Yuzu Emulator For Linux

Yuzu is one of the most downloaded Nintendo Switch emulators for Linux, like Suyu and Ryujinx. Yuzu made this possible to play Switch games on Linux-based systems such as Ubuntu, Fedora, and Debian. The same team developed this emulator that is behind the popular Nintendo Citra 3D emulator. 

There are two methods to run Switch games on Linux. One is using the AppImage method, and the second one is using the Flatpak version. In this guide, we have explained both methods in easy steps. 

Minimum System Requirements

Before proceeding, check out the minimum system requirements.

CPU


Intel i5 or AMD Ryzen 3 (Recommended: Ryzen 5 or better)

GPU


OpenGL 4.5 or Vulkan 1.1 compatible(NVIDIA/AMD recommended)

RAM


Minimum: 8 GBRecommended: 16 GB


Storage

SSD recommended for faster load times

Operating System


64-bit Linux (Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Arch, etc.)

Graphics Drivers


Mesa (AMD/Intel) or proprietary (NVIDIA)


AppImage Support

Needed to run the Yuzu AppImage

How to Install Yuzu Emulator on Linux – Via AppImage Method

1. Download the AppImage by navigating to the download page of the official Yuzu website.

2. Click the Download button under the Linux section.

3. The AppImage file (e.g., yuzu-mainline-*.AppImage) will be saved to your Downloads folder.

4. Make the AppImage Executable. To do so, You have two options:

Option A: With the Mouse

  • Right-click the downloaded AppImage file.
  • Click Properties > Permissions tab.
  • Enable or check “Allow executing file as a program.”

Option B: Using Terminal

  • Open a terminal and run:

chmod +x ~/Downloads/yuzu-mainline-*.AppImage

5.  Run Yuzu by just double-clicking the AppImage file, or run it from the terminal:

./yuzu-mainline-*.AppImage

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(Optional) Install Dependencies for Better Performance

Run this command in your terminal to install some needed packages:

sudo apt install -y libssl-dev qtbase5-dev cmake build-essential libboost-all-dev

Install Yuzu via Flatpak on Linux

Step 1: Make Sure Flatpak is Installed

Most modern Linux distros support Flatpak. If it’s not already installed, open your terminal and run:

sudo apt install flatpak

For Fedora-based systems:

sudo dnf install flatpak

 Step 2: Add the Flathub Repository

This step is required if it’s your first time using Flatpak:

flatpak remote-add –if-not-exists flathub https://flathub.org/repo/flathub.flatpakrepo

 Step 3: Install Yuzu via Flatpak

Now, install Yuzu with this command:

flatpak install flathub org.yuzu_emu.yuzu

 Step 4: Run Yuzu

After installation, you can launch Yuzu with:

flatpak run org.yuzu_emu.yuzu

Or find Yuzu in your application menu and click to open it like any other app.