To use R, first know that it is a suite or package of software that interact together to provide you with the best experience in statistical coding. You will need to install the package, which comes in 3 parts. You will need to install all 3 in the order provided here. Follow these step or check out the MSU Installing R tutorial.
Installing R
- Free for everyone!
- This is the background system. Install and then forget about it.
- Click here to install for all computer systems (iMac/Windows/etc).
Installing RStudio
- Free for all users

- R-Studio is the system that you will use for your course work.
- Click here to install. Install the RStudio desktop version.
Installing a code package
- Again, this is free!
- A code package gives you the initial codes you will be using in class.
- The tidyverse R package has much of the code your Statistics courses will use. Install this.
- Open RStudio
- At the command line, type: install.packages("tidyverse")
- Tap the "Enter" key.
- R will connect to the internet, download the package, and show a message that states, "The downloaded binary packages are in".
That's it! You are now ready to go.