IDE Overview

To be able to build and run applications, Qt Creator needs the same information as a compiler would need. It stores the information in the project settings.

Qt Creator has templates for creating new projects. They guide you step-by-step through the project creation process, create the necessary files, and specify settings depending on the choices you make. For more information, see Managing Projects.

To create intuitive, modern-looking, fluid user interfaces, you can use Qt Quick and Qt Design Studio. If you need a traditional user interface that has a clear structure and enforces a platform look and feel, you can use the integrated Qt Designer. For more information, see Designing User Interfaces.

As an IDE, Qt Creator differs from a text editor in that it knows how to build and run applications. It understands the C++ and QML languages as code, not just as plain text. Therefore, it can offer useful features, such as semantic highlighting, checking code syntax, code completion, and refactoring actions. Qt Creator supports some of these services also for other programming languages, such as Python, for which a language server is available that provides information about the code to IDEs. For more information, see Coding.

Qt Creator integrates cross-platform systems for build automation: qmake, Qbs, CMake, and Autotools. In addition, you can import projects as generic projects and fully control the steps and commands used to build the project.

You can build applications for, deploy them to, and run them on the desktop environment or a device. Kits, build, run, and deployment settings allow you to quickly switch between different setups and target platforms.

For more information, see Building and Running.

Qt Creator integrates several external native debuggers: GNU Symbolic Debugger (GDB), Microsoft Console Debugger (CDB), and internal JavaScript debugger. In the Debug mode, you can inspect the state of your application while debugging.

Devices have limited memory and CPU power, so you should use them carefully. Qt Creator integrates Valgrind code analysis tools for detecting memory leaks and profiling function execution. In addition, the QML Profiler enables you to profile Qt Quick applications.

Qt Creator integrates the Qt Test, Boost.Test, Catch 2 test, and Google C++ Testing frameworks for unit testing applications and libraries. You can use Qt Creator to create, build, and run autotests.

For more information, see Testing.

Qt Creator enables you to create installation packages for mobile devices that you can publish to application stores and other channels. You must make sure that the package contents meet the requirements for publishing on the channel.

For more information, see Publishing to Google Play.