How to Run ROS Noetic on macOS Using Anaconda

Overview

This guide explains how to run ROS Noetic on macOS using Anaconda by adapting the method described in Debasish Khan’s Medium article (except I am using Anaconda instead of miniconda)

Prerequisites

macOS (Intel or Apple Silicon)
Anaconda (Installation Guide
Homebrew

Step-by-Step Setup

1. Install Mamba (optional but faster dependency resolver)

conda install mamba -c conda-forge

2. Create the Anaconda Environment

conda create -n noetic ros-noetic-desktop-full python=3.9 \
    -c robostack-staging -c conda-forge \
    --no-channel-priority --override-channels

3. Configure Conda Channels

conda activate noetic
conda config --add channels conda-forge
conda config --set channel_priority strict

4. Install Build Tools and ROS Utilities

conda install compilers cmake pkg-config make ninja
conda install catkin_tools

Remember to Set ROS Environment Variables

Add the following to your terminal session or shell config (.zshrc, .bash_profile, etc.):

export ROS_MASTER_URI=http://localhost:11311
export ROS_HOSTNAME=localhost

Running ROS Noetic

Terminal 1 – Launch `roscore`

conda activate noetic
roscore

Terminal 2 – Launch `rviz`

conda activate noetic
rviz