Download
Below the most recent version of VOSviewer can be downloaded. The software can be used freely for any purpose.
Download VOSviewer
VOSviewer version 1.6.21, released on June 12, 2026, is available for download.
Download VOSviewer 1.6.21 for Microsoft Windows systems
Download VOSviewer 1.6.21 for macOS systems
Download VOSviewer 1.6.21 for other systems
To run VOSviewer, Java (version 8 or higher) needs to be installed on your system. See the below instructions for more information.
Instructions
To download and run VOSviewer, take the following steps:
1. Download VOSviewer from this web page.
2. Create a new folder and extract the downloaded ZIP file in this folder.
3. Run VOSviewer:
- On Windows: start the VOSviewer executable.
- On macOS: start the VOSviewer application.
- On other systems: run the VOSviewer JAR file.
Java requirements
To run VOSviewer, Java version 8 or higher needs to be installed on your system. If Java is not installed on your system, you can obtain it here.
VOSviewer is compatible with different Java distributions, including both Oracle Java and OpenJDK-based alternatives. For example, distributions such as Eclipse Temurin can be used without any issues.
Windows security warning
On Microsoft Windows systems, you may see a security warning stating that VOSviewer is an unrecognized app and therefore cannot be run. This is a standard Windows protection feature for files downloaded from the internet. On many systems, you can run VOSviewer by clicking “More info” and then “Run anyway”. If this option is not available, you may try the following:
1. Right-click the downloaded ZIP file before extracting it.
2. Click “Properties”.
3. On the "General" tab, check “Unblock” and click "OK".
4. Extract the ZIP file and run the VOSviewer executable.
macOS security warning
On macOS systems, you may experience security issues. Information on how to handle these issues is available here.
Web Start
Instead of downloading VOSviewer, you can also launch VOSviewer directly from this web page using Java Web Start. This requires Java to be installed on your system.
Note that Java Web Start is no longer included in recent Oracle Java distributions and is also not part of standard OpenJDK distributions. To use Web Start functionality, you need an alternative implementation. We recommend using OpenWebStart, an open-source reimplementation of Java Web Start that is actively maintained and compatible with VOSviewer. After installing an appropriate Java distribution and OpenWebStart, you can launch VOSviewer using the link below.
Launch VOSviewer 1.6.21