Yes, LabVIEW Community Edition is free, but only for personal, non-commercial, non-industrial use. NI says it includes the capabilities of LabVIEW Professional, along with the LINX toolkit for Raspberry Pi, BeagleBoard and Arduino boards. It cannot be used for company work, consulting, a startup, or teaching and research at a degree-granting institution. Any of those requires a paid license.
Community Edition is the easiest way to learn LabVIEW or build a home project. This article explains who qualifies, what you get and when you need to move to a paid edition. For an overview of the language itself, see What Is LabVIEW?
Who can use LabVIEW Community Edition?
NI’s usage rules come down to one question: could the work help anyone make money, directly or indirectly? If so, it needs a commercial license.
| Use | Allowed with Community Edition? |
|---|---|
| Hobby and home projects | Yes |
| Students using their own computers, including for classwork | Yes |
| K-12 schools, and clubs or competitions such as FIRST Robotics | Yes |
| Studying for a LabVIEW certification on your own time | Yes |
| An engineer’s weekend project at home, unrelated to their job | Yes |
| Engineering work for an employer, even “just a prototype” | No: commercial license required |
| Consulting or contract work for clients | No: commercial license required |
| Building a product, test system or tool you intend to sell or profit from | No: commercial license required |
| Startup or small-business projects | No: commercial license required |
| Teaching or research at a university or college | No: Academic Volume License required |
NI’s online license terms take precedence over any summary, including this one. When in doubt, ask NI before you start.
What is included, and what is not
| Item | Community Edition |
|---|---|
| Core LabVIEW capabilities | The capabilities of LabVIEW Professional, according to NI |
| Maker hardware support | LINX toolkit for Raspberry Pi, BeagleBoard and Arduino |
| Web interfaces | Access to G Web Development Software Community Edition |
| Add-on modules and toolkits bundled with academic licenses | Not included |
| License term | One year, renewable free of charge from your ni.com account |
| Activation | Online with your NI account; works offline after activation |
| Commercial or industrial use | Not permitted |
Community Edition vs Professional at a glance
| Community Edition | LabVIEW Professional | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Paid license from NI, by subscription or perpetual |
| Who it is for | Hobbyists, students, makers, K-12 | Engineers and companies building professional systems |
| Commercial use | Not allowed | Allowed |
| Core features | Professional capabilities, per NI | Full feature set, including the Application Builder and software engineering tools |
| Help when stuck | Community forums | NI technical support with an active subscription or service agreement, plus the forums |
| Renewal | Free annual renewal | Annual subscription, or optional annual service on perpetual licenses |
Professional is not the only paid option. NI also offers Base and Full editions and the LabVIEW+ Suite; check NI’s website for current editions and pricing.
How to get started with Community Edition
- Create or sign in to an NI account and download Community Edition from NI’s website.
- Install it on your own computer. An offline installer is available, but activation needs an internet connection and your NI login.
- Activate the license. It runs for one year from activation, and you can renew it from the Community Edition page in your NI profile.
- Use the NI Community forums and LAVA for questions; NI’s paid technical support is tied to commercial licenses.
When you need to move to a paid license
Switch to a commercial edition as soon as any of these apply:
- A home project turns into something for your employer or a client.
- You plan to sell a product, a tool or a service built with LabVIEW.
- The software will run a test system, machine or process in a business.
- You are teaching a course or doing research at a degree-granting institution.
LabVIEW code written in Community Edition is ordinary LabVIEW code. It opens in a licensed copy of the same or a newer LabVIEW version, so moving a project to a paid license does not mean starting over. Check that any toolkits or modules the code depends on are licensed in the new setup.
Is there still a LabVIEW Student Edition?
For most students, Community Edition has taken its place: students may use it on computers they own, including for classwork. Universities that teach or research with LabVIEW license it through an Academic Volume License, which includes additional modules and toolkits for teaching and research.
If a hobby or classroom prototype is turning into a real product or production system, the jump is usually bigger than the license: hardware selection, robust architecture and long-term support all start to matter. Our articles on vetting LabVIEW expertise and LabVIEW support options cover what comes next.
Taking a LabVIEW prototype to production?
Sciotex LabVIEW development services turn working prototypes into reliable, supportable systems, from architecture and hardware integration to deployment, built by Certified LabVIEW Developers and Architects in the US.
Frequently asked questions
LabVIEW Community Edition is free for personal, non-commercial, non-industrial use. Commercial use, including company prototypes, consulting and startup work, requires a paid Base, Full, Professional or LabVIEW+ Suite license.
No. Using it at a place of business or for anything you or your employer will profit from, directly or indirectly, requires a commercial license.
NI says Community Edition includes the capabilities of LabVIEW Professional. The difference is the license: Community Edition is free but limited to non-commercial use, while Professional is paid and may be used commercially, with access to NI technical support under an active subscription or service agreement.
The license lasts one year from activation and can be renewed free of charge from your NI account.
Yes. It is standard LabVIEW code and opens in a licensed copy of the same or a newer LabVIEW version, provided any toolkits it uses are also licensed.
