# How to install Apache Kafka on Linux

*Install and run Kafka on Linux*

This guide walks you through installing Apache Kafka with ZooKeeper on Linux. By the end, you'll have a working single-node Kafka cluster for development.

**What you'll learn:**
- How to install Java 11 (required dependency)
- How to download and configure Kafka
- How to start ZooKeeper and Kafka
- How to set up your PATH for CLI access

> **ZooKeeper vs KRaft**
> This guide uses ZooKeeper mode for maximum compatibility. For KRaft mode (without ZooKeeper), see the [Linux KRaft installation guide](https://www.conduktor.io/kafka/how-to-install-apache-kafka-on-linux-without-zookeeper-kraft-mode).

## Installation overview

![Linux Kafka install flow: install Java 11, download Kafka, start ZooKeeper, start Kafka, configure PATH](https://www.conduktor.io/assets/kafka/diagrams/how-to-install-apache-kafka-on-linux.svg)

```mermaid
flowchart LR
    A[Install Java 11] --> B[Download Kafka]
    B --> C[Start ZooKeeper]
    C --> D[Start Kafka]
    D --> E[Configure PATH]
```

## Step 1: Install Java JDK 11

Kafka requires Java 11 or later.

**For Ubuntu/Debian:**

```bash
wget -O- https://apt.corretto.aws/corretto.key | sudo apt-key add -
sudo add-apt-repository 'deb https://apt.corretto.aws stable main'
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y java-11-amazon-corretto-jdk
```

**For other distributions:**

Visit the [Amazon Corretto 11 Linux install page](https://docs.aws.amazon.com/corretto/latest/corretto-11-ug/linux-info.html) for RPM, Alpine, and other packages.

Verify the installation:

```bash
java -version
```

Expected output:
```
openjdk version "11.0.10" 2021-01-19 LTS
OpenJDK Runtime Environment Corretto-11.0.10.9.1 (build 11.0.10+9-LTS)
OpenJDK 64-Bit Server VM Corretto-11.0.10.9.1 (build 11.0.10+9-LTS, mixed mode)
```

## Step 2: Download and extract Kafka

```bash
wget https://archive.apache.org/dist/kafka/3.0.0/kafka_2.13-3.0.0.tgz
tar -xzf kafka_2.13-3.0.0.tgz
mv kafka_2.13-3.0.0 ~
```

Or download manually from [kafka.apache.org/downloads](https://kafka.apache.org/downloads) (choose the latest binary with Scala 2.13).

## Step 3: Start ZooKeeper

ZooKeeper has to be running before Kafka starts.

Open a terminal and run:

```bash
~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/bin/zookeeper-server-start.sh ~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/config/zookeeper.properties
```

> Add the `-daemon` flag to run ZooKeeper in the background.

Keep this terminal window open.

## Step 4: Start Kafka

Open a **new terminal window** and run:

```bash
~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/bin/kafka-server-start.sh ~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/config/server.properties
```

Keep this terminal window open. Kafka is now running at `localhost:9092`.

## Step 5: Configure PATH

Add Kafka binaries to your PATH for convenient access.

Edit your shell configuration file (`~/.bashrc` or `~/.zshrc`):

```bash
export PATH="$PATH:$HOME/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/bin"
```

Reload your shell:

```bash
source ~/.bashrc
```

Verify the setup:

```bash
kafka-topics.sh --version
```

## Optional: Change data directories

By default, Kafka stores data in `/tmp`, which may be cleared on restart.

**Change ZooKeeper data directory:**

Edit `~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/config/zookeeper.properties`:
```
dataDir=/your/path/to/data/zookeeper
```

**Change Kafka data directory:**

Edit `~/kafka_2.13-3.0.0/config/server.properties`:
```
log.dirs=/your/path/to/data/kafka
```

> **See it in practice with Conduktor**
> [Conduktor Console](https://docs.conduktor.io/guide/conduktor-in-production/admin/configure-clusters) can connect to your local Kafka cluster at `localhost:9092` for visual topic management.

## Next steps

- [Linux KRaft installation](https://www.conduktor.io/kafka/how-to-install-apache-kafka-on-linux-without-zookeeper-kraft-mode) for a ZooKeeper-free setup
- [CLI tutorials](https://www.conduktor.io/kafka/kafka-cli-tutorial) to create topics and produce messages
- [Docker setup](https://www.conduktor.io/kafka/how-to-start-kafka-using-docker) for containerized Kafka