The Industry Standard

Kali Linux is not about its tools, nor the operating system. Kali Linux is a platform.

Generic laptop PC Kali Linux desktop

All the tools you need

The Kali Linux penetration testing platform contains a vast array of tools and utilities. From information gathering to final reporting, Kali Linux enables security and IT professionals to assess the security of their systems.

Find out all about Kali's Tools

Kali Everywhere

Undercover Mode

Using Kali in an environment where you don't want to draw attention to yourself? Kali Undercover is the perfect way to not stand out in a crowd.

Kali NetHunter

A mobile penetration testing platform for Android devices, based on Kali Linux. Kali NetHunter is made up of an App, App Store, Kali Container and KeX

Win-KeX

Win-KeX provides a full Kali Desktop Experience for Windows WSL. Applications started via Kali's panel will share the desktop with Microsoft Windows applications.

Choose the desktop you prefer

Xfce logoXfce

Xfce is a lightweight desktop environment for UNIX-like operating systems. It aims to be fast and low on system resources, while still being visually appealing and user friendly.

Xfce consists of separately packaged parts that together provide all functions of the desktop environment, but can be selected in subsets to suit user needs and preferences. This is Kali's default desktop environment.

Kali Linux with Xfce desktop
Kali Linux with GNOME desktop

GNOME logoGNOME Shell

Every part of GNOME Shell has been designed to make it simple and easy to use. The Activities Overview is an easy way to access all your basic tasks. A press of a button is all it takes to view your open windows, launch applications, or check if you have new messages. Having everything in one place is convenient and means that you don't have to learn your way through a maze of different technologies.

KDE logoKDE Plasma

Plasma is made to stay out of the way as it helps you get things done. But under its light and intuitive surface, it's a powerhouse. So you're free to choose ways of usage right as you need them and when you need them.

With Plasma the user is king. Not happy with the color scheme? Change it! Want to have your panel on the left edge of the screen? Move it! Don't like the font? Use a different one! Download custom widgets in one click and add them to your desktop or panel.

Kali Linux with KDE Plasma desktop

Latest news from our blog

Kali Linux 2025.2 Release (Kali Menu Refresh, BloodHound CE & CARsenal)

We’re almost half way through 2025 already, and we’ve got a lot to share with you in this release, Kali 2025.2.

The summary of the changelog since the 2025.1 release from March is:

Desktop Updates - Kali-Menu refresh, GNOME 48 & KDE 6.3 updates BloodHound Community Edition - Major upgrade with full set of ingestors Kali NetHunter Smartwatch Wi-Fi Injection - TicWatch Pro 3 now able to de-authenticate and capture WPA2 handshakes Kali NetHunter CARsenal - Car hacking tool set! New Tools - 13 new shinny tools added (and various updates) Desktop Updates Kali Menu Refresh We’ve completely reworked the Kali Menu! It’s now reorganized to follow the MITRE ATT&CK framework structure – which means that finding the right tool for your task should now be a lot more intuitive for red and blue teams alike.

A New Kali Linux Archive Signing Key

TL;DR Bad news for Kali Linux users! In the coming day(s), apt update is going to fail for pretty much everyone out there:

Missing key 827C8569F2518CC677FECA1AED65462EC8D5E4C5, which is needed to verify signature. Reason is, we had to roll a new signing key for the Kali repository. You need to download and install the new key manually, here’s the one-liner:

Kali Linux 2025.1a Release (2025 Theme, & Raspberry Pi)

We are kicking off 2025 with Kali Linux 2025.1a! This update builds on existing features, bringing enhancements and improvements to streamline your experience. It is now available to download or upgrade if you’re already running Kali Linux. Kali Linux 2025.1a? What happened to 2025.1? There was a last minute bug discovered in a package after already producing our images. As a result, a re-build was needed, with a fix.

Kali Linux On The New Modern WSL

Late last year we had the pleasure of being reached out to by Microsoft in regards to participating in the launch of the new, modern, WSL distribution architecture. In summary, this new architecture allows for easier distribution and installation of WSL distros. For the full explanation of how this works, please view Microsoft’s blog post and their documentation.