How To Install Homebrew on Mac [Video]

Homebrew installs the command-line tools and apps that macOS doesn't include, each with one Terminal command. Setting it up takes a command from its website, your Mac's password and a few minutes, and Homebrew downloads Apple's Command Line Tools for you if your Mac doesn't have them.

We installed Homebrew on a MacBook Pro running macOS 27. Homebrew supports macOS Sequoia 15 and newer, and its installer asks for your password, so use an administrator account.

Install Brew on macOS From Terminal

Step One: Copy the Install Command

Go to brew.sh and click the copy button next to the command under Install Homebrew:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"

Step Two: Open Terminal

Click Spotlight in the menu bar, type Terminal and press Return.

Step Three: Run the Command

Paste the command into Terminal with Command-V and press Return.

Step Four: Enter Your Password

Type your Mac's password when you see Password: and press Return. Terminal doesn't show the password as you type it.

Step Five: Confirm the Install

The installer lists the folders it will create in /opt/homebrew and, if your Mac doesn't have them, says it will install the Xcode Command Line Tools. Press Return to continue.

Step Six: Wait for the Install

Homebrew downloads and installs the Command Line Tools first, if they're missing, then itself. On our Mac the whole install took about two minutes.

Step Seven: Add Homebrew to Your PATH

When you see Installation successful!, run the three commands listed under Next steps one at a time. They add Homebrew to your PATH, so Terminal can find the brew command. On a Mac with Apple silicon they are:

echo >> ~/.zprofile
echo 'eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv zsh)"' >> ~/.zprofile
eval "$(/opt/homebrew/bin/brew shellenv zsh)"

Step Eight: Check Homebrew

Type brew doctor and press Return. Your system is ready to brew. means Homebrew is set up.

Step Nine: Install a Package

Type brew install followed by a package's name and press Return, for example brew install wget. When Homebrew lists other packages it needs and asks Do you want to proceed with the installation? [y/n], type y and press Return.

Search, Update and Remove Packages

brew search finds a package by name, brew list shows what you've installed, brew update fetches the latest Homebrew and its package list, brew upgrade updates your packages and brew uninstall removes one. Homebrew also installs Mac apps, which it calls casks, the same way: brew install firefox, for example. To install Telnet, see our Telnet tutorial.

Uninstall Homebrew

To remove Homebrew, run its uninstall script in Terminal:

/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/uninstall.sh)"