explaingit

uuidjs/uuid

Analysis updated 2026-06-24

★ 15,282TypeScriptAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5Setup · easy

TLDR

Zero-dependency JavaScript and TypeScript library that generates and validates RFC9562 UUIDs (v1, v3, v4, v5, v6, v7) for Node, browsers, and React Native.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((uuid))
    Inputs
      Namespace and name for v3 v5
      Timestamp for v1 v6 v7
      Random source
    Outputs
      UUID string
      Binary UUID
      Version detection
    Use Cases
      Generate request IDs
      Make unique DB primary keys
      Build idempotency keys
    Tech Stack
      JavaScript
      TypeScript
      Node
      Browser crypto
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Code map

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filefunction / class

What do people build with it?

USE CASE 1

Generate v4 random UUIDs for primary keys in a Node API

USE CASE 2

Create deterministic v5 UUIDs from a namespace plus a name

USE CASE 3

Produce time-ordered v7 UUIDs for sortable database rows

USE CASE 4

Validate and detect the version of an incoming UUID string

What is it built with?

JavaScriptTypeScriptNode

How does it compare?

uuidjs/uuidag-grid/ag-gridredis/ioredis
Stars15,28215,29915,264
LanguageTypeScriptTypeScriptTypeScript
Setup difficultyeasyeasyeasy
Complexity2/53/52/5
Audiencedeveloperdeveloperdeveloper

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you get it running?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 5min

Version 12 dropped CommonJS, use ESM or pin an older version if you need require().

In plain English

This is a JavaScript/TypeScript library for generating UUIDs (Universally Unique Identifiers). A UUID is a standardized 128-bit identifier formatted as a string of hexadecimal characters separated by dashes, like "b18794e8-5d0d-417c-b361-ba38e78411b4." They are used in software to give records, sessions, files, or any other entity a unique ID that is statistically guaranteed not to collide with others, even when generated independently across different systems. The library supports all versions of UUID defined in RFC9562 (the current standard, updating the older RFC4122). The most commonly used is v4, which is purely random. Version 1 and v6 are based on the current timestamp, version 3 and v5 are generated from a name and a namespace (using MD5 or SHA-1 respectively), and v7 is based on Unix Epoch time. The library also provides utilities to validate a UUID string, detect which version it is, and convert between binary and string representations. It is designed to be compact: it has zero dependencies and is tree-shakable, meaning a bundler can include only the specific UUID version functions your code actually uses. It uses the browser and Node.js "crypto" API for secure randomness. It works across Chrome, Safari, Firefox, Edge, Node.js, and React Native/Expo. Starting with version 12, the library no longer supports CommonJS module format. Installation is via npm install uuid.

Copy-paste prompts

Prompt 1
Show me the smallest import to generate a v4 UUID in a Vite app so the bundler tree-shakes the rest
Prompt 2
Write a function that takes a URL and returns a deterministic v5 UUID using the URL namespace
Prompt 3
Convert this v4 UUID string to its 16-byte binary form and back using the uuid package
Prompt 4
Migrate my v1 UUID code to v7 so my database rows sort by creation time

Frequently asked questions

What is uuid?

Zero-dependency JavaScript and TypeScript library that generates and validates RFC9562 UUIDs (v1, v3, v4, v5, v6, v7) for Node, browsers, and React Native.

What language is uuid written in?

Mainly TypeScript. The stack also includes JavaScript, TypeScript, Node.

How hard is uuid to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.

Who is uuid for?

Mainly developer.

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