# Install wails with Homebrew, MacPorts, Nix Create beautiful applications using Go. Version 2.13.0 via Homebrew; verified 2026-07-07. ## Install ```sh sudo av install brew:wails ``` Additional install commands: ### macOS - Homebrew (100%): ```sh brew install wails ``` Evidence: local Homebrew formula metadata - MacPorts (94%): ```sh sudo port install wails ``` Evidence: MacPorts ports tree: devel/wails/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ### Linux - Nix (92%): ```sh nix profile install nixpkgs#wails ``` Evidence: nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/wa/wails/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Package facts - **Package key:** brew:wails - **Package manager:** Homebrew - **Package manager page:** - **Version:** 2.13.0 - **Source summary:** Create beautiful applications using Go - **Homepage:** - **Repository:** - **Upstream docs:** - **License:** MIT - **Source archive:** - **Last updated:** 2026-07-07T05:10:28Z - **Generated:** 2026-07-08T07:18:31+00:00 ## Executables - wails (cli) - wails (alias) ## Dependencies - go ## Install behavior - Post-install hook: not defined - Bottle: available on arm64_linux, arm64_sequoia, arm64_sonoma, arm64_tahoe, sonoma, x86_64_linux ## Freshness - Page generated: 2026-07-08 - Package-manager version: 2.13.0 - Package-manager updated: 2026-07-07 - Local data: ok - Upstream repository: https://github.com/wailsapp/wails - Upstream latest detected: v2.13.0 (current) ## Project history and usage Wails is a Go desktop-application framework that pairs a Go backend with a web frontend while using native platform webview components instead of bundling a Chromium runtime. It is commonly described by the project as a lightweight Electron alternative for Go developers. ### Project history Creator and maintainer Lea Anthony traced the idea to wanting an HTML, JavaScript, and CSS interface for Restic without making users run a web server in a browser, then discovering the cross-platform WebView library. The early problem Wails set out to solve was the hard synchronization boundary between a native Go backend and a web frontend. The first public code appeared on GitHub on May 1, 2019 after roughly a year and a half of private development. Wails v1 was announced on December 10, 2019 as the stable-API milestone after nearly two years of work; the v1 post also listed the path toward v2, including replacing WebView as the windowing library, more desktop integration, and a broader refactor. Wails v2 was released on September 22, 2022 after about 18 months from the first v2 alpha and about a year from the first beta. The v2 release was a major transition: it added modern templates, Vite-powered live development, Windows WebView2 support, native menus and dialogs, TypeScript model generation, packaging improvements, and a runtime aimed at richer desktop applications. The v3 roadmap, published in January 2023, framed the next major cycle around a more programmatic API, better multi-window support, static-analysis-based bindings generation, and a more transparent build system. As of July 2, 2026, the GitHub repository metadata showed more than 35,000 stars, active development on the master branch, v2 as the stable line, and v3 alpha releases in progress. ### Adoption history Wails grew from a Go-community project into one of the best-known Go desktop frameworks. The v1 announcement reported about 1,300 GitHub stars and around 10,000 documentation-site users in late 2019, while the v2 announcement credited roughly 2,200 commits by 89 contributors between the initial alpha and v2 release. The project positions itself for developers who want native-feeling desktop applications without Electron's bundled-browser footprint. The docs emphasize templates for Svelte, React, Preact, Vue, Lit, and vanilla JavaScript, plus native menus, dialogs, theming, WebView2 on Windows, and platform packaging. ### How it is used A typical Wails project uses the `wails` CLI to create, develop, build, and package an app. Developers write Go methods in the backend, call them from JavaScript, and let Wails generate TypeScript models for Go structs so frontend and backend can share data shapes. During development, `wails dev` runs a native desktop shell while serving frontend assets from disk and reloading as Go or frontend files change. For release builds, Wails bundles frontend assets into a native executable and can package platform-specific app artifacts. ### Why package nerds care In package terms, Wails is important because it represents the Go ecosystem's native-webview answer to Electron-style desktop development. It turns a Go toolchain plus frontend build into a single distributable desktop app, so packagers and developers often compare it with Electron, Tauri, Fyne, WebView, and Lorca-like approaches. ### Timeline - May 1, 2019: the first public Wails code was released on GitHub, according to Lea Anthony's v1 history post. - December 10, 2019: Wails v1 was announced as the stable-API milestone. - September 22, 2022: Wails v2 was released after a long alpha and beta cycle. - January 17, 2023: the project published the Road to Wails v3, outlining multi-window and build-system changes. - July 2, 2026: GitHub API metadata showed the repository still actively maintained with more than 35,000 stars. ### Related projects - Wails is usually discussed alongside Electron and Tauri because all three let developers build desktop software with web technologies. It also has roots in the WebView project and in the Go ecosystem's desire for desktop apps that do not require shipping a separate browser runtime. ### Sources - - - - - ## Security Notes narrow executable package without higher-risk signals. - **Geiger risk:** green / low - narrow executable package without higher-risk signals ## Configuration and credential file locations These source-backed paths show where this package keeps local settings or durable credentials. Automic Vault can use them as review targets for secret scanning, migration, and command approval. ## Configuration files - Unix: wails.json ## Source Database Details - **Source Database:** Homebrew formula API - **Tap:** homebrew/core - **Full Name:** wails - **Version Scheme:** 0 - **Revision:** 0 - **Head Version:** HEAD - **Bottle Stable Root URL:** - **Deprecated:** no - **Disabled:** no - **Keg Only:** no - **URL Keys:** head, stable ## Other Package-Manager Records - Nix - wails: normalized package name match | nixpkgs package indexes: pkgs/by-name/wa/wails/package.nix from https://api.github.com/repos/NixOS/nixpkgs/git/trees/master?recursive=1 - MacPorts - wails: normalized package name match | MacPorts ports tree: devel/wails/Portfile from https://api.github.com/repos/macports/macports-ports/git/trees/master?recursive=1 ## Related links - [Terminal utility packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/terminal-utilities/) - Matched terminal and command-line workflow metadata. - [Text processing packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/text-processing-tools/) - Matched text, document, or structured-data processing metadata. - [Developer build packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/developer-build-tools/) - Matched build, compiler, generator, or developer workflow metadata. - [Language runtime packages](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/language-runtime-packages/) - Matched language runtime, compiler, or interpreter metadata. - [go](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/go/) - Runtime dependency declared by Homebrew. - [energy](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/energy/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, cross-platform, desktop-apps, developer-tools, go. - [gf](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/gf/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: application-framework, cli, developer-tools, go. - [jhipster](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/jhipster/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: application-framework, cli, developer-tools. - [micronaut](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/micronaut/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: application-framework, cli, developer-tools. - [qt](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/qt/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: application-framework, cli, cross-platform, developer-tools. - [wxwidgets](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/wxwidgets/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, cross-platform, desktop-apps, developer-tools. - [aurora](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/aurora/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, go. - [bed](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/bed/) - Shares av.db curated category or tags: cli, developer-tools, go. - [cobra-cli](https://www.automicvault.com/pkg/brew/cobra-cli/) - Both packages touch the same language runtime or ecosystem. Shared terms: applications, cli, developer, developer-tools, framework. ## Combined YAML source View the package source record on GitHub. [combined/wails.yml](https://github.com/automic-vault/db/blob/main/combined/wails.yml) ## Sources - Nucleus package database - Geiger risk classifier - package-page enrichment - curated configuration and credential file locations - curated package history - package version freshness - av.db category and tag curation - package relationship graph - external package-manager database matches - cross-ecosystem install command graph