How to fix E: Package 'package-name' has no available version, but exists in the database in APT

The most common cause is stale package metadata. Update apt's cache to reflect current repository contents:

sudo apt update

Try your installation again after updating. If you're still seeing the error, proceed to the next step.

Use apt-cache to get detailed information about the package:

apt-cache show package-name
apt-cache policy package-name

This shows which repositories know about the package and what versions are available. If output is empty, the package doesn't exist in any enabled repository.

On Ubuntu systems, some packages live in disabled repositories. Enable them based on your needs:

# Enable universe repository
sudo add-apt-repository universe

# Enable multiverse repository (for restricted software)
sudo add-apt-repository multiverse

# Then update
sudo apt update

On Debian, check if your sources.list needs additional entries for backports or testing versions.

If the error appears as part of broken dependency chains, use apt's built-in repair:

sudo apt --fix-broken install

Or alternatively:

sudo apt install -f

This attempts to automatically resolve dependency conflicts by removing or installing packages as needed.

A corrupted cache can cause this issue. Clear it and rebuild:

sudo apt clean
sudo apt autoclean
sudo apt update

If this still doesn't work, do a deeper cache rebuild:

sudo rm -r /var/lib/apt/lists/*
sudo mkdir -p /var/lib/apt/lists/partial
sudo apt update

Be careful with the second method—ensure you include the wildcard at the end.

If your system has partially installed or corrupted packages, reconfigure dpkg:

sudo dpkg --configure -a

This attempts to configure any packages that were unpacked but not fully installed, which sometimes resolves dependency database corruption.