How to Install ComfyUI on Linux

There are two main ways to install ComfyUI on Linux:

1. Install using Comfy CLI (Recommended) - The simplest and fastest method
2. Install from ComfyUI source code - Traditional manual installation method

This tutorial will cover both installation methods in detail, with a focus on recommending Comfy CLI installation.

Method 1: Install ComfyUI using Comfy CLI (Recommended)

Comfy CLI is the official command-line tool provided by ComfyUI, which greatly simplifies the ComfyUI installation and management process.

Step 1: System Environment Preparation

1. Ensure Python Environment

ComfyUI requires Python 3.9 or higher. Check your Python version:

python3 --version 

If Python is not installed or the version is too low, install it following these steps:

Ubuntu/Debian systems:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install python3 python3-pip python3-venv

CentOS/RHEL/Fedora systems:

# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install python3 python3-pip
# Or Fedora
sudo dnf install python3 python3-pip

Arch Linux:

sudo pacman -S python python-pip

2. Install Git (if not installed)

# Ubuntu/Debian
sudo apt install git
 
# CentOS/RHEL
sudo yum install git
 
# Fedora
sudo dnf install git
 
# Arch Linux
sudo pacman -S git

3. Create Virtual Environment (Recommended)

Using a virtual environment can avoid package conflict issues:

# Create a virtual environment named comfy-env
python3 -m venv comfy-env
 
# Activate the virtual environment
source comfy-env/bin/activate

Note: You need to activate the virtual environment each time before using ComfyUI. To exit the virtual environment, use the deactivate command.

Step 2: Install Comfy CLI

Install comfy-cli in the activated virtual environment:

pip install comfy-cli

Configure Command Line Auto-completion (Optional)

To get a better user experience, you can enable command line auto-completion:

comfy --install-completion

Step 3: Install ComfyUI

Installing ComfyUI with comfy-cli is very simple, requiring just one command:

comfy install

This command will:

• Download and install the latest version of ComfyUI
• Automatically install ComfyUI-Manager (node manager)
• Configure basic project structure

Installation Options

You can use the following options to customize the installation:

# Install to default location ~/comfy
comfy install
 
# Install to specified directory
comfy --workspace=/path/to/your/workspace install
 
# Operate on existing ComfyUI in current directory (mainly for updates)
comfy --here install
 
# Operate on most recently executed or installed ComfyUI
comfy --recent install
 
# Install only ComfyUI, without ComfyUI-Manager
comfy install --skip-manager

Check Installation Path

You can use the following commands to check the current workspace:

# Check default workspace
comfy which
 
# Check workspace for specified options
comfy --recent which
comfy --here which

Step 4: Install GPU Support

NVIDIA GPU (CUDA)

If you’re using an NVIDIA GPU, you need to install CUDA support:

# Install PyTorch with CUDA support
pip install torch torchvision torchaudio --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cu124

Note: Please choose the corresponding PyTorch version based on your CUDA version. Visit the PyTorch website for the latest installation commands.

AMD GPU (ROCm)

If you’re using an AMD GPU:

# Install PyTorch with ROCm support
pip install torch torchvision torchaudio --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/rocm6.0

CPU Only

If running with CPU only:

# Install CPU version of PyTorch
pip install torch torchvision torchaudio --index-url https://download.pytorch.org/whl/cpu

Step 5: Launch ComfyUI

After installation is complete, launch ComfyUI:

comfy launch

By default, ComfyUI will run on http://localhost:8188.

Common Launch Options

# Run in background
comfy launch --background
 
# Specify listen address and port
comfy launch -- --listen 0.0.0.0 --port 8080
 
# Use CPU mode
comfy launch -- --cpu
 
# Low VRAM mode
comfy launch -- --lowvram
 
# Stop background instance
comfy stop

Method 2: Install from ComfyUI Source Code

If you prefer the traditional installation method, you can also install directly from source code:

1. Clone ComfyUI Repository

git clone https://github.com/comfyanonymous/ComfyUI.git
cd ComfyUI

2. Create Virtual Environment

python3 -m venv venv
source venv/bin/activate

3. Install Dependencies

pip install -r requirements.txt

4. Install GPU Support

Install the corresponding PyTorch version based on your GPU type (refer to the steps above).

5. Launch ComfyUI

python main.py

Post-Installation Configuration

Install Base Models

ComfyUI requires base models to function properly. You can:

1. Download models from Hugging Face
2. Place model files in the models/checkpoints/ directory
3. Download using comfy-cli:

comfy model download --url https://huggingface.co/runwayml/stable-diffusion-v1-5/resolve/main/v1-5-pruned.safetensors --relative-path models/checkpoints

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

1. Permission Issues

If you encounter permission issues, ensure you have sufficient permissions to write to the installation directory:

# If using default directory, ensure ~/comfy directory is writable
ls -la ~/comfy

2. Python Version Issues

Ensure you’re using the correct Python version:

python3 --version  # Should be 3.9 or higher

3. Network Connection Issues

If downloads are slow, try using a domestic mirror:

pip install -i https://pypi.tuna.tsinghua.edu.cn/simple comfy-cli

4. GPU Detection Issues

Check if GPU is properly recognized:

import torch
print(torch.cuda.is_available())  # NVIDIA GPU
print(torch.version.cuda)         # CUDA version

Summary

Using Comfy CLI is the best way to install ComfyUI on Linux, offering:

• Simple installation process: Complete installation with one command
• Complete dependency management: Automatically handles all dependencies
• Multi-workspace support: Can manage multiple ComfyUI instances
• Cross-platform compatibility: Works properly on Windows, macOS, and Linux

If you’re new to ComfyUI, we strongly recommend using Comfy CLI for installation and management.

Next Steps

After installation, you can:

• 📖 Check the Complete Comfy CLI User Guide to learn more advanced features
• 🎯 Start your first ComfyUI workflow
• 🔧 Install and manage custom nodes
• 📦 Download and manage models

Related Links

• Complete Comfy CLI User Guide
• Comfy CLI GitHub Repository
• Comfy CLI Official Documentation
• ComfyUI Official Repository
• PyTorch Installation Guide