Follow these steps to start using the Dart SDK to develop command-line and server apps. First you'll play with the Dart language in your browser, no download required. Then you'll install the Dart SDK, write a small program, and run that program using the Dart VM. Finally, you'll use an AOT (ahead of time) compiler to compile your finished program to native machine code, which you'll execute using the Dart runtime.

WithDartPad you can experiment with the Dart language and APIs, no download necessary.

For example, here's an embedded DartPad that lets you play with the code for a small Hello World program. ClickRun to run the app; output appears in the console view. Try editing the source code—perhaps you'd like to change the greeting to use another language.

void main() {  print('Hello, World!');}

More information:

• DartPad documentation
• Dart language tour
• Dart core library documentation

To develop Dart apps, you need the Dart SDK. To continue with this guide, eitherdownload the Dart SDK orinstall Flutter, which includes the full Dart SDK.

Use thedart create command and theconsole template to create a command-line app:

$ dart create -t console cli

This command creates a small Dart app that has the following:

• A main Dart source file,bin/cli.dart, that contains a top-levelmain() function. This is the entrypoint for your app.
• An additional Dart file,lib/cli.dart, that contains the functionality of the app and is imported by thecli.dart file.
• A pubspec file,pubspec.yaml, that contains the app's metadata, including information about whichpackages the app depends on and which versions of those packages are required.

To run the app from the command line, use the Dart VM by running thedart run command in the app's top directory:

$ cd cli$ dart runHello world: 42!

If you want to run the app with debugging support, seeDart DevTools.

Let's customize the app you just created.

1. Editlib/cli.dart to calculate a different result. For example, divide the previous value by two (for details about~/, seeArithmetic operators):

   dart

   intcalculate(){return6*7~/2;}

   content_copy

2. Save your changes.

3. Rerun the main entrypoint of your app:

   console

   $ dart runHello world: 21!

   content_copy

More information:Write command-line apps

The steps above used the Dart VM (dart) to run the app. The Dart VM is optimized for fast, incremental compilation to provide instant feedback during development. Now that your small app is done, it's time to AOT compile your Dart code to optimized native machine code.

Use thedart compile tool to AOT compile the program to machine code:

$ dart compile exe bin/cli.dart

Notice how the compiled program starts instantly, completing quickly:

$ time bin/cli.exeHello world: 21!real0m0.016suser0m0.008ssys0m0.006s

Check out these resources:

• Darttutorials
• Dart language, libraries, and conventions
  • Language tour
  • Dart core library documentation
  • Effective Dart
• Tools and libraries
  • Dart SDK
  • Dart tools
  • IDEs
• Other examples of natively compiled apps
  • native_app

If you get stuck, find help atCommunity and support.