuntu

The No remote refs found for 'flathub' error means Flatpak cannot see the Flathub remote yet.

flatpak remotes

flathub system

If flathub is missing, add it and retry the install:

sudo flatpak remote-add --if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Joplin is installed on Ubuntu and ready for notebooks, Markdown editing, and sync with the storage provider you prefer. Start by importing existing notes or setting your sync target inside Joplin, then stick with the install method that matches how you want updates handled on Ubuntu.