Install Signal Desktop on Ubuntu

If you want a desktop messaging app that takes privacy seriously, Signal is still one of the easiest recommendations to make.

This guide shows how to install Signal Desktop on Ubuntu using Signal’s official Linux instructions for Debian-based distributions.

If you landed here because you searched for install Signal on Ubuntu, install Signal Desktop on Linux, or Signal Desktop Ubuntu, you are in the right place.

Before you begin

Signal Desktop is a linked desktop app. That means:

Signal must already be set up on your phone
the desktop app is linked by scanning a QR code
Ubuntu or another Debian-based Linux distribution is required for this package method

Official references:

Install Signal Desktop on Ubuntu

Open Terminal and run the following commands:

wget -O- https://updates.signal.org/desktop/apt/keys.asc | gpg --dearmor > signal-desktop-keyring.gpg
cat signal-desktop-keyring.gpg | sudo tee /usr/share/keyrings/signal-desktop-keyring.gpg > /dev/null

wget -O signal-desktop.sources https://updates.signal.org/static/desktop/apt/signal-desktop.sources
cat signal-desktop.sources | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-desktop.sources > /dev/null

sudo apt update
sudo apt install signal-desktop

Verify the installation

Once the package finishes installing, you should be able to start Signal Desktop from the app launcher.

You can also verify the install from the terminal:

signal-desktop --version

Launch and link the app

Once the installation is finished:

Open Signal Desktop from the app launcher.
A QR code will appear.
On your phone, open Signal and use the linked devices flow to scan that code.
Wait for the desktop app to sync.

After that, Signal Desktop is ready to use.

Update Signal

Because Signal is installed through an APT source, future updates arrive through your normal package update flow.

sudo apt update
sudo apt upgrade

If you only want to update Signal Desktop without upgrading everything else:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install --only-upgrade signal-desktop

Remove Signal Desktop

sudo apt remove signal-desktop

If you also want to remove the repository configuration:

sudo rm /etc/apt/sources.list.d/signal-desktop.sources
sudo rm /usr/share/keyrings/signal-desktop-keyring.gpg
sudo apt update

Final note

Signal’s Linux install is straightforward once the repository is added. If you already use Signal on your phone, the desktop setup usually takes only a couple of minutes.