How to Download and Install Unity Editor on Ubuntu

With the ever-increasing popularity of game development, aspiring developers are constantly seeking powerful and user-friendly tools to bring their imaginative ideas to life. Unity, a renowned game development platform, has emerged as a go-to choice for professionals and beginners alike. If you are an Ubuntu user and looking to dive into game development using Unity, you’ve come to the right place.

In this article, we will provide you with a step-by-step guide on how to download and install Unity Editor on your Ubuntu system.

How to Download and Install Unity Editor on Ubuntu?

While the instructions provided in this article specifically cater to Ubuntu, it’s worth mentioning that they can also be applied to various other Linux distributions, including Linux Mint, Debian, Fedora, Rocky Linux, CentOS, MX Linux, and POP!OS, Manjaro, and more.

Before diving into the installation process, let’s take a quick look at the system requirements for Unity Hub:

Linux OS: Unity Hub is compatible with Linux operating systems such as Ubuntu 21.04, 20.04, 18.04, 16.04, as well as CentOS 7.

Graphics Card: To ensure optimal performance, your system should have a graphics card with DX10 (shader model 4.0) capabilities.

By meeting these requirements, you’ll be well-prepared to proceed with the download and installation of Unity Editor on your Linux-based system. Let’s explore the step-by-step process and equip you with the necessary tools for game development with Unity.

1. Downloading Unity Hub Linux

The Unity Editor is not included in the standard package repository of Ubuntu 20.04. To download and manage Unity installations and projects, you will need to obtain the Unity Hub from the Unity store webpage specifically designed for Ubuntu 20.04.

To acquire the Unity Hub for Ubuntu 20.04, follow these steps:

• Open your web browser and navigate to the Unity store webpage by visiting the official page.
• On the webpage, locate and click on the “Choose your Unity + download” button. This will initiate the download of the Unity Hub tailored for Ubuntu 20.04.

2. Get started with Unity Hub

Once you have successfully downloaded the AppImage package of Unity Hub, you’ll need to make the file executable before running it. Follow these steps to grant executable permission:

• Locate the UnityHub.AppImage file that you downloaded.
• Right-click on the UnityHub.AppImage file and select “Properties” from the context menu.



• In the Properties window, navigate to the “Permissions” tab.
• Look for the checkbox labeled “Allow executing file as program” and ensure it is selected.



• Alternatively, if you prefer using the command line, you can open a terminal and enter the following command: “chmod a+x UnityHub.AppImage“.



• By executing this command, you grant execute permissions to the UnityHub.AppImage file.
• Double-click on the UnityHub.AppImage file.

3. Log in to the Unity Technologies account

Once you have accepted the terms and conditions, the next step depends on whether you already have an account with Unity Technologies or not. Follow the instructions below based on your account status:

For existing Unity Technologies account holders:

• In Unity Hub, locate the profile icon located at the top-right corner and click on it.
• From the drop-down menu, select “Sign in”.



• A login window will appear. Enter your Unity account credentials (username and password) to sign in.

For those without a Unity Technologies account:

• In Unity Hub, if you don’t have an existing account, click on the profile icon located at the top-right corner.
• From the drop-down menu, click on the “Create One” link provided.
• This will direct you to the Unity Technologies account registration page. Fill in the required information to create a new account.
• After completing the registration process, sign in using your newly created account credentials.

4. Activate License

After successfully logging into your Unity account, follow these steps to activate a new license:

• Click on the gear icon located at the top-right corner of Unity Hub.
• From the drop-down menu, select “License Management”.
• In the License Management window, locate the “Activate New License” button and click on it.

If you are aiming to obtain a Free Personal License, follow these steps:

• In the next step of the activation process, make sure to check the option labeled “Unity Personal” to activate the free personal license.



• While activating the license, also select the option that states “I don’t use Unity in a professional capacity.”

By following these instructions, you will activate the Unity Personal License, enabling you to proceed with the download and subsequent launch of the Unity Editor.

5. Set Unity Editors Folder on Linux

Now, let’s move on to the steps for setting the installation folder for Unity Editor on Linux. Follow these instructions:

• In Unity Hub, navigate to the “General” section.
• Within the “General” section, locate the option to specify the installation location or folder for Unity Editors on your Linux system. To do this, click on the three dots (…) button.
• A file browser window will appear, allowing you to choose the desired location or folder for the Unity Editor installation. Select the appropriate directory on your Linux system.



• Additionally, you have the option to select your preferred language for the Unity Editor. By default, it is set to English.

After completing these steps, click on the back arrow icon located at the top-left corner to return to the main menu in Unity Hub.

6. Install Unity Editor on Ubuntu

After returning to the main menu in Unity Hub, follow these steps to initiate the installation process of a Unity Editor version:

• Navigate to the “Installs” section within Unity Hub. This section allows you to add and manage different versions of the Unity Editor.
• To begin installing a Unity Editor, click on the “Add” button.



• You will be presented with various versions of the Unity Editor available for Linux. It is recommended to choose the latest recommended release for optimal performance and features.
• Once you have selected the desired version of Unity Editor, proceed to the next step.
• In the following step, you have the option to select the components necessary for cross-compiling your application to different platforms, such as Windows, Android, macOS, iOS, and native compilation for GNU/Linux.
• Choose the components based on your development requirements.

Each Unity module download size will be displayed, giving you an idea of the space that will be occupied by this development platform on your system.

7. Create a New project

Once you have successfully downloaded the desired version of Unity Editor, follow these steps to create a new project in Unity Hub:

• In Unity Hub, navigate to the “Projects” section.
• Click on the “New” button, which is represented by a button with a side arrow icon. If you have multiple Unity versions installed, you can use the drop-down menu to select a specific Unity version for your project.
• Choose the type of project you want to create from the available options.
• Provide a name for your project in the designated field.
• Finally, click on the “Create” button to initiate the creation of your new project in Unity.

By following these steps, you will be able to create a new project in Unity using the selected Unity Editor version through Unity Hub.

Conclusion

In conclusion, this article has provided a comprehensive guide on how to download and install Unity Editor on Ubuntu and other Linux distributions. We discussed the system requirements, the need to download Unity Hub from the Unity store webpage, and the process of making the UnityHub.AppImage file is executable.

We also covered the steps for signing in to your Unity Technologies account, activating a license, setting the installation folder, and selecting the desired Unity Editor version. Lastly, we explored how to create a new project within Unity Hub.