Set up your Rust development environment on Windows

Step 1: Install the MSVC C++ Build Tools

Rust on Windows requires Microsoft's C++ build tools as a prerequisite. If you already have Visual Studio installed with the Desktop development with C++ workload, you can skip this step.

Otherwise, install the Microsoft C++ Build Tools and select the Desktop development with C++ workload.

Note

Use of the Microsoft C++ Build Tools requires a valid Visual Studio license (Community, Pro, or Enterprise). The Community edition is free for students, open-source contributors, and individuals.

Step 2: Install Rust

The official Rust installer, rustup, handles everything — the compiler, Cargo, and future updates.

WinGet

winget install Rustlang.Rustup

rustup.rs

Download and run the installer from rustup.rs. Accept the defaults to install the MSVC toolchain, which is recommended for Windows development.

After installation, open a new terminal and verify your setup:

cargo --version
rustc --version

Tip

To keep Rust up to date, run rustup update periodically.

Step 3: Install Visual Studio Code and the Rust extension

1. Download and install Visual Studio Code.
2. Install the rust-analyzer extension from the VS Code Marketplace. This adds code completion, inline errors, go-to-definition, and debugging support.

Next steps

Learn Rust

• Rust for Windows, and the windows crate — call Windows APIs directly from Rust
• Rust in Visual Studio Code — detailed VS Code Rust workflow
• The Rust Programming Language book — the official free Rust book