Building LibreSprite from source

#Our three builds

Source: master at commit 98f7443 (29 October 2026). Each build reported LibreSprite 1.3-dev (local build); self-built copies never show a plain release number. Times include installing dependencies and cloning.

#Linux (Ubuntu / Debian)

sudo apt-get install cmake g++ libfreetype6-dev libgif-dev libgtest-dev libjpeg-dev libpixman-1-dev libpng-dev libsdl2-dev libsdl2-image-dev libtinyxml2-dev libnode-dev ninja-build zlib1g-dev libarchive-dev libssl-dev
python3 -m venv ~/cmake-venv && ~/cmake-venv/bin/pip install cmake   # CMake 4.x: Ubuntu 24.04 ships 3.28
export PATH=~/cmake-venv/bin:$PATH
git clone --recursive https://github.com/LibreSprite/LibreSprite
cd LibreSprite && mkdir build && cd build
cmake -G Ninja ..
ninja libresprite
./bin/libresprite

With the distribution’s CMake, configuration stops with: CMake 4.1 or higher is required. You are running version 3.28.3. A newer CMake from PyPI in a virtual environment (as above; Ubuntu blocks plain pip install system-wide), Kitware’s APT repository or cmake.org fixes it. In our container we used pip install --break-system-packages cmake, which also works but is best avoided on your own machine. libssl-dev is needed on master for HTTPS in scripts (CMake warns without it). Fedora users: the dnf line in INSTALL.md, plus a new enough CMake.

#Windows (MSYS2 UCRT64)

1. Install MSYS2

   From msys2.org, then open the MSYS2 UCRT64 shell (not MINGW64, not MSYS).

2. Dependencies

   MSYS2 UCRT64 shellCopy

   pacman -S base-devel git mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-gcc mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-cmake mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-make mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-ninja mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-openssl mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-freetype mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-giflib mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-libjpeg-turbo mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-libpng mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-libwebp mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-pixman mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-SDL2 mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-SDL2_image mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-tinyxml2 mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-zlib mingw-w64-ucrt-x86_64-libarchive

   MSYS2’s CMake is current (4.4.5 in our run), so the CMake trap doesn’t apply here.

3. Build

   MSYS2 UCRT64 shellCopy

   git clone --recursive https://github.com/LibreSprite/LibreSprite
   cd LibreSprite && mkdir build && cd build
   cmake -G Ninja ..
   ninja libresprite
   ./bin/libresprite.exe

   INSTALL.md’s Windows section ends after cmake; the ninja libresprite line is needed, exactly as on Linux.

The result is large (304 MB, with debug information) and depends on 47 DLLs from the UCRT64 environment, so run it from the UCRT64 shell, or copy those DLLs next to it before moving it elsewhere. The v1.3 tag’s INSTALL.md still describes 32-bit MINGW packages; use the UCRT64 instructions above, which master switched to on 21 October 2026.

#macOS (Homebrew)

brew install gnutls freetype jpeg webp pixman sdl2 sdl2_image tinyxml2 libarchive ninja zlib xmlto dylibbundler cmake
git clone --recursive https://github.com/LibreSprite/LibreSprite
cd LibreSprite && mkdir build && cd build
cmake -DCMAKE_OSX_SYSROOT=$(xcrun --show-sdk-path) -G Ninja ..
ninja libresprite
./bin/libresprite

INSTALL.md gives the SDK path written out in full; $(xcrun --show-sdk-path) is equivalent and works if Xcode lives elsewhere. Homebrew’s CMake (4.4.4 in our run) is new enough. Your own build is not quarantined, so Gatekeeper doesn’t block it.

#Updating your build

cd LibreSprite
git pull
git submodule update --init --recursive
cd build && ninja libresprite

#Android and web

Both start from a native build. For Android, the development branch moved the Android dependencies into the main repository (12 October 2026); open the android folder in Android Studio and point it at CMake 4.1+. For the browser, master’s INSTALL.md documents an emscripten build; the result must be served with cross-origin isolation headers. We did not build these two.

#Common build errors

#FAQ

Found something wrong or out of date? Tell us: hello@libresprite.dev. We fix mistakes within a day.