PowerShell is our recommended terminal for Windows because it allows you to use Unix-like commands on a Windows system. This means you never have to look up Windows-specific instructions!
Choosing (and Opening) Your Terminal
Do you know what a terminal is, but are not sure how to actually open one? This guide will help you pick the perfect terminal to start (and grow!) with.
After reading this guide, you’ll know:
From there, you’ll be ready for the next step forward: running commands.
As we’ve learned, terminals are just like any other software program you use on your computer. This means that—no matter your operating system!—you have many possible choices about which Terminal to use.
In most cases, there is no wrong choice for your terminal: it all comes down to personal preference. To help you cut to the chase and get going without worry, this article lists some great choices to get started with. As you continue on your programming journey, you may want to try different terminals (some even have advanced features, like copy and paste!), or customize the one you’re using.
Most Windows machines come with two terminal programs already installed: Command Prompt and PowerShell.
If you find PowerShell isn’t installed, Windows has instructions on how to install the latest version for Windows 11 here.
If you can’t install PowerShell but have Git installed, you can use the Git Bash terminal that comes with it. Like PowerShell, Git Bash will allow you to use Unix commands on Windows.
Opening a terminal in Windows is as simple as going to the Start Menu → All Apps (Program Files) → clicking the terminal application in your program list.
MacOS comes installed with a terminal program aptly named Terminal, which is fine to get started with.
There are two ways to open Terminal on MacOS. Choose one of the following:
- Click the Launchpad icon, type Terminal in the search field, click Terminal.
- In Finder, open the /Application/Utilities folder, double-click Terminal.
All Linux distros come with a default terminal installed (which, exactly, might vary) but any is fine to get started with.
In some distros like Ubuntu, there are two methods to open a terminal. Choose one of the following:
- Press
Ctrl+Alt+T. - Click the Ubuntu icon in the upper-left to open the Dash, type “terminal”, click on the terminal program.
Other distros may have other shortcuts or methods for accessing a terminal program, but they should be easy to find in your system’s documentation or by searching online for “how to open terminal in [your distro]”.
TODO: make people type pwd so they can see where they are.
And with this, your terminal is open and ready for you to use. Next up, you can jump on to:
- How to Run (and Stop) Terminal Commands to master the secrets of typing your way to greatness
- Our navigation practice exercise for a practical dive off the deep end