npm package.json

By Xah Lee. Date: 2026-07-21.

2026-07-21

package.json

package.json is the heart of every npm project. Example:

{
  "name": "xxttt",
  "version": "1.0.0",
  "description": "test",
  "license": "ISC",
  "author": "",
  "type": "commonjs",
  "main": "index.js",
  "scripts": {
    "test": "echo \"Error: no test specified\" && exit 1"
  }
}

2026-07-21

package.json fields you should know

name: Package name◆ "my-cool-lib"
version: Semantic versioning◆ "1.2.3"
scripts: Custom commands◆ "dev": "vite"
dependencies: Production packages◆ { "express": "^4.19.2" }
devDependencies: Dev-only packages◆ { "vite": "^5.4.0" }
type: Use ES modules ("module")◆ "module"