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title Set up your environment and create your first WinUI project
description List of steps to get started developing Windows apps with WinUI and the Windows App SDK.
ms.topic how-to
ms.date 02/18/2026
keywords windows, desktop development
ms.localizationpriority medium
ms.collection windows11

Quick start: Set up your environment and create a WinUI 3 project

This quick start guide walks you through setting up your WinUI and Windows App SDK development environment and creating your first app. To learn more about how Visual Studio and its templates support WinUI development, see the Visual Studio overview. To develop WinUI apps, you need:

Set up your development environment

WinGet Configuration

Open Windows Terminal and run the following command in PowerShell to automatically set up your environment using a WinGet Configuration file. This will:

  • Install Visual Studio 2026 with the required workloads
  • Enable Developer Mode
winget configure -f https://aka.ms/winui-config

To review the config file and learn more, see its README on GitHub.

Note

If WinGet is not available by default in your environment, you can use the following commands to install it. See Using WinGet for more information.

Install-Module -Name Microsoft.WinGet.Client -Force
Repair-WinGetPackageManager -AllUsers

Manual installation

Enable Developer Mode

Windows includes a Developer Mode that adjusts security settings to let you run and test apps you're building. Enable Developer Mode before building, deploying, and testing your app with Visual Studio.

To enable Developer Mode:

  • Open Windows Settings and navigate to the System > Advanced page.
  • Toggle the Developer Mode switch to On and confirm your choice in the confirmation dialog.

Install Visual Studio and the required WinUI and Windows App SDK workloads

Download and install the latest Visual Studio using the link below. For details, see Install Visual Studio.

[!div class="button"] Download Visual Studio

Required workloads and components

In the Visual Studio Installer, select the following workloads on the Workloads tab. If Visual Studio is already installed, open the installer and select Modify to add them.

  • For C# app development using the Windows App SDK, select WinUI application development.

:::image type="content" source="images/hello-world/vs-workload-winui.png" alt-text="A screenshot of the Visual Studio installer UI with the WinUI application development workload selected.":::

  • For C++ app development, select the C++ WinUI app development tools under the WinUI application development node in the Installation details pane (This will also select any additional required components.)

Tip

If you don't see WinUI templates after installing Visual Studio, open the Visual Studio Installer, select Modify, and confirm the WinUI application development workload is checked. Restart Visual Studio after modifying the installation.

Create and launch your first WinUI app

  1. Open Visual Studio and select Create a new project.

  2. Search for WinUI, select the WinUI Blank App (Packaged) C# project template, and select Next.

    :::image type="content" source="images/hello-world/create-project.png" lightbox="images/hello-world/create-project.png" alt-text="Blank, packaged WinUI C# desktop app":::

  3. Enter a project name and select Create.

    :::image type="content" source="images/hello-world/configure-project.png" lightbox="images/hello-world/configure-project.png" alt-text="Specify project details":::

  4. Press Start (F5) to build and run your app.

    :::image type="content" source="images/hello-world/start-click.png" alt-text="Build and run your project":::

    Your app builds, deploys, and launches in debug mode:

    :::image type="content" source="images/hello-world/click-me.png" border="false" alt-text="Hello World project built and running":::

    You've built and launched your first WinUI app! 🎉

Next steps

:::row::: :::column::: Hello WinUI
Build your first WinUI app
Ready to go further? Follow the step-by-step tutorial to build a full WinUI app. :::column-end::: :::column::: WinUI 3 Gallery
WinUI 3 Gallery
Explore interactive examples of WinUI controls, features, and functionality. :::column-end::: :::column::: Samples icon
Samples and resources
Browse code samples, starter projects, and tools to accelerate your development. :::column-end::: :::row-end:::