In short: it's a free C and C++ compiler for Microsoft Windows. GCC (GNU Compiler Collection) is a free and open source compiler for C and C++ (and other languages like Objective-C, Fortran, D). MinGW-w64 is a free and open source C library for targetting Windows 32-bit and 64-bit platforms. The combination of these results in a free C/C++ compiler for Windows. Even though GCC and MinGW-w64 can be used on other platforms (e.g. Linux) to generate Windows executables, the WinLibs project only focusses on building versions that run natively on Windows. Also some additional tools are added, including: - GDB - the GNU Project debugger - GNU Binutils - a collection of binary tools - GNU Make - a tool which controls the generation of executables and other non-source files - Yasm - The Yasm Modular Assembler Project - NASM - The Netwide Assembler - JWasm - A free MASM-compatible assembler - LLVM/Clang/LLD/LLDB - The LLVM Compiler Infrastructure This is a standalone build, which means this download offers a complete compiler environment for Windows. In the future WinLibs plans to also release binary packages of many open source libraries and applications built with this compiler.
What's new in 16.1.0-14.0.0-r1
winlibs personal build version gcc-16.1.0-mingw-w64ucrt-14.0.0-r1 This is the winlibs Intel/AMD 32-bit and 64-bit standalone build of: - GCC 16.1.0 - GDB 17.2 - MinGW-w64 14.0.0 (linked with ucrt) - GNU Binutils 2.46.0.20260210 - GNU Make 4.4.1 - dos2unix 7.5.5 - PExports 0.47 - Yasm 1.3.0 - NASM 2.16.03 - JWasm 2.12pre - ccache 4.13.6 - CMake 4.3.2 - ninja 1.13.2 - Doxygen 1.17.0 - pedeps 0.1.15 - Universal Ctags 6.2.1 - Cppcheck 2.20.0 - Premake 5.0.0-beta8 - ntldd 0.2 - pkgconf 2.5.1 - winlibs-tools 1.0.24 Thread model: mcf (MCF Gthread 2.3.ga) Runtime library: UCRT (Windows 10 or higher, or when Update for Universal C Runtime is installed on older Windows versions, not supported on systems older than Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1) This build was compiled with GCC 16.1.0 and packaged on 2026-05-18. Please check out https://winlibs.com/ for the latest personal build. Available downloads: - Files with extension .7z and .zip have the same contents. The .7z files are smaller but require 7-Zip or PeaZip to extract. The .zip files are larger but Windows can extract this file without additional tools. - The i686 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 32-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 32-bit (also runs on Windows 64-bit in 32-bit mode). The x86_64 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 64-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 64-bit. - The .sha256 and .sha512 files are checksum files for validating the download. Available downloads: - Files with extension .7z and .zip have the same contents. The .7z files are smaller but require 7-Zip or PeaZip to extract. The .zip files are larger but Windows can extract this file without additional tools. - The i686 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 32-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 32-bit (also runs on Windows 64-bit in 32-bit mode). The x86_64 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 64-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 64-bit. - The .sha256 and .sha512 files are checksum files for validating the download. Changes: - GDB 17.2 - ccache 4.13.6 - winlibs-tools 1.0.24 Note: - This build uses the MCF Gthread multithreading model
WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) version history
15.1.0-12.0.0-r1May 4, 2025
winlibs personal build version gcc-15.1.0-mingw-w64ucrt-12.0.0-r1 This is the winlibs Intel/AMD 32-bit and 64-bit standalone build of: - GCC 15.1.0 - GDB 16.3 - MinGW-w64 12.0.0 (linked with ucrt) - GNU Binutils 2.44 - GNU Make 4.4.1 - PExports 0.47 - dos2unix 7.5.2 - Yasm 1.3.0 - NASM 2.16.03 - JWasm 2.12pre - ccache 4.11.2 - CMake 4.0.1 - ninja 1.12.1 - Doxygen 1.13.2 - pedeps 0.1.15 - Universal Ctags 6.1.0 - Cppcheck 2.17.0 - Premake 5.0.0-beta6 Thread model: mcf (MCF Gthread 2.1.ga) Runtime library: UCRT (Windows 10 or higher, or when Update for Universal C Runtime is installed on older Windows versions, not supported on systems older than Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1) This build was compiled with GCC 15.1.0 and packaged on 2025-05-03. Please check out https://winlibs.com/ for the latest personal build. Available downloads: - Files with extension .7z and .zip have the same contents. The .7z files are smaller but require 7-Zip or PeaZip to extract. The .zip files are larger but Windows can extract this file without additional tools. - The i686 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 32-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 32-bit (also runs on Windows 64-bit in 32-bit mode). The x86_64 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 64-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 64-bit. - The .sha256 and .sha512 files are checksum files for validating the download. Notes: …
14.2.0-12.0.0-r1Aug 19, 2024
winlibs personal build version gcc-14.2.0-mingw-w64ucrt-12.0.0-r1 This is the winlibs Intel/AMD 32-bit and 64-bit standalone build of: - GCC 14.2.0 - GDB 15.1 - MinGW-w64 12.0.0 (linked with ucrt) - GNU Binutils 2.43.1 - GNU Make 4.4.1 - PExports 0.47 - dos2unix 7.5.2 - Yasm 1.3.0 - NASM 2.16.01 - JWasm 2.12pre - ccache 4.10.2 - CMake 3.30.2 - ninja 1.12.1 - Doxygen 1.12.0 - Universal Ctags 6.1.0 - Cppcheck 2.14.0 Thread model: mcf (MCF Gthread 1.8.ga) Runtime library: UCRT (Windows 10 or higher, or when Update for Universal C Runtime is installed on older Windows versions, not supported on systems older than Windows 7 SP1 and Windows Server 2008 R2 SP1) This build was compiled with GCC 14.2.0 and packaged on 2024-08-19. Please check out https://winlibs.com/ for the latest personal build. Available downloads: - Files with extension .7z and .zip have the same contents. The .7z files are smaller but require 7-Zip or PeaZip to extract. The .zip files are larger but Windows can extract this file without additional tools. - The i686 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 32-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 32-bit (also runs on Windows 64-bit in 32-bit mode). The x86_64 download is the Windows Intel/AMD 64-bit version, which runs natively on and compiles for Windows 64-bit. - The .sha256 and .sha512 files are checksum files for validating the download.
Frequently asked questions
Is WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) free?
WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) is multiple licenses software from Brecht Sanders. Check the publisher's license terms for pricing and usage rights.
What is the latest version of WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime)?
The latest version is 16.1.0-14.0.0-r1, released on May 18, 2026.
Is it safe to download WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime)?
The download button links to the official installer published on github.com, the same file Windows Package Manager installs. You can verify the downloaded file by comparing its SHA-256 checksum with 2ff1522a70adeb4e9bc450e917501da72bf48cb583e47530baa8cd0524fea0fd.
Which Windows versions does WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) support?
WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) runs on Windows and is available for 32-bit (x86), 64-bit (x64) systems.
How do I uninstall WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime)?
Open Settings › Apps › Installed apps, find WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) and select Uninstall. From the command line, run winget uninstall --id=BrechtSanders.WinLibs.MCF.UCRT -e.
Is there a portable version of WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime)?
Yes. WinLibs (MCF threads, UCRT runtime) is available as a portable ZIP archive (winlibs-x86_64-mcf-seh-gcc-16.1.0-mingw-w64ucrt-14.0.0-r1.zip, 64-bit (x64)) that runs without installation. Copy it to any folder or USB drive and run it from there.
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