0. What is this article about?
NXP's software development environment for microcontrollers, MCUXpresso , and its SDK are provided free of charge, and anyone can easily install it and start running sample code right away .
This blog post will show you step-by-step how to install the MCUXpresso IDE and SDK.
* In this article, we will use FRDM-MCXA153 as the example board.
We have released a video explaining the installation procedure. You can watch it from this link .
table of contents
- 0. What is this article about?
- 1. What is MCUXpresso IDE?
- 2. Log in to nxp.com
- 3. Installing MCUXpresso IDE
- 4. Installing the SDK
- 5. Bonus: To test the operation of the circuit board as is...
- Reference materials
1. What is MCUXpresso IDE?
The various sample codes for general-purpose microcontrollers provided by NXP are designed to run on MCUXpresso , a software development environment provided free of charge by NXP.
MCUXpresso comes in two versions: " MCUXpresso IDE (hereinafter referred to as IDE)" and " MCUXpresso VisualStudio Code (hereinafter referred to as VSC)." IDE is an application that combines all functions into one. VSC is provided as a plugin for VisualStudio Code provided by Microsoft.
In this blog, we will introduce how to install the IDE and SDK .
The IDE runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux, and can be operated with the same user interface on all operating systems.
To try out the sample code that runs on MCUXpresso, you must first install the IDE and then install the SDK for the microcontroller/board (target) that you want to run the code on.
IDE stands for Integrated Development Environment , and is an integrated development environment application. This application includes an editor for editing source code, a toolchain such as a compiler and linker, and software that organizes code into projects and manages them together with various settings.
SDK stands for Software Development Kit and contains the driver code and configuration information required for each microcontroller chip. The SDK must be installed for each microcontroller chip or board (target) you wish to create.
Let's take a step-by-step guide on how to install these.
This article uses macOS as an example, but the installation can be done on Windows and Linux using almost the same steps.
2. Log in to nxp.com
To perform the following steps, you must first log in to nxp.com .
If you don't have an nxp.com account yet, please register first and then log in.
3. Installing MCUXpresso IDE
Download the IDE installer from the MCUXpresso IDE download site . This download requires user registration on nxp.com, so if you haven't done so yet, please do so in advance.
Go to the MCUXpresso IDE download site and press the "Download" button .
The page will scroll and a link button to the download page will appear. Press this "Download" button .
Click the MCUXpresso IDE link .
The terms of use will be displayed. If there are no problems, press the "I Agree" button .
Select the installer that matches your operating system and click the link .
If you are downloading a Linux installer, download the file with the extension ".deb.bin". If you are downloading a Windows installer, download the file with the extension ".exe".
The extension for macOS is “.pkg,” but note there are 2 types: Download “macOSX - aarch64” for a Mac equipped with an M1 or later M series (Arm) processor, or “macOSX - 86-64” for a Mac equipped with an Intel CPU.
* If the version number is different, please adjust as needed.
Once the download is complete, launch the installer and follow the instructions to complete the installation.
4. Installing the SDK
4.1 Starting the MCUXpresso IDE and the Workspace
Once the installation of MCUXpresso IDE is complete, start MCUXpresso IDE .
In macOS, after startup, it will ask you where you want to set your workspace ( around 2:49 in the guide video ). A workspace is a folder where you perform your work.
By default, a new folder will be created inside the "Documents" folder within the user's folder.
* The image below shows an example of the default settings. In this example, the user is named "demo," so the path is specified as "/Users/demo/...".
You can create a workspace (folder) anywhere within your user folder. In the example below, a folder named "mcux" is created within the user folder, and a workspace named "project0" is created inside it.
4.2 SDK Installation Procedure
Once you launch the application (after launching and specifying the workspace), a welcome screen like the one shown below will appear . Click on "Download and Install SDKs" within this screen.
After querying the server for a while, the display will look like the one below. In this default display state, the right and bottom parts of the display are hidden, so you will need to enlarge the window size or scroll the display as needed.
Expand the window size to secure the display area
Enter the model number of the board or microcontroller you are using in the search field at the top right of the display.
Here, we will use the FRDM-MCXA153 as an example, so we entered "A153". As a result, the FRDM-MCXA153 board was displayed as a candidate.
When you select the FRDM-MCXA153 board , the "Install" button will be highlighted, so click on it.
A dialog box will appear during installation.
Once the installation is complete, you will be returned to the welcome screen.
Close this display by clicking the tab's close button .
This will be the default display state of the IDE.
The installed SDKs are displayed in the Installed SDKs tab in the bottom center pane.
4.3 Ready!
Now you're ready to go!
In the "Project Explorer" in the upper left pane, you can create a new project or import and run a project from the SDK, GitHub, or a downloaded project.
5. Bonus: To test the operation of the circuit board as is...
The SDK includes sample code .
So far we have installed the SDK using the FRDM-MCXA153 as an example, so we will try out the sample code included.
First, connect the board to the computer with a USB cable. For the FRDM-MCXA153, use the USB connector labeled "MCU-Link" (see photo).
In the upper left pane of the IDE, click "Import SDK example(s)..." in the Project Explorer tab .
The installed SDK will be displayed, so click "Next>" .
A list of sample code will be displayed .
An example of a blinking LED (= blinking L) can be found in " driver_examples " → " gpio " → " gpio_led_output ", so follow the hierarchy as shown below , check the boxes, and press the "Finish" button .
The sample code has been imported .
Click the blue bug icon (Start debugging project) .
A dialog box for selecting the target will appear, so check the displayed board information and press the " OK " button.
The code is built and written to the microcontroller's flash memory. The code is then paused and ready to run .
Clicking on the icon consisting of a yellow square and a green triangle (Resume) will run the code on the board.
This sample code alternately outputs HIGH and LOW to a GPIO (General Purpose Input/Output) pin. This pin is connected to a red LED , so the LED blinks .
Reference materials
- Explainer video: Let's begin! MCUXpresso IDE
- Related information: Installing MCUXpresso for VSC and SDK (Japanese blog)
Change history:
2025-05-07: First Edition
2025-06-26: Added the section "Logging in to nxp.com".
2025-10-28: Link correction
2025-11-10: Link updated
2025-11-14: Added a link to an installation procedure video / Added a section for reference materials.
2025-11-18: Added annotations to the opening image and the circuit board used. Changed the video link image.
2026-03-17: Corrected the diagram in the section "What is MCUXpresso IDE?".
2026-04-05: Added the section "Starting the MCUXpresso IDE and Workspace".
2026-07-24: Added chapter numbers and table of contents. Emphasized video introduction links within "0. What is this article about?".
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We apologize for the inconvenience, but when making inquiries, please refer to `` Technical Questions to NXP - How to Contact Us( Japanese Blog) ''.
(If you are already an NXP distributor or have a relationship with NXP, you may ask the person in charge directly.)
MCUXpresso IDE can be used free of charge for software development for NXP's MCX series microcontrollers.
Also, sample code that can be used with various MCUXpresso IDEs is provided. Here we will explain the installation procedure for the IDE and SDK.
After reading this, anyone can easily install the development environment and SDK and even run the sample code!