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In-depth Installation

This document will get you up and running with Meltano in-depth. There is also a short install guide for first-time Meltano users.

Short on time, or just curious what the fuss is about? Watch the "0 to DataOps" speedrun to get a sense of the Meltano experience in just a few minutes!

Local Installation​

In the section below, we will install Meltano locally on your system, so that you can use it on the command line.

Please note that Windows is not fully supported yet so some features like the ELT command may not work yet. See the GitHub Windows Label for more information.


If you'd like all of Meltano's features to work, you can install Meltano inside the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL). You may also try installing Meltano on Docker.

Requirements​

Before you install Meltano, make sure you have the following requirements installed and up to date.

Python​

You may refer to https://realpython.com/installing-python/ for platform specific installation instructions.

Use the following command to check that you have a supported Python version installed:

python --version

Currently Python 3.9, 3.10, 3.11, 3.12 and 3.13 are supported. Some plugins do not yet support Python 3.13.

Install pipx​

pip is a package installer that comes automatically with Python 3+. pipx is a wrapper around pip which cleanly installs executable python tools (such as Meltano) into their own virtual environments.

# install pipx and ensure it is on the path
python3 -m pip install --user pipx
python3 -m pipx ensurepath
# Be sure pipx is available on your path
source ~/.bashrc

Why use pipx and virtual environments?

Your local environment may use a different version of Python or other dependencies that are difficult to manage. The pipx installer automatically creates a virtual environment and provides a "clean" isolated space without version conflicts or other compatibility issues.

Install Meltano​

Now that you have pipx installed, run the following command to install the Meltano package into its own pipx-backed virtual environment:

pipx install meltano

Once the installation completes, you can check if it was successful by running:

meltano --version

Install Git​

Many Meltano plugins require Git to be installed on your system. You can check if Git is installed by running:

git --version

If Git is not installed, you can download and install it from the Git website.

Optional Components​

Some components of Meltano are optional and not installed by default. See the guide on installing optional components for more information.

Next Steps​

Now that you've installed Meltano and its requirements, you can continue setting up your Meltano project by following the Getting Started guide.

uv​

uv is a Python package and project manager, written in Rust. It makes it easy to install a Python-based tool like Meltano in an isolated virtual environment.

Once you have uv installed, you can install Meltano by running the following command:

uv tool install meltano

Specifying a Python Version​

To install Meltano with a specific version of Python, you can use the --python flag. For example, to install Meltano with Python 3.13:

uv tool install --python 3.13 meltano

This will download the requested version of Python (if not already installed) and install Meltano in a virtual environment using that version.

Docker​

Docker is an alternative installation option to using a virtual environment to run Meltano. To use these instructions you will need to install Docker onto your computer and have it running when you execute the commands below.

Using Pre-built Docker Images​

We maintain the meltano/meltano Docker image on Docker Hub, which comes with Python and Meltano pre-installed.

To get the latest version of Meltano, pull the latest tag. Images for specific versions of Meltano are tagged v<X.Y.Z>, e.g. v3.5.4.

By default, these images come with a version of Python chosen for a balance of stability and compatibility, currently Python 3.9. If you'd like to use a different version of Python instead, add a -python<X.Y> suffix to the image tag, e.g. latest-python3.11 and v3.5.4-python3.11.

# download or update to the latest version
docker pull meltano/meltano

# Or choose a specific version of Meltano and/or Python:
# docker pull meltano/meltano:v3.5.4
# docker pull meltano/meltano:latest-python3.11
# docker pull meltano/meltano:v3.5.4-python3.12

# check the currently installed version
docker run meltano/meltano --version

Initialize Your Project​

Once you have Docker installed, running, and have pulled the pre-built image you can use Meltano just as you would in our Getting Started Guide. However, the command line syntax is slightly different. For example, let's create a new Meltano project:

cd /your/projects/directory

docker run -v "$(pwd)":/projects \
             -w /projects \
             meltano/meltano init yourprojectname

Then you can cd into your new project:

cd yourprojectname

Now that you're successfully running Meltano, you can continue setting up your Meltano project by following the Getting Started guide.

Note that wherever you are asked to run the meltano command, you will want to run it through docker run as in the snippet above.

Troubleshooting Installation​

Are you having installation or deployment problems? We are here to help you. Check out Getting Help on the different ways to get in touch with us.

Upgrading Meltano Version​

We release new versions of Meltano every week. To keep tabs on the latest releases, follow along on the Meltano blog, or have a look at our CHANGELOG.

Using the command line​

You can update Meltano to the latest version by running the following command in your terminal from inside a Meltano project:

meltano upgrade
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