How to Install Omarchy on Arch Linux: Complete Setup Guide (2026)

✅ Tested on Omarchy v3.8.2 · Arch Linux · Hyprland — Last updated: June 2026

Arch Linux gives you total control, but that comes with a cost: configuring a complete developer workstation from scratch takes days. Omarchy collapses that into a single command. Read the Omarchy review to understand what the setup includes before installing. You get a fully-configured Hyprland desktop with Neovim, Chromium, Docker, and the rest of DHH's opinionated toolkit — ready to use immediately after install.

This guide covers both installation methods: the ISO method (recommended for a dedicated machine) and the manual method (for dual-boot or users who want to start from a vanilla Arch install).

Prerequisites

• A machine with UEFI firmware (Secure Boot and TPM must be disabled)
• A USB drive of at least 4 GB for the installer
• A wired keyboard or USB dongle keyboard — Bluetooth keyboards cannot enter the LUKS encryption password at boot
• A stable internet connection during installation (wired recommended)
• For ISO method: a dedicated drive (single-disk dual-boot is not supported; two physical disks required)
• For manual method: a fresh Arch Linux base system configured as described below

Step 1 — Download the Omarchy ISO

Head to omarchy.org and download the latest ISO. As of this writing, the current release is v3.8.2. Verify the checksum after downloading:

sha256sum omarchy-3.8.2-x86_64.iso
# Compare against the checksum listed on omarchy.org

Step 2 — Create a Bootable USB Drive

Write the ISO to a USB stick. The drive will be completely wiped in the process.

# Linux — replace /dev/sdX with your USB device (check with lsblk first)
lsblk
sudo dd if=omarchy-3.8.2-x86_64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M status=progress oflag=sync

# Alternative: use the caligula GUI on Linux
# On Windows or macOS: use balenaEtcher (https://etcher.balena.io)

Wait for the dd command to complete and return to the prompt before unplugging the USB stick.

Step 3 — Disable Secure Boot and TPM in BIOS

Omarchy will not install with Secure Boot or TPM active. The exact steps depend on your firmware, but the general approach is:

1. Reboot and press the BIOS key at startup (Del, F2, F12, or Esc depending on the manufacturer)
2. Navigate to the Security or Boot section
3. Set Secure Boot → Disabled
4. Set TPM → Disabled (may be listed as PTT, fTPM, or Trusted Platform Module)
5. Save and exit (F10)

On ThinkPads, Secure Boot is under Security → Secure Boot. On ASUS boards, under Boot → Secure Boot Control. On Dell systems, under Secure Boot → Secure Boot Enable.

Step 4 — Boot and Run the Installer

Insert the USB stick, boot from it (press the boot menu key — typically F11 or F12), and select the Omarchy USB entry.

The installer will ask a series of configuration questions:

• Target drive: select the disk to install on — it will be completely wiped
• Hostname: your machine name (e.g., devbox)
• Username: your user account name
• Password: used for both the user account and the LUKS disk encryption

Omarchy enables full-disk encryption (LUKS) by default. If you have a specific reason to skip encryption, press Ctrl+C when prompted to confirm disk formatting — this disables encryption for that install. This is the rare exception.

Installation takes 2–10 minutes depending on your hardware. When it completes, remove the USB stick and reboot.

Step 5 — First Boot into Hyprland

At the LUKS password prompt, type your encryption password using your wired keyboard. Bluetooth keyboards will not work here — the Bluetooth stack is not active until after the system decrypts and boots.

After login, Hyprland starts automatically. The desktop is dark and minimal by design — everything is keyboard-driven. Press Super+Return to open the Alacritty terminal and confirm the system is running:

omarchy --version
# Omarchy v3.8.2

uname -r
# 6.x.x-arch1-1

hyprctl version

Method 2: Manual Installation on Existing Arch

Use this method if you need dual-boot support (requires two physical disks) or prefer to control the base Arch install yourself. Install Arch Linux first with the exact settings below, then run the Omarchy installer on top. Deviating from these settings — especially the filesystem type or bootloader — will break Omarchy.

WiFi During Arch Installation

If you're on WiFi, configure the connection before running archinstall:

iwctl
station wlan0 scan
station wlan0 get-networks
station wlan0 connect "YourNetworkName"
exit

ping -c 3 archlinux.org   # verify connectivity

archinstall Configuration

Run archinstall and configure each section exactly as follows:

Complete the archinstall setup, let it install, then reboot. Log in as your (non-root) user.

Running the Omarchy Installer

curl -fsSL https://omarchy.org/install | bash

The script prompts for your sudo password, then your name and email for git configuration. It then pulls and configures all packages and dotfiles. Allow 5–30 minutes depending on your internet speed. Do not interrupt the process — if it fails midway, re-run the same command and it will resume.

Post-Installation: First Steps

Once Omarchy is running, run these commands before starting any real work:

# Pull the latest Omarchy configs and packages
omarchy update

# Update all Arch system packages
sudo pacman -Syu

# See all available Omarchy subcommands
omarchy help

NVIDIA GPU Setup

Omarchy does not install NVIDIA proprietary drivers automatically. If your machine has an NVIDIA GPU:

sudo pacman -S nvidia nvidia-utils nvidia-settings
sudo reboot

# After reboot, verify driver is loaded
nvidia-smi

AMD GPUs work out of the box via the kernel's built-in amdgpu driver. Intel integrated graphics require no additional setup.

Essential Hyprland Keybindings

Hyprland is entirely keyboard-driven. Learn these before your first session — you'll use them constantly:

All keybindings are defined in ~/.config/hypr/hyprland.conf and are fully editable.

Customizing Omarchy

Omarchy's configurations live in standard dotfile locations — nothing is hidden:

~/.config/hypr/       # Hyprland: keybindings, animations, window rules
~/.config/alacritty/  # Terminal: font, colors, padding
~/.config/nvim/       # Neovim configuration
~/.config/waybar/     # Status bar: modules, layout, styling
~/.config/rofi/       # App launcher appearance

The omarchy unified CLI manages Omarchy-specific operations:

omarchy update    # pull latest Omarchy config updates
omarchy theme     # switch between bundled themes
omarchy help      # list all available subcommands

Because Omarchy is Arch underneath, you have access to the full AUR and official Arch repositories. Install any package with sudo pacman -S package or yay -S aur-package. For SSH key setup and remote access configuration, see the SSH setup guide. For dotfile management across machines, the post-install dotfiles section applies directly to Omarchy too.

Troubleshooting

The installer fails with a "Secure Boot is enabled" error

Reboot into BIOS firmware (press Del or F2 at startup), navigate to the Security section, and set Secure Boot to Disabled. On systems with Windows pre-installed, you may need to clear Secure Boot keys before disabling it. Some ASUS boards require entering the BIOS Setup first, then going to Boot → Secure Boot → Key Management → Clear Secure Boot Keys. Save changes and retry the installer.

My Bluetooth keyboard doesn't work at the encryption password screen

This is expected. The Bluetooth stack initializes only after LUKS decrypts the drive and the OS boots. Use a wired USB keyboard or a keyboard with a USB 2.4GHz wireless dongle (not Bluetooth) to enter the encryption password. Once the system is booted, Bluetooth works normally for everything else.

How do I connect to WiFi during Arch manual installation?

From the Arch live ISO shell, run iwctl to enter the wireless config tool. Then: station wlan0 scan to scan for networks, station wlan0 get-networks to list them, station wlan0 connect "NetworkName" to connect (enter password when prompted). Type exit to leave iwctl. Confirm connectivity with ping -c 3 archlinux.org before proceeding with archinstall.

Omarchy won't boot after installation — black screen

Switch to a virtual terminal with Ctrl+Alt+F2, log in, and inspect the Hyprland log: cat ~/.local/share/hyprland/hyprland.log | tail -50. The most common causes are missing GPU drivers (install nvidia for NVIDIA cards, or verify AMD with lsmod | grep amdgpu) or a corrupted Hyprland config. Reset to Omarchy defaults with omarchy update.

How do I update Omarchy after installation?

Run omarchy update to pull the latest Omarchy configuration changes and packages, then sudo pacman -Syu to update the underlying Arch system. Omarchy releases updates regularly — check the GitHub releases page for changelogs before major updates.