diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index 48506b8231..47c7d6b49c 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -518,7 +518,10 @@ if (BUILD_ESMTOOL)
   add_subdirectory( apps/esmtool )
 endif()
 
-add_subdirectory( apps/launcher )
+option(BUILD_LAUNCHER "build Launcher inspector" ON)
+if (BUILD_LAUNCHER)
+   add_subdirectory( apps/launcher )
+endif()
 
 if (WIN32)
   if (MSVC)