Setting Up Flutter in VS Code (Without Android Studio)

This guide covers how to set up Flutter development in Visual Studio Code without using Android Studio. It includes configuring hot reload, physical device support, and the Android SDK using only the command-line tools. All essential steps are included to help get a fully working setup.

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1. Install Flutter SDK via VS Code Extension

• Open VS Code
• Go to Extensions (Ctrl + Shift + X)
• Search for and install Flutter (this also installs Dart)

This installs Flutter and configures VS Code to work with Flutter projects.

2. Add Flutter to PATH

Even though VS Code manages Flutter internally, adding it to the system PATH allows use of the flutter command in any terminal.

If Flutter is installed in: C:\flutter\bin

Then:

• Open Environment Variables
• Under System Variables, find Path → Edit → Add:
  C:\flutter\bin

Check by opening a terminal and running:

flutter doctor

3. Install Android SDK (Without Android Studio)

Go to the official Android developer site and download only the command-line tools:

➡️ https://developer.android.com/studio#command-tools

Download the Windows ZIP file

Extract it to: C:\Android\cmdline-tools\latest

Then adjust the folder structure to match what Flutter expects: C:\Android\cmdline-tools\cmdline-tools\latest

Set Environment Variables

Variable Name          Value
ANDROID_HOME       C:\Android
Add to Path                C:\Android\platform-tools
Add to Path:               C:\Android\emulator

This makes the Android SDK and emulator tools accessible globally.

4. Install Required SDK Packages

Open a terminal and go to:

cd C:\Android\cmdline-tools\cmdline-tools\latest\bin

Then run:

sdkmanager --sdk_root="C:\Android" "platform-tools" "platforms;android-33" "build-tools;34.0.0" "emulator" "system-images;android-33;google_apis;x86_64"

Then accept all the agreements:

java --licenses

5. Run Flutter with Hot Reload

At this point, flutter doctor should show no major issues.

To run a Flutter app:

• Open the project in VS Code

• Press F5 to launch on a connected device or emulator

Notes

• Android Studio is not required if the SDK and JDK are manually installed

• A real Android device can be used over USB by enabling Developer Options and USB Debugging

• Emulators can be created using avdmanager and launched using the emulator command