This simple tutorial shows how to install WeChat, QQ instant messenger and QQ Music in all current Ubuntu releases.

For those doing business or having friends / family members in China, it’s hard to avoid using these top apps. Thanks to wine and Deepin Linux, they are now easy to install in Linux without native support.

Method 1: Use Flatpak package (unofficial)

NOTE: The Flatpak package is NOT verified by, affiliated with, or supported by Tencent.

The Flathub repository now include QQ, WeChat, QQ Music as Flatpak packages run in sandbox environment. It can be installed in most Linux on Intel/AMD platform.

1. First, press Ctrl+Alt+T to open up a terminal window. Then run command to enable flatpak support:

sudo apt install flatpak

Other Linux can follow the official setup guide for Flatpak support.

2. Then, install WeChat by running command:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.tencent.WeChat.flatpakref

Or use the command below to install Linux QQ:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.qq.QQ.flatpakref

For QQ Music, run this command instead:

flatpak install https://dl.flathub.org/repo/appstream/com.qq.QQmusic.flatpakref

If this is the first time you installing a Flatpak app package, then you may need a log out and back in to make app icon visible in start menu (or Gnome app grid).

Uninstall QQ, WeChat, QQ Music Flatpak packages

To uninstall the software packages, use one of the commands below:

• Uninstall QQ Flatpak package:

  flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.qq.QQ

• Uninstall QQ Music Flatpak package:

  flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.qq.QQmusic

• Or uninstall WeChat Flatpak package:

  flatpak uninstall --delete-data com.tencent.WeChat

Method 2: Use official WeChat Linux package

WeChat finally added official Linux support in November 2024.

The official website now provides the .deb and .rpm package for Debian, Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora based systems, as well as universal AppImage package works on most Linux. They support X86_64 (Intel/AMD), arm64, and LoongArch CPU architecture types.

For the .deb or .rpm package, just download it and double-click to install via your system package manager. Or, run one of the commands below to install (say you saved it in Downloads folder):

• Install .deb package in Debian, Ubuntu, or Linux Mint:

  sudo apt install ~/Downloads/WeChatLinux*.deb

• Install .rpm package in RHEL, Fedora, etc:

  sudo dnf install ~/Downloads/WeChatLinux*.rpm

For AppImage package, simply add executable permission from file properties dialog, then you can click Run the file to launch the app.

Uninstall

To uninstall the official .deb or .rpm package, use one of the commands below:

sudo apt remove wechat

sudo dnf remove wechat

For the AppImage package, just delete the file using your file manager.