📦 Why Project Structure Matters
As your Node.js app grows, a good folder structure keeps your sanity intact. It makes your app:
Easier to scale
Easier to test
Easier to onboard new devs
Forget monolithic files. Let’s modularize smartly.
📁 Recommended Structure
my-app/
├── src/
│ ├── config/ # App configuration (env, DB, etc.)
│ ├── modules/ # Feature-based modules (User, Auth, etc.)
│ │ └── user/
│ │ ├── user.controller.ts
│ │ ├── user.service.ts
│ │ ├── user.model.ts
│ │ ├── user.routes.ts
│ │ └── user.validators.ts
│ ├── middleware/ # Custom middlewares
│ ├── utils/ # Utility functions/helpers
│ ├── jobs/ # Cron jobs, background workers
│ ├── app.ts # Express app setup
│ └── server.ts # Entry point
├── tests/ # Unit and integration tests
├── .env
├── .env.example
├── tsconfig.json # TypeScript config (if using TS)
├── package.json
└── README.md
🔍 Breakdown
src/modules/ — 💡 Feature First
Split features into self-contained modules:
Easier to test and scale
Encourages separation of concerns
Think DDD-lite (Domain Driven Design)
For example:
modules/
└── auth/
├── auth.controller.ts
├── auth.service.ts
├── auth.routes.ts
├── auth.model.ts
└── auth.validators.ts
src/config/ — 🔧 Config Central
Centralized configuration logic:
ts
// config/database.ts
import mongoose from 'mongoose';
export const connectDB = async () => {
await mongoose.connect(process.env.MONGO_URI!);
};
src/middleware/ — 🔒 Middlewares
Store custom Express middleware here:
Error handlers
Auth guards
Rate limiters
Logging middleware (e.g., Morgan)
src/utils/ — 🧰 Shared Helpers
For things like:
Response formatters
Token generation
Password hashing
🧪 tests/ — Testing-First
Organize unit and integration tests per module:
pgsql
tests/
└── user/
├── user.controller.test.ts
└── user.service.test.ts
Use tools like:
Jest or Vitest (unit tests)
Supertest (API tests)
✅ Bonus Tips
Add src/types/ if you need global types.
Use a .env.example for teammates to know required environment variables.
Lint + Format using eslint and prettier.
Use module-alias to avoid ugly ../../ imports.
Use a layered structure only when needed — don’t over-engineer a todo app.
🚀 TL;DR
Use this structure if:
✅ You're building a mid-to-large scale API
✅ You want clean, modular code
✅ You care about testing and future scaling
💬 What’s Your Take?
Got a favorite structure? Drop it in the comments!
Let’s build better backends, one folder at a time. 🧑💻🔥
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