Nelson is an array programming language providing a powerful open computing environment for engineering and scientific applications using modern C/C++ libraries (Boost, Eigen, …) and others state of art numerical libraries.It has sophisticated data structures (including cell, struct, linear systems, …), an interpreter and a high level programming language. Nelson has been developped to be an open/modular system where an user can define these own data types and operations on these data types by using overload.
Publisher’s description
What is Nelson?
Nelson is an open-source science & math program for Windows from Nelson numerical software (Allan CORNET). It ranks 29th by popularity among science & maths in this catalogue. It is written in C++. Besides Windows, it is available for Linux.
Installation and requirements
Official installers exist for 64-bit and ARM64 as EXE (Inno Setup). Installation asks for administrator rights. It needs Windows 10 or newer. The installer supports unattended (silent) installation.
Updates and version history
The current version is 1.16.0.5575, released on December 30, 2025. 18 versions are listed since December 27, 2023, each with links to its own installer files. That is about 9 releases a year.
Popularity and file types
The Chocolatey package has been downloaded 2,892 times. The source code on GitHub (nelson-lang/nelson) has 132 stars. On Windows it registers 4 file types, including .m, .mat, .hdf5 and .nh5. Similar programs include Stellarium, KiCad and Quarto.
Project description on GitHub: “The Nelson Programming Language”
Pros / Cons
Pros
- Open source: the code can be inspected and built by anyone
- Native ARM64 build for Windows on Arm
- Documented silent install
- Frequent updates (about 9 a year)
- Also runs on Linux
Cons
- Installation needs administrator rights
In short: Nelson is an open-source science & math tool for 64-bit and ARM64 PCs. It is actively maintained. Administrators can deploy it unattended.
Is Nelson safe to download?
- The file is served by github.com, the publisher’s own domain
- The download link uses HTTPS
- A SHA256 hash is published, so you can verify the file:
539E5DC2E357543733A1371CCAF3B2CA1D03B57FDDC94AE9E66C7890850E02CC· Open the VirusTotal report for this hash - The link has not been checked yet
- The source code is public
- ExeAtlas does not host, wrap or modify installers
Related guide: How to check a file’s SHA256 hash on Windows
Recent versions
All 18 versions ›18 versions over 2 years · about 9 a year
| Version | Date | Size | Files |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.16.0.5575Latest | December 30, 2025 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup)ARM64 EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.15.0.5475 | November 25, 2025 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.14.0.5060 | May 30, 2025 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.13.0.4854 | April 1, 2025 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.12.0.4690 | February 17, 2025 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup)32-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.11.0.4595 | January 13, 2025 | — | 32-bit EXE (Inno Setup)64-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.10.0.4516 | December 16, 2024 | — | 64-bit EXE (Inno Setup)32-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
| 1.9.0.4392 | October 28, 2024 | — | 32-bit EXE (Inno Setup)64-bit EXE (Inno Setup) |
Install from the command line
Silent install ›winget install --id NelsonNumericalSoftware.Nelson -echoco install nelson -yNelson-1.16.0.5575-x86-64.exe /VERYSILENT /SUPPRESSMSGBOXES /NORESTART /SP-Related guide: How to use winget: install and update apps
Also for other systems
flatpak install flathub io.github.nelson_lang.NelsonInformation
- Publisher
- Nelson numerical software (Allan CORNET)
- Category
- Science & maths
- Licence
- Open Source license LGPLv3
- Price
- Free
- Source code
- github.com/nelson-lang/nelson
- Written in
- C++
- Content rating
- All ages
- Requires
- Windows 11 / 10 (Windows 10+)
- Architecture
- 64-bit, ARM64
- Installer
- EXE (Inno Setup)
- Other platforms
- Linux
- Version
- 1.16.0.5575
- Released
- December 30, 2025
- Added to the catalogue
- December 27, 2023
- Versions listed
- 18
- Updates / year
- 9
- Chocolatey downloads
- 2,892
- GitHub stars
- 132
- GitHub forks
- 21
- Website
- nelson-lang.github.io
- winget ID
- NelsonNumericalSoftware.Nelson
- Chocolatey package
- nelson
File types it opens (4)
Ratings and reviews
No reviews yet. Be the first to rate it.
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Frequently asked questions
Is Nelson free?
Yes. Nelson is open-source software under the Open Source license LGPLv3 licence.
Is Nelson safe to download?
The download comes from github.com, which belongs to the publisher; ExeAtlas does not host or change the file. Compare its SHA256 hash with the one shown here, or open the VirusTotal report for that hash.
How do I install Nelson with winget?
Open PowerShell or Windows Terminal and run the winget command shown on this page. winget downloads the official installer and checks its SHA256 hash before running it.
Can Nelson be installed silently?
Yes. The silent install page lists the exact command for each installer.
Which Windows versions does Nelson support?
The installer requires Windows 10 or newer and is available for 64-bit and ARM64.
Does Nelson run on ARM (Windows on Arm)?
Yes, there is a native ARM64 installer.
Where can I download an older version of Nelson?
The versions page lists all 18 versions with links to their official installer files, back to December 27, 2023.
What are alternatives to Nelson?
Stellarium, KiCad, Quarto, Qalculate! and JASP. The alternatives page compares them.
