Installation of ESP-IDF and Tools on Windows

[中文]

This section describes how to install ESP-IDF and its required tools on Windows using the Espressif Installation Manager (EIM).

Note

This document describes the default and recommended way to install ESP-IDF v6.0 and newer versions. ESP-IDF also supports the legacy method for updating ESP-IDF tools on Windows.

Step 1: Install the Prerequisites (Optional)

During ESP-IDF installation, the EIM automatically checks for required prerequisites and prompts you to install any missing prerequisites.

If automatic installation fails, you can install these prerequisites manually:

  • Git

  • Python

    Note

    Python 3.10 is the minimum supported version for ESP-IDF.

    For the Python version required by the EIM, please refer to the EIM documentation.

Step 2: Install the EIM

You can install the EIM using one of the following methods:

  • Download the EIM

    EIM Download Page

    You can choose either an online or offline installer, available in Graphical User Interface (GUI) or Command Line Interface (CLI) versions.

  • Install the EIM with Package Manager WinGet

    • Install the Graphical User Interface (GUI) or Command Line Interface (CLI):

      • GUI:

        winget install Espressif.EIM

      • CLI:

        winget install Espressif.EIM-CLI

    • This method makes it easy to keep EIM up to date with a single command.

Step 3: Install ESP-IDF Using EIM

You can install ESP-IDF and the required tools using one of the following methods, depending on your preference:

Online Installation Using EIM GUI

Open the ESP-IDF Installation Manager application eim.

Under New Installation click Start Installation.

EIM Start Installation

EIM Start Installation

Note

If you have never installed ESP-IDF before, you will not see Manage Installations. In this case, New Installation will be the only available option.

Under Easy Installation, click Start Easy Installation to install the latest stable version of ESP-IDF with default settings.

EIM Easy Installation

EIM Easy Installation

If all prerequisites and path checks pass, you will see the Ready to Install page. Click Start Installation to begin the installation.

EIM Ready to Install

EIM Ready to Install

During the installation, you can monitor the progress directly in the interface.

EIM Installing

EIM Installing

Once finished, the Installation Complete page will appear.

EIM Installation Complete

EIM Installation Complete

If the installation fails, you can:

  • Click Logs at the bottom of the interface to view error details. Resolve the issues and click Try Again to restart the installation.

  • Alternatively, use Custom Installation.

Note

Online Installation Using EIM CLI

Run the following command to install the latest stable version of ESP-IDF with default settings in non-interactive mode:

eim install

If you encounter issues running the above command, or if you want to customize the installation path, select ESP-IDF versions, or modify other options, launch the interactive installation wizard and follow the on-screen prompts:

eim wizard

If the ESP-IDF version you want to install is not available in the interactive wizard, run the following command to install any available versions. For example, to install ESP-IDF v5.4.2, run:

eim install -i v5.4.2

Once the installation is complete, you will see the following message in the terminal:

2025-11-03T15:54:12.537993300+08:00 - INFO - Wizard result: %{r}
2025-11-03T15:54:12.544174+08:00 - INFO - Successfully installed IDF
2025-11-03T15:54:12.545913900+08:00 - INFO - Now you can start using IDF tools

Note

Online Installation Using a Loaded Configuration

When you install ESP-IDF, the installer automatically saves your setup to a configuration file named eim_config.toml in the installation directory. This configuration file can be reused on other computers to reproduce the same installation setup.

To install ESP-IDF using an existing eim_config.toml file, refer to the EIM documentation > Configuration Files.

Offline Installation

Both the GUI and CLI installers support offline installation. For instructions, refer to EIM documentation > Offline Installation.

Next Steps

You are now ready to start developing with ESP-IDF. To begin building and running your first application, continue with the Build Your First Project section.

Was this page helpful?