/node-typescript-boilerplate

Minimalistic project template to jump start a Node.js back-end application in TypeScript. ESLint, Jest and type definitions included.

Primary LanguageTypeScriptApache License 2.0Apache-2.0

node-typescript-boilerplate

Sponsor TypeScript version Node.js version APLv2 Build Status - GitHub Actions

👩🏻‍💻 Developer Ready: A comprehensive template. Works out of the box for most Node.js projects.

🏃🏽 Instant Value: All basic tools included and configured:

  • TypeScript 5.1
  • ESM
  • ESLint with some initial rules recommendation
  • Vitest for fast unit testing and code coverage
  • Type definitions for Node.js
  • Prettier to enforce consistent code style
  • NPM scripts for common operations
  • EditorConfig for consistent coding style
  • Reproducible environments thanks to Volta
  • Example configuration for GitHub Actions
  • Simple example of TypeScript code and unit test

🤲 Free as in speech: available under the APLv2 license.

Getting Started

This project is intended to be used with the latest Active LTS release of Node.js.

Use as a repository template

To start, just click the Use template link (or the green button). Start adding your code in the src and unit tests in the __tests__ directories.

Clone repository

To clone the repository, use the following commands:

git clone https://github.com/jsynowiec/node-typescript-boilerplate
cd node-typescript-boilerplate
npm install

Download latest release

Download and unzip the current main branch or one of the tags:

wget https://github.com/jsynowiec/node-typescript-boilerplate/archive/main.zip -O node-typescript-boilerplate.zip
unzip node-typescript-boilerplate.zip && rm node-typescript-boilerplate.zip

Available Scripts

  • clean - remove coverage data, cache and transpiled files,
  • prebuild - lint source files and tests before building,
  • build - transpile TypeScript to ES6,
  • build:watch - interactive watch mode to automatically transpile source files,
  • lint - lint source files and tests,
  • prettier - reformat files,
  • test - run tests,
  • test:watch - interactive watch mode to automatically re-run tests
  • test:coverage - run test and print out test coverage

Additional Information

Why include Volta

I recommend to install Volta and use it to manage your project's toolchain.

Volta’s toolchain always keeps track of where you are, it makes sure the tools you use always respect the settings of the project you’re working on. This means you don’t have to worry about changing the state of your installed software when switching between projects. For example, it's used by engineers at LinkedIn to standardize tools and have reproducible development environments.

Why Vitest instead of Jest

I recommend using Vitest for unit and integration testing of your TypeScript code.

In 2023, my team and I gradually switched from Jest to Vitest in all the projects. We've found out that generally, Vitest is faster than Jest, especially for large test suits. Furthermore, Vitest has native support for ES modules, is easier to configure, and has a much nicer developer experience when used with TypeScript. For example, when working with mocks, spies and types.

Nevertheless, the choice of specific tooling always depends on the specific requirements and characteristics of the project.

ES Modules

This template uses native ESM. Make sure to read this, and this first.

If your project requires CommonJS, you will have to convert to ESM.

Please do not open issues for questions regarding CommonJS or ESM on this repo.

Backers & Sponsors

Support this project by becoming a sponsor.

License

Licensed under the APLv2. See the LICENSE file for details.