Docker / Containers

docker: command not found

Covers: command not found docker · bash docker command not found · Docker not in PATH — May 2026

🐧 Ubuntu / Debian 🎩 CentOS / RHEL 🍎 macOS 🪟 Windows (WSL)

$ docker run hello-world
bash: docker: command not found

Two Different Problems

This error has two distinct causes — check which applies to you:

Docker is not installed — the most common case on a fresh VPS or CI runner
Docker is installed but your user isn't in the docker group — running sudo docker works but docker alone fails

⚡ Quick Fix — Install Docker on Ubuntu/Debian

# Official install script (fastest method):
curl -fsSL https://get.docker.com | sh

# Verify it worked:
docker --version

Manual Install on Ubuntu/Debian

# Add Docker's official GPG key and repo:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y ca-certificates curl
sudo install -m 0755 -d /etc/apt/keyrings
sudo curl -fsSL https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu/gpg \
  -o /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc
sudo chmod a+r /etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc

echo "deb [arch=$(dpkg --print-architecture) \
  signed-by=/etc/apt/keyrings/docker.asc] \
  https://download.docker.com/linux/ubuntu \
  $(. /etc/os-release && echo "$VERSION_CODENAME") stable" | \
  sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/docker.list > /dev/null

sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io

Install on CentOS / RHEL / Fedora

# CentOS 7 / RHEL 7:
sudo yum install -y yum-utils
sudo yum-config-manager --add-repo \
  https://download.docker.com/linux/centos/docker-ce.repo
sudo yum install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io
sudo systemctl start docker && sudo systemctl enable docker

# CentOS 8+ / RHEL 8+ / Fedora:
sudo dnf install -y docker-ce docker-ce-cli containerd.io
sudo systemctl start docker && sudo systemctl enable docker

Fix: docker Works with sudo But Not Without

If sudo docker works but docker alone gives "command not found" or "permission denied", your user isn't in the docker group:

# Add your user to the docker group:
sudo usermod -aG docker $USER

# Apply the group change (log out and back in, or use newgrp):
newgrp docker

# Verify:
docker run hello-world

macOS: Install Docker Desktop

Docker Engine doesn't run natively on macOS. You need Docker Desktop:

# Install via Homebrew:
brew install --cask docker

# Then open Docker Desktop from Applications and wait for it to start.
# After it's running, the docker CLI will work in your terminal.