How to Install Rclone on Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04 and 22.04

Cloud copies are easier to automate when one tool can talk to S3, Google Drive, OneDrive, Backblaze B2, SFTP, and local folders from the same command line. That flexibility is why many admins and power users install Rclone on Ubuntu for backups, storage migrations, off-site sync jobs, and file transfers that do not need a desktop client.

Rclone is a CLI tool, so it fits Ubuntu Server, cloud instances, and full desktops without needing a graphical session. Ubuntu’s repository package is easy to maintain but trails upstream by a wide margin, while the official install path gets the current release and Snap adds automatic updates with stricter sandbox limits.

Install Rclone on Ubuntu

Quick Rclone Install Commands for Ubuntu

For a fresh Ubuntu system, the official Rclone installer is the fastest way to get the current upstream build. Use the detailed method sections instead if you are switching from an existing APT or Snap install.

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y curl unzip
curl -fsSL https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash
rclone version

These commands use sudo for system changes. If your account does not have sudo access yet, follow how to add a new user to sudoers on Ubuntu before continuing.

Choose Your Rclone Installation Method on Ubuntu

Start with the official install path if you want the current upstream release and the broadest feature set. APT is simpler to maintain inside Ubuntu’s package workflow, while Snap is convenient when automatic updates matter more than sandbox restrictions.

Method	Source	Release Line	Updates	Best Fit
APT	Ubuntu repositories	Distribution branch	Through apt upgrade	Stable systems that follow Ubuntu packages
Official Install Script (Recommended)	Rclone upstream	Upstream stable	Through sudo rclone selfupdate	Most users who want current backends and fixes
Snap	Snapcraft (aoilinux)	Snap stable channel	Automatic through snap refresh	Quick installs when you do not need rclone mount

Use one primary Rclone install method at a time. The Ubuntu package and the official install script both place rclone on the normal system PATH, so remove the older one before switching between them. The snap can coexist, but version checks are easier to follow when only one build is active.

Default Rclone Versions by Ubuntu Release

Ubuntu packages different Rclone branches by release, and the gap is large enough to affect backend support and bug fixes. If you need the newest upstream features, the official install script or Snap is the safer choice.

Ubuntu Release	Default Rclone	Package Source	Best For
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS	1.60.x	Ubuntu Universe	Current LTS systems that stay inside Ubuntu packaging
Ubuntu 24.04 LTS	1.60.x	Ubuntu Universe	Stable desktop and server installs
Ubuntu 22.04 LTS	1.53.x	Ubuntu Universe	Older LTS systems with strict package policies

These steps apply to Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04, and 22.04. The official install script and Snap track the upstream stable channel on Ubuntu, while APT follows the older Ubuntu branch. If you need rclone mount, skip the Snap build because strict confinement blocks it.

Prepare Ubuntu Before Installing Rclone

If you skipped the quick path, refresh package metadata before using a package-managed method. For more detail on Ubuntu package maintenance, review how to update packages via the Ubuntu command line.

sudo apt update

Method 1: Install Rclone with APT on Ubuntu

APT is the lowest-maintenance method and works well when Ubuntu-managed updates matter more than getting the newest Rclone branch right away.

sudo apt install -y rclone

Ubuntu installs the rclone package directly from Universe. The packaged build is older than upstream, so use the official install path or Snap if you need the current stable release.

Verify the APT Rclone Install on Ubuntu

Check the installed branch with the Rclone version command:

rclone version

rclone v1.60.1-DEV

Ubuntu 22.04 reports an older packaged branch:

rclone v1.53.3-DEV

If you need the exact Ubuntu package revision instead of the runtime branch, use apt-cache policy rclone.

Method 2: Install Rclone with the Official Script on Ubuntu

The official install path is the best default for most Ubuntu systems because it tracks the current stable release without waiting for Ubuntu package refreshes.

If the Ubuntu package is already installed, remove it first so the upstream script does not overwrite an APT-managed binary in place:

sudo apt remove -y rclone

The upstream installer downloads a ZIP archive and extracts the binary before placing it in /usr/bin. Install curl and unzip first so the script has both required tools available:

sudo apt install -y curl unzip

Run the upstream install script after that. The -fsSL flags tell curl to fail cleanly on HTTP errors, stay quiet unless something goes wrong, and follow redirects before piping the script to sudo bash.

curl -fsSL https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash

The script installs a root-owned binary at /usr/bin/rclone, adds the man page, and skips the download entirely when the same version is already present.

Verify the Official Rclone Install on Ubuntu

Check the upstream build immediately after installation:

rclone version

The first line should show the current upstream stable release. Rclone releases move quickly, and the upstream installer checks Rclone’s current stable version file before downloading.

Method 3: Install Rclone with Snap on Ubuntu

Snap is a reasonable option when automatic updates matter more than direct filesystem access. The current Snapcraft package is published by Yuzukosho (aoilinux), not by the upstream Rclone project. Ubuntu desktop installs usually already include snapd, but Server, minimal, and container images may need it first.

Install snapd if the snap command is not available:

sudo apt install -y snapd

Install the Rclone snap after that:

sudo snap install rclone

Verify the Rclone Snap Install on Ubuntu

Confirm the installed snap revision and tracking channel:

snap list rclone

The output should list rclone, the latest/stable tracking channel, and the aoilinux publisher.

The snap stores its configuration under ~/snap/rclone/current/.config/rclone, and rclone config file may show the active revision number instead of the current symlink. The snap is also strictly confined, so rclone mount is not supported and local examples work best from directories inside your home folder rather than /tmp.

Getting Started with Rclone on Ubuntu

Rclone works with local paths immediately, and these opening examples stay inside your home directory so they behave cleanly with the APT, official, and Snap installs. Once a cloud remote is configured, the same commands apply to S3, Google Drive, OneDrive, SFTP, and dozens of other backends. You can also mount a remote as a local directory with rclone mount for desktop-style access, though that requires FUSE and does not work with the snap build.

Find the Rclone Config File on Ubuntu

Check where Rclone expects its configuration file before you add any remotes:

rclone config file

Configuration file doesn't exist, but rclone will use this path:
/home/linuxcapable/.config/rclone/rclone.conf

The APT and official installs use ~/.config/rclone/rclone.conf. The Snap build uses a snap-specific path under ~/snap/rclone/.

Configure Rclone for Google Drive or OneDrive on Ubuntu

Use Rclone’s interactive config workflow when you are ready to connect a real provider. Choose New remote, give the remote a name, then select the backend such as Google Drive, OneDrive, S3, Backblaze B2, or SFTP.

rclone config

On a headless Ubuntu server, the config wizard may ask you to authorize the remote from another machine that has a browser. Run the backend-specific authorize helper on that browser-capable machine only when the wizard instructs you to do so, then paste the returned token into the server session.

For Google Drive, the helper uses the drive backend name:

rclone authorize drive

For OneDrive, use the onedrive backend name instead:

rclone authorize onedrive

Create a Local Rclone Remote on Ubuntu

Create a local backend named demo if you want a quick way to learn the config workflow without signing in to a cloud provider:

rclone config create demo local
rclone listremotes

On a fresh install, Rclone may print a one-time notice that the config file does not exist yet. The saved remote itself looks like this:

[demo]
type = local
demo:

Replace the local backend with a real remote later through rclone config. S3, Google Drive, OneDrive, Backblaze B2, and SFTP are common starting points. If you plan to sync to an SFTP host, set up how to install SSH on Ubuntu on the target machine first.

Use Rclone Browser Separately on Ubuntu

rclone-browser is a separate graphical front end, not the Rclone command-line package installed above. Ubuntu currently packages rclone-browser in Universe for Ubuntu 26.04, 24.04, and 22.04, but it is optional and not required for the CLI copy, sync, mount, or config commands in this article.

Copy Files Between Local Folders with Rclone on Ubuntu

Use a pair of folders in your home directory for the first copy test:

mkdir -p ~/rclone-demo/source ~/rclone-demo/destination
printf 'rclone demo\n' > ~/rclone-demo/source/test.txt
rclone copy ~/rclone-demo/source ~/rclone-demo/destination
rclone ls ~/rclone-demo/destination

If you have not saved any remotes yet, the first run may print a notice that Rclone is using defaults. The important part of the listing is the final line:

12 test.txt

Preview a Sync with Rclone on Ubuntu

Use --dry-run before a real sync whenever you are about to touch important files:

rclone sync --dry-run ~/rclone-demo/source ~/rclone-demo/destination

Transferred:              0 B / 0 B, -, 0 B/s, ETA -
Checks:                 1 / 1, 100%, Listed 2
Elapsed time:         0.0s

Remove the local demo after you finish testing:

rclone config delete demo
rm -rf ~/rclone-demo

Troubleshoot Rclone on Ubuntu

The most common early problems come from running the snap build against the wrong paths or expecting snap confinement to allow mount support.

Install Rclone Without Sudo on Ubuntu

The APT, official script, and Snap methods in this article all need sudo because they install a system package, write to /usr/bin, or add a snap package. If you do not control sudo on a shared server, ask the administrator to install Rclone or use the upstream standalone binary from a user-writable directory. Keep that user-local path separate from the system install methods so updates and removal stay clear.

Avoid pip for the Rclone Command on Ubuntu

Use APT, the official Rclone script, or Snap for the rclone command. Rclone is distributed as a compiled Go command-line tool, so pip install rclone is not the Ubuntu package workflow for this application.

Fix Local Path Errors with the Rclone Snap on Ubuntu

If the snap build reports that a source directory does not exist even though you just created it, rerun the command from a normal directory under your home folder. The snap sees a private temporary directory, so /tmp is the wrong place for first-use tests.

mkdir -p ~/rclone-demo/source ~/rclone-demo/destination
printf 'rclone demo\n' > ~/rclone-demo/source/test.txt
rclone copy ~/rclone-demo/source ~/rclone-demo/destination
rclone ls ~/rclone-demo/destination

12 test.txt

Fix Missing Mount Support in the Rclone Snap on Ubuntu

Snap metadata for Rclone explicitly says rclone mount is unsupported. Move to the official install path if you need mount support instead of fighting the sandbox. Copy any saved Snap configuration from ~/snap/rclone/current/.config/rclone/ first if you need to reuse existing remotes.

sudo snap remove rclone
sudo apt install -y curl unzip
curl -fsSL https://rclone.org/install.sh | sudo bash
rclone version

Update or Remove Rclone on Ubuntu

Rclone updates and cleanup depend on how you installed it, so stick to the same method when you maintain or remove it later.

Update the APT Rclone Package on Ubuntu

Use the standard Ubuntu package workflow when Rclone came from APT:

sudo apt install --only-upgrade -y rclone

Update the Official Rclone Install on Ubuntu

The upstream install supports in-place updates through selfupdate. Check the current status first, then apply the update when a newer release is available.

sudo rclone selfupdate --check
sudo rclone selfupdate

If the check shows matching yours and latest lines, the installed stable build is already current. If latest is newer, run the second command to replace the upstream binary in place.

Update the Rclone Snap on Ubuntu

Snap normally refreshes automatically, but you can force the check manually:

sudo snap refresh rclone

snap "rclone" has no updates available

Remove the APT Rclone Package on Ubuntu

Remove the Ubuntu package without running a broad autoremove sweep:

sudo apt remove -y rclone

Verify that the Ubuntu package is gone:

if dpkg -l rclone 2>/dev/null | grep '^ii'; then printf 'rclone is still installed\n'; else printf 'rclone package removed\n'; fi

rclone package removed

Remove the Official Rclone Install on Ubuntu

The upstream script installs the binary and man page outside APT, so remove those files directly:

sudo rm -f /usr/bin/rclone /usr/local/share/man/man1/rclone.1

Confirm the upstream files are gone:

if [ ! -e /usr/bin/rclone ] && [ ! -e /usr/local/share/man/man1/rclone.1 ]; then printf 'Official Rclone files removed\n'; fi

Official Rclone files removed

Remove the Rclone Snap on Ubuntu

Use the snap command with --purge only when you want to remove the package without keeping Snap’s automatic recovery snapshot:

sudo snap remove --purge rclone

rclone removed

Verify that the snap is no longer installed:

snap list rclone

error: no matching snaps installed

Rclone stores saved remotes and tokens outside the APT and official-script packages in ~/.config/rclone/. The Snap build stores its config under ~/snap/rclone/, and sudo snap remove --purge rclone removes the snap data instead of saving a recovery snapshot. Back up or copy any saved remotes before using the purge form.

Conclusion

Rclone is ready on Ubuntu for local copies, cloud remotes, and scheduled sync jobs without needing a desktop session. If your workflow also touches S3 or profile-based cloud credentials, install AWS CLI on Ubuntu next so both tools can share the same shell-driven workflow.