Editing PATH in Windows

Environment variables such as PATH help organize computers to make important apps and files easier to access. You can edit PATH using a GUI or with PowerShell.

temporary change with PowerShell

• $env:Path gets the current contents of the PATH variable.
• $env:Path += ';C:\my\file\path' appends a file or folder to PATH.
• $env:Path = 'C:\my\file\path;' + $env:Path prepends a file or folder to PATH.

Changes to PATH made this way will only last until you close the terminal.

permanent change with a GUI

1. Press the Windows key.
2. Type path and select “edit the system environment variables”.
3. In the window that pops up, go to the Advanced tab.
4. Click Environment Variables.
5. In the user variables (the top box; see below), select the row that has “Path” in the left column.

6. Click Edit.
7. Click New.
8. Click Browse.
9. Select the file or folder you want to add to PATH.
10. Click OK on each of the new windows.
11. Restart any running terminal for the change to take effect.