How to check which Ubuntu version you are using

You can easily find out which Ubuntu version you are using by executing a command or by the graphical interface route. Knowing the exact version of the operating system you are using is really important.

As new Ubuntu releases come out every six month while a LTS(Long Term Support) release occurs every two years. This info really helps while seeking help on online forums or while checking a version specific tutorial.

So here I will show you how you can easily check your Ubuntu version using command line as well as using the Graphical method.

How To Check Ubuntu Version Using Command Line

So I have choose to show Command line first as it only requires a single command to find Ubuntu version. And this method is also very standard and should also work on most of other Linux Operating systems.

Follow these steps to find Ubuntu version information

1. Open a Terminal by pressing Ctrl + Alt + T keys together on keyboard or navigating to the terminal in apps.
2. Now execute this command lsb_release -a to display Ubuntu version.

lsb_release -a

Output:

No LSB modules are available.
Distributor ID: Ubuntu
Description: Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS
Release: 18.04
Codename: bionic

You will get somewhat similar output, here Description as well as Relese shows your current Ubuntu version. As I am using Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS.

You might have a question why Description says Ubuntu 18.04.4 while Release is 18.04. Whats the difference? The difference is 18.04 is the base image while the last 4 stands for the forth point release.

This forth point release means all the previous bug fixes, updates that were released for base image 18.04 will already be applied in this release. So when you do a clean new installation you have fewer updates to install.

Here Code-name Bionic stands for the name given to the release. This name is different for each version of Ubuntu and is allotted with the release.

If you don’t want to see all these details you can also see only Ubuntu verion by the command below.

lsb_release -d

Output;

Description: Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS

Check Ubuntu Version using Graphical Interface

Open Settings, by searching for Settings in search menu or you can click on Settings icon as in the image below.

Now navigate to the Details menu. If you like the theme in the above image here is how to install it.

As seen in the image above you would be able to see your Ubuntu version.

Alternative commands

You can also use these commands to get Ubuntu version.

cat /etc/issue

Output:

Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS \n \l

cat /etc/os-release

Output:

NAME="Ubuntu"
VERSION="18.04.4 LTS (Bionic Beaver)"
ID=ubuntu
ID_LIKE=debian
PRETTY_NAME="Ubuntu 18.04.4 LTS"
VERSION_ID="18.04"
HOME_URL="https://www.ubuntu.com/"
SUPPORT_URL="https://help.ubuntu.com/"
BUG_REPORT_URL="https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/"
PRIVACY_POLICY_URL="https://www.ubuntu.com/legal/terms-and-policies/privacy-policy"
VERSION_CODENAME=bionic
UBUNTU_CODENAME=bionic

Conclusion: These are some ways to check the Ubuntu version using the command line as well as Graphical Interface.

I hope this helps you if you have any other question, you can always ask in comments.