How to Install Ubuntu 26.04 LTS (Step by Step for Beginners)

This tutorial takes about 12 minutes to complete.

This guide shows how to install Ubuntu 26.04 LTS on your PC, from downloading the ISO to your first login, and which installer options to pick as a beginner and why. It follows the video, with the exact keys, button names and options from the recording.

New to Ventoy? The Ventoy page explains what it is, and the full Ventoy walkthrough shows the Windows steps in more detail. If you want to make the same USB from a Linux distribution instead of Windows, see the related tutorials at the bottom of this page. Looking for Ubuntu 26.10 instead? There is a separate guide for Ubuntu 26.10.

Warning: this is a fresh install. Erase disk and install Ubuntu wipes the whole drive, and there is no disk partitioning or dual boot. Back up anything important first.

Before you start

You need a PC and a USB stick or external storage drive of 8 GB or larger. Ubuntu 26.04 requires a minimum of 25 GB of free space. You will also need a second computer, or the same PC while it still runs its current system, to download the ISO and prepare the USB drive. The video does this part on Windows 11, because many people switching to Linux are coming from Windows.

A wired internet connection is the easiest and most reliable connection, because Ubuntu can download updates during the install. Wi-Fi also works, and you just connect to it on the installer screen. If for some reason Wi-Fi is not working for you, use a wired connection instead.

Jump to a chapter in the video: Intro · Get the ISO · Ventoy USB · Copy ISO · Boot menu · Secure Boot fix · Install Ubuntu · First boot

Step 1: Download the Ubuntu 26.04 ISO

Open your browser and go to releases.ubuntu.com/resolute. This is the official Ubuntu 26.04 link to download the ISO. Look for the desktop image.

If you are using an Intel or an AMD CPU, use the 64-bit PC (AMD64) desktop image. Your download will begin. The video fast-forwards through the wait. When the download is finished, go to your Downloads folder and you should see your Ubuntu 26.04 ISO.

Step 2: Download Ventoy

To put the ISO on the USB drive, the video uses Ventoy. It is free, and you can keep as many ISOs on one stick as you like, so the same drive can hold Ubuntu and other systems later.

Go to ventoy.net and click Download. Scroll down, find the Ventoy Windows .zip file and click it. Your download should start shortly.

Step 3: Extract Ventoy and open Ventoy2Disk

Go back to your Downloads folder and close the browser. The Ventoy .zip file needs to be unzipped, so right-click it, choose Extract All and then click Extract. Now the file has been extracted.

Go into the Ventoy folder and double-click Ventoy2Disk. Click Yes to provide administrator access, and now the Ventoy application is running.

Step 4: Select your USB drive

Ventoy should automatically detect your USB or external storage device. If it does not, click the green refresh button. If you still do not see your device, open the Options menu and click Show All Devices. This shows every single drive on your PC, and it is unchecked by default.

Warning: make sure not to format your main drive. Make sure you select the correct external USB storage drive. Also make a backup of all the important files on that drive first, because it will be formatted and erased completely.

Step 5: Turn on Secure Boot Support

In the Options menu, make sure Secure Boot Support is selected. You may have issues with Secure Boot the first time you boot into the menu from this drive, and step 9 shows how to fix it if that happens.

Step 6: Install Ventoy on the USB drive

Now install Ventoy on your drive: click Install. A warning says the device will be formatted and all the data will be lost. Make sure you have a backup of anything important, then click Yes.

A second window confirms the same thing, that the device will be formatted and all the data will be lost. Click Yes again.

When it is finished you will see Congratulations, Ventoy has been successfully installed to the device. Click OK and close the window.

Step 7: Copy the Ubuntu 26.04 ISO to your Ventoy drive

Open your file manager and go to your Downloads folder. Find your Ubuntu 26.04 ISO, right-click it and click Copy. Scroll down until you see your Ventoy drive and paste the ISO there. Wait until the copy has finished, which takes a little while, and then close the window.

Tip: for blazing fast speeds and more storage space, use an external NVMe storage drive. The NVMe enclosure tutorial shows how to build your own NVMe external storage drive with an NVMe enclosure, and the Orico M.2 NVMe enclosure page has the product details.

Step 8: Boot from the USB with the boot menu key

Shut down your computer, then reboot into the BIOS or boot menu. Plug the USB drive into the PC you are installing on, then restart and tap the boot menu key right as it powers on. The key depends on the brand. Here are some common keys to open the boot menu or the BIOS setup.

Keys vary by model. The table lists the common keys, and you can also double-check your manufacturer's documentation. If yours does not work, check the manual of your computer or motherboard.

Tap the key, do not hold it. Tap it repeatedly right after you press the power button, with the USB drive already plugged in. The boot menu lets you pick the USB drive once, and the BIOS setup key opens the firmware settings, where you can change the boot order.

Acer: on some models the F12 boot menu must first be enabled in the BIOS. Press F2, go to Main, set F12 Boot Menu to Enabled, then save and restart. Lenovo: many models also have a small Novo button that opens a boot menu.

If the key does nothing: fast boot can use up your keystrokes. On a Windows PC, hold Shift and click Restart, then choose Use a device and pick your USB drive. To open the BIOS setup that way, go to Troubleshoot, Advanced options, then UEFI Firmware Settings.

Once you are in your boot menu, select your Ventoy drive to boot from. In the video it is the second option in the list. Press Enter.

The boot menu keys for Dell, HP, Lenovo, ASUS, Acer, MSI and Gigabyte are the ones said in the video. The BIOS setup keys, the Novo button and the Acer setting come from the manufacturers' support pages and other published lists: Dell, HP, MSI, Acer and the Gigabyte BIOS manual.

Step 9: If you get a Secure Boot error

You may see the infamous Secure Boot error, which reads "Verification failed: (0x1A) Security Violation". If you do, the fix only takes a minute. Press Enter for OK.

When you see "Press any key to perform MOK management", press Enter. Scroll down to Enroll key from disk and press Enter. Make sure to select VTOYEFI and press Enter. Then scroll down until you see ENROLL_THIS_KEY_IN_MOKMANAGER.cer and press Enter.

Go to Continue and press Enter. You want to select Yes to enroll the keys. Then you can reboot. From now on you will never have to do this process again.

Step 10: Boot the Ventoy drive and start Ubuntu

Now you have successfully booted the Ventoy disk, and it lists the ISO files on your drive. Select the Ubuntu 26.04 ISO and press Enter. Boot in normal mode and press Enter again.

Select Try or Install Ubuntu and wait for Ubuntu to start.

When Ubuntu has started from the installation media, you can test it before you install it. Close the installation window to try Ubuntu from the disk. You can open the web browser, and if you want to test any applications, click Show apps to see all the applications that come with it. To get back to your regular screen, click at the top of the screen. To get back to the installation media, go to the top of the screen where it says Install and double-click it.

Step 11: Choose your installer options

The installer asks one question per screen, and you click Next after each one. These are the choices from the video and the reason for each.

Language and accessibility

Choose your language. The video selects English. You can customize Ubuntu to your needs before setting it up, so if you need any of the accessibility options you can select them here. The video leaves them as default. Click Next.

Keyboard layout and location

For the keyboard the video selects English (US). Select the location you prefer and click Next.

Internet connection

Connect to the internet, wired if you can. The wired connection is needed to install extra software packages. Click Next.

If you see a message that an update is available for this installer, you can skip it.

Type of installation

For beginners, the video recommends Interactive installation. This guides you step by step through the installation process. Click Next.

Applications

If you just want the basic applications, use Default selection. If you want the full desktop experience with Office tools and other utilities, click Extended selection. The video picks Extended selection. Click Next.

Proprietary software and media formats

The video recommends checking Install third-party software for graphics and Wi-Fi hardware. This should download the necessary drivers for your video cards and your Wi-Fi adapters, so if your Wi-Fi was not working before, it should work after installing them. Also check Download and install support for additional media formats, which makes sure you have the best compatibility with different media formats. Click Next.

Disk setup

Remember, this erases the whole disk. If you have anything important on it, back it up. There is no dual boot installation here, it is a totally fresh install. Select Erase disk and install Ubuntu and click Next.

Now select the drive to install on. The list shows all the drives available, and your Ventoy USB drive is also in it, so make sure you select the correct drive because it will erase everything. Click Next.

Encryption

The video selects no encryption. For advanced users, you can enable encryption with a password to protect your files. Click Next.

Your account

Here you create your user account. Enter your username, and if you want to you can change the host name. Then enter a secure password. The video likes to require a password when it logs in, and it leaves Active Directory unchecked, which is for advanced users. Click Next.

Region

Select your region and click Next.

Review and install

This is a summary of all the options you chose. Click Install.

Step 12: Finish the install and set up Ubuntu

The installation takes a while, so be patient. The video fast-forwards through it. When it says Ubuntu 26.04 is installed and ready to use, click Restart now. Remove the installation medium, then press Enter. Ubuntu should boot automatically.

Log in and enter your password. You have now successfully installed Ubuntu 26.04. There are a few things to set up, so click Next at the top to start.

For Location Services, the video leaves it off, but if you want to turn it on for applications that need your location, you can. Click Next. If you want to share your data with Ubuntu, you can check these options. The video leaves them off. Click Next.

The video likes dark mode and selects blue as the color. Click Next, and then you are finished.

Optional: change the screen resolution

If you want to change the display, right-click the desktop, go to Display Settings and open Resolution. In the video the resolution is changed to 4K, which is 3840 by 2160, and the scale is set to 150 percent so everything is easy to see. Click Apply and then Keep Changes. Choose the resolution and scale that suit your own screen.

You can go to the bottom of the screen to see all the applications that were installed. You have now downloaded the Ubuntu 26.04 ISO, made a Ventoy USB, booted it with your boot menu key, installed Ubuntu with the Erase disk option and finished the first-boot setup. In the next video you will see how to install local AI on Ubuntu 26.04.

Related tutorials

How to Install Ubuntu 26.10 (Step by Step for Beginners): the same install for Ubuntu 26.10.

How to Install Ventoy on a Drive from Windows 11: the Ventoy steps used here, in detail.

How to Install Ventoy on Ubuntu 26.04: make the same USB from Ubuntu.

How to Install Ventoy on Ubuntu 24.04: make the same USB from Ubuntu 24.04.

How to Install Ventoy on Debian 13: the same install on Debian 13.

How to Install Ventoy on Arch Linux: the same install on Arch Linux.

How to Install Ventoy on CachyOS: the same install on CachyOS.

How to Install Ventoy on Bazzite: the same install on Bazzite.

Orico M.2 NVMe Enclosure Unboxing, Setup & Speed Test: build a fast external drive for your Ventoy setup.