How to download, install and run Julia on a Mac

It’s WAY easier than installing Python. You can install Julia like any other Mac app. You can even use a Homebrew Cask.

How to download Julia for Mac

Unlike Python, which involves a lot of mucking about in the terminal, Julia is quite straightforward to install. It’s just like any other Mac app—download the Julia .dmg file and open it.

And just like any other Mac app, you simply drag the app icon to the Applications folder.

Once you’ve done that, simply double-click the Julia icon in your Applications folder.

If you’re on a recent version of macOS, you’ll see a macOS security dialog asking you to confirm you want to run the app. Simply click OK (Julia comes from the renowned MIT, you can trust it).

How to launch Julia on a Mac

It’s super easy! You can run Julia by launching it from your Applications folder or Dock (same as any other Mac app).

OK, the Julia app has launched. It’s actually a Terminal instance with Julia already running.

The prompt looks like this:

julia>

You can enter your first mathematical operation:

julia> 1 + 1
2

… and you’ve entered the world of Julia!

Using Julia with a third-party CLI such as iTerm

Alternatively, if you’d rather use a different CLI (such as my preference, iTerm), you can simply open that and enter the command julia. You’ll see a Julia prompt and away you go!

Here are more Julia tutorials so you can see what you can do with this truly powerful language.