typestrong/ts-node

★ 13,134TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5Setup · easy

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What It Does
      Run TS without compile
      Interactive TS prompt
      On-the-fly transpile
      Reads tsconfig
    Use Cases
      One-off scripts
      Test runners
      Debuggers
      Build tools
    Performance Options
      Type checking optional
      swc transpiler swap
      Fast startup mode
    Configuration
      tsconfig.json
      Command-line flags
      ESM and CJS modes

mindmap root((repo)) What It Does Run TS without compile Interactive TS prompt On-the-fly transpile Reads tsconfig Use Cases One-off scripts Test runners Debuggers Build tools Performance Options Type checking optional swc transpiler swap Fast startup mode Configuration tsconfig.json Command-line flags ESM and CJS modes

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Things people build with this

USE CASE 1

Run a TypeScript script directly from the command line without compiling it to JavaScript first.

USE CASE 2

Open an interactive TypeScript REPL to quickly test TypeScript expressions and explore types.

USE CASE 3

Connect TypeScript source files directly to Jest, Mocha, or another test runner without a build step.

USE CASE 4

Use ts-node with swc for faster startup in projects where type checking happens in the editor or CI instead.

Tech stack

TypeScriptNode.jsnpm

Getting it running

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Type checking is off by default for faster startup, enable it with a flag if you want runtime type error detection.

In plain English

ts-node lets you run TypeScript files directly on Node.js without a separate compile step. Normally, TypeScript code needs to be converted to JavaScript before Node.js can run it. ts-node handles that conversion on the fly as it loads each file, so you can write a .ts file and execute it immediately the same way you would a .js file. The main use cases are running one-off scripts, working in an interactive TypeScript prompt (called a REPL), and connecting ts-node to test runners, debuggers, or build tools that expect to call TypeScript files directly. It reads your existing tsconfig.json automatically, so any compiler settings you have already configured will apply without extra setup. Installation is done through npm, either project-local or globally. Once installed, you replace node with ts-node at the command line. For example, ts-node script.ts runs a TypeScript file, and ts-node on its own opens the interactive prompt. Several shortcut commands are included for common modes, such as ts-node-esm for the native ES modules format. ts-node offers flexibility for different performance needs. Full type checking is optional and off by default, which keeps startup fast. You can turn it on if you want ts-node to catch type errors at runtime, or leave it off and rely on your editor or CI pipeline for that instead. It also supports swapping in a third-party transpiler (such as swc) for faster startup when type checking is not needed. Configuration happens through the tsconfig.json file or command-line flags. Common options include skipping node_modules, scoping transformations to a specific directory, and controlling how CommonJS and native ECMAScript modules are handled together. The full README is longer than what was shown.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1

Show me how to install ts-node and run a TypeScript file called app.ts directly from the command line.

Prompt 2

How do I open an interactive TypeScript prompt with ts-node and test a few TypeScript expressions in it?

Prompt 3

Set up ts-node with Jest so I can write and run TypeScript tests without a separate compile step.

Prompt 4

How do I enable full type checking in ts-node so it catches type errors when I run my script?

Prompt 5

Configure ts-node to use the swc transpiler for faster startup in my Node.js project.

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