Does MATLAB run on Linux?
Verdict: Yes
Yes. MathWorks supports MATLAB and Simulink on Linux and lists the distributions it tests against, including Ubuntu, Debian, Red Hat Enterprise Linux and SUSE.
MATLAB is a first class Linux program. MathWorks publishes system requirements for Linux the same way it does for Windows, naming Ubuntu 24.04 and 22.04, Debian 13 and 12, Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9 and 8, and SUSE Linux Enterprise 15. Ubuntu 20.04 has been dropped.
MathWorks also says other distributions are likely to work if they have a recent enough kernel and system library, but that support is limited if you go outside the tested list. In practice that means a current Ubuntu or Debian release is the calm choice, and something like Arch or a very new Fedora is where you would be on your own.
Your licence follows you. MATLAB licences are tied to your MathWorks account rather than to Windows, so you sign in and install on Linux with the same entitlement. A university or campus licence works the same way.
Your work comes across untouched. Script files, .mat data files, Simulink models and toolboxes are the same on every platform. The only things to watch are scripts that hard-code Windows folder paths or call a Windows-only program, which will need their paths changed.
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