Manual: npm

NPM(1)					   General Commands Manual				      NPM(1)

NAME
       npm

Synopsis
       

Version
       @VERSION@

Description
       npm is the package manager for the Node JavaScript platform.  It puts
       modules in place so that node can find them, and manages dependency
       conflicts intelligently.

       It is extremely configurable to support a variety of use cases.	Most
       commonly, you use it to publish, discover, install, and develop node
       programs.

       Run npm help to get a list of available commands.

Important
       npm comes preconfigured to use npm's public registry at
       https://registry.npmjs.orgby default. Use of the npm public registry is
       subject to terms of use available at
       https://docs.npmjs.com/policies/terms

       You can configure npm to use any compatible registry you like, and even
       run your own registry. Use of someone else's registry is governed by
       their terms of use.

Introduction
       You probably got npm because you want to install stuff.

       The very first thing you will most likely want to run in any node
       program is npm install to install its dependencies.

       You can also run npm install blerg to install the latest version of
       "blerg".	 Check out npm install for more
       info.  It can do a lot of stuff.

       Use the npm search command to show everything that's available in the
       public registry.	 Use npm ls to show everything you've installed.

Dependencies
       If a package lists a dependency using a git URL, npm will install that
       dependency using the git
       command and will generate an error if it is not installed.

       If one of the packages npm tries to install is a native node module and
       requires compiling of C++ Code, npm will use
       node-gyp for that task.
       For a Unix system, node-gyp
       needs Python, make and a buildchain like GCC. On Windows,
       Python and Microsoft Visual Studio C++ are needed. For more information
       visit the node-gyp repository and
       the node-gyp Wiki.

Directories
       See folders to learn about where npm puts
       stuff.

       In particular, npm has two modes of operation:

	• local mode:
	  npm installs packages into the current project directory, which
	  defaults to the current working directory.  Packages install to
	  ./node_modules, and bins to ./node_modules/.bin.

	• global mode:
	  npm installs packages into the install prefix at
	  $npm_config_prefix/lib/node_modules and bins to
	  $npm_config_prefix/bin.

       Local mode is the default.  Use -g or --global on any command to
       run in global mode instead.

Developer Usage
       If you're using npm to develop and publish your code, check out the
       following help topics:

	• json:
	  Make a package.json file.  See
	  package.json.

	• link:
	  Links your current working code into Node's path, so that you don't
	  have to reinstall every time you make a change.  Use npm link to do this.

	• install:
	  It's a good idea to install things if you don't need the symbolic
	  link.	 Especially, installing other peoples code from the registry is
	  done via npm install

	• adduser:
	  Create an account or log in.	When you do this, npm will store
	  credentials in the user config file.

	• publish:
	  Use the npm publish command to upload your
	  code to the registry.

   Configuration
       npm is extremely configurable.  It reads its configuration options from
       5 places.

	• Command line switches:
	  Set a config with --key val.	All keys take a value, even if they
	  are booleans (the config parser doesn't know what the options are at
	  the time of parsing).	 If you do not provide a value (--key) then
	  the option is set to boolean true.

	• Environment Variables:
	  Set any config by prefixing the name in an environment variable with
	  npm_config_.	For example, export npm_config_key=val.

	• User Configs:
	  The file at $HOME/.npmrc is an ini-formatted list of configs.	 If
	  present, it is parsed.  If the userconfig option is set in the cli
	  or env, that file will be used instead.

	• Global Configs:
	  The file found at ./etc/npmrc (relative to the global prefix will be
	  parsed if it is found.  See npm prefix for
	  more info on the global prefix.  If the globalconfig option is set
	  in the cli, env, or user config, then that file is parsed instead.

	• Defaults:
	  npm's default configuration options are defined in
	  lib/utils/config-defs.js.  These must not be changed.

       See config for much much more information.

Contributions
       Patches welcome!

       If you would like to help, but don't know what to work on, read the
       contributing
       guidelines and
       check the issues list.

Bugs
       When you find issues, please report them:
       https://github.com/npm/cli/issues

       Please be sure to follow the template and bug reporting guidelines.

Feature Requests
       Discuss new feature ideas on our discussion forum:

	• https://github.com/npm/feedback

       Or suggest formal RFC proposals:

	• https://github.com/npm/rfcs

See Also
	• npm help

	• package.json

	• npmrc

	• npm config

	• npm install

	• npm prefix

	• npm publish

9.2.0						 March 2026					      NPM(1)