Installing SQLite and the sqlite3 Shell

Some tools need a whole workshop. This one fits in a single small file.

In What Is SQLite?, you saw that SQLite has no server: a database is just a file. That makes setup refreshingly small. In this lesson, you'll install sqlite3, a little program called a shell that lets you type SQL and see the results, and use it to create your first database file.

What you're installing

The sqlite3 shell is one small program. You type SQL into it, press Enter, and it shows you the answer. It can also open, create, and save database files. There's nothing to configure and no account to create.

Some systems already have it. Check first, then install only if you need to.

Checking whether you already have it

Open a terminal (search the Start menu for Terminal on Windows, or open Terminal from Applications, then Utilities, on a Mac) and type:

sqlite3 --version

If you see a version number starting with 3, you're ready: skip ahead to Opening your first database. If the terminal says the command isn't found, follow the steps for your system below.

If you've never used a terminal before, Using the Integrated Terminal in the IDE track is a gentle introduction.

Installing on Windows

1. Go to sqlite.org and open the Download page.
2. Under Precompiled Binaries for Windows, download the sqlite-tools package for x64 (a .zip file). Most Windows computers are x64.
3. Unzip it. Inside, you'll find sqlite3.exe.
4. Make a folder for it, like C:\sqlite, and move sqlite3.exe there.
5. To be able to type sqlite3 from any folder, add that folder to your PATH: search the Start menu for Edit the system environment variables, choose Environment Variables, select Path under your user variables, choose Edit, then New, and add C:\sqlite.

PATH is the list of folders your computer searches when you type a command. If adding it feels like too much for now, you can instead copy sqlite3.exe into the folder where you'll keep your practice files, and run it from there as .\sqlite3.

Installing on macOS

macOS already includes sqlite3. Run sqlite3 --version to confirm. If you'd like a newer version later, you can install one with Homebrew (brew install sqlite), but the built-in one works for this whole track.

Installing on Linux

Many Linux systems include sqlite3. If yours doesn't, install it with your package manager. On Ubuntu and Debian:

sudo apt install sqlite3

Checking that it worked

Open a new terminal window (one that was open during the install may not know about the change) and type:

sqlite3 --version

You should see a version number and a date, something like this (your numbers may differ):

3.53.4 2026-07-24 19:02:57 ...

Any version starting with 3 works for this track.

Opening your first database

Make a folder called sql-practice, open a terminal in it, and type:

sqlite3 library.db

That opens a database file called library.db. The prompt changes to sqlite>, which means SQLite is waiting for your SQL. Try a first statement, ending it with a semicolon, and press Enter:

sqlite> SELECT 2 + 3;
5

Nothing is saved to disk until you create something, so the file library.db appears in your folder once you make your first table, in the next lesson. To leave the shell, type .quit and press Enter.

Lines that start with a dot, like .quit, aren't SQL. They're dot-commands: instructions for the shell itself. You'll meet the most useful ones in Your First Queries.

A friendlier view (optional)

The shell is all you need for this track. But if you'd like to see your tables in a window, like a spreadsheet, a free program called DB Browser for SQLite (at sqlitebrowser.org) opens .db files, shows every table, and lets you run SQL too. Many code editors also have extensions for viewing SQLite files.

When something goes wrong

"'sqlite3' is not recognized" or "command not found"

The terminal can't find the program. Close every terminal window and open a new one. On Windows, check that the folder containing sqlite3.exe was added to your PATH, or run it from its own folder with .\sqlite3.

The prompt shows ...> instead of sqlite>

The shell is waiting for the end of your statement. You probably forgot the semicolon. Type ; and press Enter.

Your school computer won't let you install anything

That's normal on shared computers. You can still read every lesson here, and finish the setup at home later.

Try it

This one-line query asks SQLite for its own version number, and does a little math. Predict what it prints.

Running SQL here

Running SQL right in the browser is coming to Syntaxia soon. Once your setup works, open the shell with sqlite3, type .mode table, press Enter, and then paste the query.

Check your prediction

The answer column is always the same. The version depends on your computer, so yours may be different:

+---------+--------+
| version | answer |
+---------+--------+
| 3.53.4  |     42 |
+---------+--------+

sqlite_version() is a built-in function that gives back the version of SQLite that's running. AS names each column in the result, as you'll see in SELECT: Reading Data.

Try it yourself

1. Run sqlite3 --version in a new terminal and write down your version number.
2. Make a sql-practice folder, open a terminal in it, and run sqlite3 library.db. Type SELECT 10 / 4; and press Enter. What does SQLite answer? (You'll find out why in Built-in Functions.)
3. Type .help in the shell to see every dot-command, then .quit to leave.

Check your understanding

What does sqlite3 library.db do?

Opens the database file library.db in the sqlite3 shell, creating it if needed

Deletes the library.db file

Installs SQLite

Prints the contents of library.db

The shell shows ...> instead of sqlite> after you press Enter. What happened?

The database is broken

SQLite crashed

The statement isn't finished yet, usually because the semicolon is missing

You need to reinstall

What are commands that start with a dot, like .quit?

A kind of SQL comment

Errors

Table names

Instructions for the sqlite3 shell itself, not SQL

Up next

Your shell is ready. Time to build the library database you'll use throughout this track, and ask it your first questions, in Your First Queries.