Setting a Default Node Version for Your Project with .nvmrc

I used to switch between projects and wonder why some things just... broke.

Then I realized the issue: each project was using a different Node.js version.

Sometimes one needed Node 18 for a modern API, while another was still running on 16.

That’s when I found out about .nvmrc.

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What is .nvmrc?

It’s a simple file that you add to the root of your project to define the Node.js version that should be used.

No JSON. No config object. Just the version number.

18.16.1

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How does it work?

When using NVM (Node Version Manager), you can run:

nvm use

And NVM will automatically switch your Node.js version to the one specified in .nvmrc.

This is super helpful when you clone a repo and want to make sure you're using the right environment.

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Why it matters

• Keeps your local version consistent with the project
• Prevents bugs caused by incompatible Node versions
• Makes onboarding easier for teams

If you're working with multiple Node projects, this tiny file can save you hours of debugging.

Console You Later!

Comments

[Waleed]

👏 Nice post. There is also .node-version file which is used by multiple node version managers. Here is a list of it's compatibility.