Install Waycar on your Host

Run one command on each machine you want to use with Waycar. It finds herdr or tmux, installs the Waycar host tools, and offers to show a Pairing Code so you can add the machine in the app. The same command works for herdr, tmux, or both.

Run the install command

1. Open a terminal on the Host. Make sure you have what Waycar needs, including Node 20 or later.

2. Run:

   curl -fsSL https://waycar.dev/install.sh | sh

3. When it asks to show a pairing QR code, press Return (or type y). Then pair with the Pairing Code.

You can also copy the command from the Add Your First Host steps in the app. Tap it to copy; a Mac signed in to the same Apple Account can paste it.

What does it install?

The command downloads the Waycar package, checks its SHA-256 checksum, and unpacks it to ~/.local/share/waycar/plugin. Then:

• With herdr on your PATH, it links the Waycar plugin into herdr.
• Without herdr but with tmux 3.2 or later, it sets Waycar up for tmux. With an older tmux and no herdr, it stops and asks you to install one of them.
• With tmux 3.2 or later, it links the waycar command at ~/.local/bin/waycar and installs Waycar hooks for Claude Code, Codex, omp, pi and opencode, so tmux agents report their status. See Waycar hooks for tmux.
• With opencode on your PATH, it installs a small opencode extension that Chat Mode uses.

If ~/.local/bin isn’t on your PATH, the command tells you to add it.

herdr and tmux

On herdr, the Pairing Code opens in a herdr popup. On tmux, it shows right in the terminal where you ran the command. To set Waycar up for tmux on a machine that also has herdr, add --tmux:

curl -fsSL https://waycar.dev/install.sh | sh -s -- --tmux

To skip the agent hooks and the opencode extension, add --no-hooks. You can add the hooks later with waycar hooks install. On a herdr Host without tmux 3.2 or later, there’s no waycar link; see The waycar command on your Host.

Install options

Flags go after sh -s --, as in the --tmux example above. Environment variables go right before sh in the install command, for example WAYCAR_NO_PAIR=1 sh.

Option	What it does
--tmux	Sets Waycar up for tmux even when herdr is installed.
--no-hooks	Skips the agent status hooks and the opencode Chat Prompt extension.
WAYCAR_NO_PAIR	Set to anything to skip the pairing prompt, for scripted or dotfiles installs.
WAYCAR_PLUGIN_DIR	Installs to this absolute folder instead of ~/.local/share/waycar/plugin. It can’t contain a double quote, backslash or newline, and Waycar won’t replace a folder that holds something else.
WAYCAR_INSTALL_BASE_URL	Downloads the package from this address instead of https://waycar.dev.
WAYCAR_PLUGIN_SOURCE	Installs from a local plugin folder (a checkout’s plugin/ or an unpacked package) instead of downloading. For testing.

Good to know

• Install agents first. Installed one later? Run the install command again so it gets its hooks.
• Codex asks you to review new hooks once, on its /hooks screen, before they turn on.
• Running the command again updates Waycar and keeps your pairing and notification keys. See Update Waycar on your Host.
• For mosh, also install mosh-server on the Host. See mosh.
• The command stopped with an error or printed a warning? See The install command fails.
• To uninstall, see Remove Waycar from a Host.