Guide

How to make Matrix-style rain in Windows PowerShell

Published 23 October 2026

A dark Windows PowerShell window with a long one-liner and rows of green random characters, like Matrix rain

Short answerPaste a short while loop into Windows PowerShell 5.1 to scroll rows of random green characters. A longer version remembers each column, pushes rows down and redraws from the top corner so the rain really falls. Ctrl+C stops it, and it only prints characters on your own screen.

This is a harmless party trick: Matrix-style rain in Windows PowerShell 5.1, with no download. It only prints random characters on your own screen. Nothing is saved, changed or sent. Press Ctrl+C to stop it.

Version 1: scrolling rain

PowerShell

while(1){Write-Host (-join(1..100|%{if(Get-Random -Max 5){' '}else{[char](Get-Random -Min 33 -Max 127)}})) -Fore Green;sleep -m 40}

Every 40 milliseconds it prints a row of 100 spots. Get-Random -Max 5 gives 0 one time in five. Those spots get a random printable character, and the rest stay blank. -Fore Green makes it green.

Version 2: real falling streaks

PowerShell

$w=[Console]::WindowWidth-1;$h=[Console]::WindowHeight-1;$a=@(0)*$w;$r=@();cls;while(1){$t=-join(0..($w-1)|%{if($a[$_]){$a[$_]--;[char](Get-Random -Min 33 -Max 127)}else{if(!(Get-Random -Max 40)){$a[$_]=Get-Random -Min 5 -Max 20};' '}});$r=@($t)+$r|select -First $h;[Console]::SetCursorPosition(0,0);$r|%{Write-Host $_ -Fore Green};sleep -m 50}

How it works:

$a remembers how many more characters each column still has to drop.
Each frame builds a new top row, and a column starts a streak 1 time in 40.
It pushes the older rows down and keeps only as many as fit the window.
SetCursorPosition(0,0) redraws from the top-left corner, which makes the rain fall instead of scroll.

Tips

Maximise the window first. The script reads the window size once when it starts.
In Windows Terminal, press Alt+Enter for full screen.
Try changing the numbers: a smaller sleep -m is faster, and -Max 40 controls how dense the rain is.
Press Ctrl+C to leave.

Good to know

This works in Windows PowerShell 5.1. The cursor and colour behaviour can differ in other terminals. If it looks odd, resize the window and run it again.