Install Windows Apps via CLI: Guide to WinGet and Scoop

What it is

Installing software on a Windows computer traditionally involves opening a web browser, searching for an application, downloading an installation executable, and clicking through several graphical setup screens. Command-line package managers offer an alternative route. Instead of navigating graphical installer wizards, users can discover, download, configure, and maintain software programs by entering straightforward text commands into a terminal, such as Windows PowerShell or the Command Prompt.

Two prominent tools for managing software through the Windows command line are WinGet and Scoop. While both aim to simplify software setup, they serve distinct roles in the Windows ecosystem.

WinGet, also known as the Windows Package Manager, is an official tool created by Microsoft. It acts as the client interface to the Windows Package Manager service. WinGet is designed to let users discover, install, upgrade, configure, and remove software across Windows 10, Windows 11, and Windows Server 2025 systems. On consumer desktop editions of Windows, WinGet is provided as part of the system’s built-in App Installer component.

Scoop is an independent command-line installer engineered specifically for Windows. According to the project README, Scoop was created to install applications with a minimal amount of friction, drawing inspiration from package management concepts found in tools such as Homebrew and Sub. Scoop places a primary emphasis on managing standalone or “portable” software—applications that run directly from self-contained folders without placing files across different system locations or modifying the Windows Registry.

What it can do

Both WinGet and Scoop provide a comprehensive set of capabilities that streamline software management, though each approaches the process with different features.

WinGet Capabilities

WinGet supports the entire lifecycle of software on a Windows machine:

• Application Discovery and Setup: Users can search for software using the search command, review application details with show, and install software packages using install.
• Maintenance and Removal: Installed software can be listed with list, updated to newer releases with upgrade, or removed entirely with uninstall. WinGet also includes a repair command to fix selected applications and a download command to retrieve an installer package without immediately installing it.
• Repository and Verification Management: The source command enables users to add, edit, remove, and update the package repositories accessed by WinGet. The hash command generates SHA256 security hashes for installers, and validate checks manifest files before they are submitted to the community repository.
• System and Package Configuration: WinGet includes an export command to save a list of installed programs to a file, and an import command to install all applications specified in such a file. It also supports package pinning with pin, system state setup with configure, and integration with PowerShell Desired State Configuration through dscv3.
• Broad Installer Compatibility: WinGet can process a wide variety of installer technologies, including EXE files (supporting both silent and progress-display switches), ZIP archives, MSI, WIX, INNO, NULLSOFT, APPX, MSIX, BURN, FONT files, and PORTABLE executables.
• Administrative Flexibility: When WinGet is executed from a standard command prompt, applications that require administrative rights will trigger a standard Windows elevation prompt. Conversely, running WinGet inside an Administrator Command Prompt applies installations without displaying elevation prompts.
• Settings and Features: Users can adjust tool settings through a settings.json file opened by the settings command, and inspect experimental functionality with features.

Scoop Capabilities

Scoop focuses on clean, automated, and self-contained installations:

• Frictionless App Management: According to the project README, Scoop eliminates User Account Control (UAC) prompt notifications, hides wizard-style graphical installation interfaces, and prevents unexpected side effects from installing or uninstalling software.
• Environment Cleanliness: Scoop prevents cluttering the system PATH environment variable. The PATH variable is the list of directory paths Windows checks when looking for executable commands; Scoop manages program links centrally so this setting remains tidy.
• Automated Dependencies: Scoop automatically identifies, retrieves, and installs necessary software dependencies, performing all required setup steps to leave an application in a working state.
• Script-Friendly Automation: Scoop is built for scripted, repeatable configurations, allowing users to install multiple tools, compilers, and utilities through concise command sequences.
• Package Buckets: Scoop organizes applications into modular repositories called “buckets.” The default bucket is main, which houses popular command-line and non-GUI utilities. Users can expand Scoop by adding additional known buckets:
  • extras: Applications that do not fit the criteria of the main bucket.
  • games: Open-source and freeware games and related tools.
  • nerd-fonts: Developer and icon-augmented fonts.
  • nirsoft: A collection containing more than 250 utilities from Nirsoft.
  • sysinternals: The Microsoft Sysinternals troubleshooting suite.
  • java: Java development kits (JDKs), runtimes (JREs), and virtual machine debugging tools.
  • nonportable: Applications that are not strictly portable and may trigger UAC elevation prompts.
  • php: Installers for various PHP versions.
  • versions: Alternative releases of programs found across other buckets.
• Accelerated Downloads via aria2: Scoop can utilize the aria2 utility to manage multi-connection downloads. Once aria2 is installed, Scoop can automatically apply it to download tasks, with configurable settings for connections per server, split sizes, and retry timing.
• Versatile Packaging: While optimized for portable applications, Scoop can also handle traditional installer executables, uninstallation routines, single-file utilities, and PowerShell scripts.

How to get started

Getting started with either tool requires opening a terminal in Windows.

Getting Started with WinGet

WinGet is included with Windows 11, modern releases of Windows 10, and Windows Server 2025 as part of the App Installer component.

Registration and Verification

WinGet becomes active after logging into Windows as a user for the first time, which triggers the Microsoft Store to register the Windows Package Manager asynchronously. If you recently logged in and find that WinGet is not yet recognized in your terminal, open PowerShell and execute the following registration command:

Add-AppxPackage -RegisterByFamilyName -MainPackage Microsoft.DesktopAppInstaller_8wekyb3d8bbwe

To verify the installation and view available commands, open Command Prompt or PowerShell and run:

winget --help

Windows Sandbox Installation

Windows Sandbox provides an isolated desktop environment to test software safely, but it does not come with WinGet or the Microsoft Store pre-installed. To bootstrap the stable release of WinGet inside a Windows Sandbox session, run the following script from a Windows PowerShell prompt:

$progressPreference = 'silentlyContinue'
Write-Host "Installing WinGet PowerShell module from PSGallery..."
Install-PackageProvider -Name NuGet -Force | Out-Null
Install-Module -Name Microsoft.WinGet.Client -Force -Repository PSGallery | Out-Null
Write-Host "Using Repair-WinGetPackageManager cmdlet to bootstrap WinGet..."
Repair-WinGetPackageManager -AllUsers
Write-Host "Done."

Basic WinGet Workflow

Once WinGet is available, you can locate and install software with two primary commands. First, search for your target application:

winget search <appname>

After identifying the package name from the search results, install it by running:

winget install <appname>

Getting Started with Scoop

Scoop is designed to be installed and run from a regular, non-administrator PowerShell prompt.

Installation

Windows 10 client devices restrict the execution of PowerShell scripts by default. To permit the installation and management scripts to run for your account, set the execution policy to RemoteSigned and download Scoop using these commands:

Set-ExecutionPolicy -ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned -Scope CurrentUser
Invoke-RestMethod -Uri https://get.scoop.sh | Invoke-Expression

By default, Scoop installs into your user profile folder at:

C:\Users\<YOUR USERNAME>\scoop

Basic Scoop Workflow and Automation

Scoop allows you to install individual utilities or chain multiple programs together in repeatable setup commands:

scoop install sudo
sudo scoop install 7zip git openssh --global
scoop install aria2 curl grep sed less touch
scoop install python ruby go perl

Adding Application Buckets

The main bucket is active by default. To access a broader catalog of software, you can connect additional buckets using the following syntax:

scoop bucket add <name>

For instance, to add the extras bucket to your Scoop installation:

scoop bucket add extras

Enabling Multi-Connection Downloads

To accelerate package downloads across multiple network connections, install aria2 directly through Scoop:

scoop install aria2

Once installed, Scoop uses aria2 automatically for subsequent package retrieval operations.

Pricing and requirements

Pricing Information

Pricing and plans are subject to the official page for WinGet and the official page for Scoop.

According to project documentation, both utilities are provided under open-source software terms:

• WinGet is open-source software maintained by Microsoft in the microsoft/winget-cli GitHub repository. Source contributions require agreeing to a Microsoft Contributor License Agreement (CLA).
• Scoop is open-source software licensed under UNLICENSE or MIT terms, as indicated in its repository metadata. Voluntary one-time financial support for Scoop’s ongoing development is accepted through PayPal.

System Requirements

WinGet Requirements

• Operating System: Supported on Windows 11, modern releases of Windows 10 version 1809 (build 17763) or later, and Windows Server 2025.
• System Components: Requires the App Installer package, distributed and serviced through the Microsoft Store on desktop Windows editions, and via Windows Updates on Windows Server 2025.
• Preview Versions: Preview builds can be downloaded directly from the project release page or received automatically through the Microsoft Store by participating in the Windows Insider Program (Dev or Canary channels) using a Microsoft Account, work, school, or Microsoft Entra ID account.

Scoop Requirements

• Operating System: Runs on Windows client systems equipped with PowerShell.
• Permissions: Requires a regular (non-administrator) user console; it does not require elevated administrative privileges for standard portable app installations.
• PowerShell Execution Policy: The user scope execution policy must be configured to RemoteSigned to permit Scoop scripts to run.
• File System: Installs files locally within the user’s home directory path (C:\Users\<YOUR USERNAME>\scoop).

Who it is for

Command-line installers on Windows serve a variety of user groups and technical needs:

• Everyday Users and Beginners: Individuals who want a straightforward, fast way to search for and install applications without manually visiting external websites, avoiding graphical installer screens, or navigating setup wizards.
• Developers and Programmers: Engineers who need to provision programming runtimes, language environments, and developer utilities—such as Python, Ruby, Go, Perl, Git, or Java runtime environments—quickly and reliably across their workstations.
• System Administrators and Power Users: Administrators seeking repeatable, scriptable installations to standardize machine setups, manage software versions, deploy utilities into isolated Windows Sandbox instances, or configure system states using PowerShell Desired State Configuration.
• Software Authors: Application creators who want a lightweight alternative to building complex installer packages like MSI or InnoSetup. With Scoop, authors can distribute tools by packaging their application into a .zip file accompanied by a JSON manifest, while packages can also be submitted to the Windows Package Manager repository for WinGet distribution.

Alternatives

Chocolatey is an alternative package management solution available for Windows systems.

Ninite provides an alternative service for installing applications on Windows computers.

Sources

• Scoop GitHub Repository
• WinGet Documentation on Microsoft Learn
• Chocolatey
• Ninite