Introduction
These are the most used NPM commands I find myself using daily. For more references and commands, you can check out the NPM Docs
Initializing a new package.json file
List all NPM packages in a project
Install NPM Package for a Specific Project
Install NPM Package as a Development Dependency Only
The —save flag is no more used
0- Initializing a new package.json file
:Create a package.json file.
npm init
Note: execute this code in the project root folder
Note: You can use the -y flag to accept all the defaults
1- List of NPM Packages From a Selected Project
: Gets a list of all the installed NPM packages in the specific project.
npm list --depth=0
Note: execute this code in the project root folder
2- Global NPM Packages List
: Gets a list of all the globally installed NPM packages in your system.
npm list -g
3- NPM Package Info
: Gets a specific package info.
npm info package-name
: Gets a specific package version info.
npm info package-name version
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
version is an (optional flag to get only the selected package version info) --> You can specify a version like the example below ⬇️
Example: npm info react 18.0.0
"If the selected version of the package is not installed the command will return no info, Works only when the package is already installed in a specific project or globally"
4- Install NPM Package Globally
: will install the package globally.
npm install -g package name
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
5- Install NPM Package for a Specific Project
: will install the package in the selected project.
npm i package name
Note: execute this code in the project root folder
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
6- Uninstall NPM Package
: Will uninstall the package
npm uninstall package name
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
7- Install NPM Package as a Development Dependency Only
: Save the package under devDependencies ( development-only packages )
npm install package name -D
Note: replace the package-name with the real package-name
Example: npm install sass -dev
8- The --save Flag is no More Used.
: The --save flag is not needed any more for installing packages.
If you are watching tutorials or reading articles where they are using or mentioning the --save flag, you don't need to use this anymore.
⚠️ You don't need the --save flag when installing a package, after NPM version 5 as it adds the package to the package.json file automatically.
Quote from the NPM Docs:
As of npm 5.0.0, installed modules are added as a dependency by default, so the --save option is no longer needed .