Nub

TypeScript-first developer supertool for Node.js. Run .ts/.tsx files directly on your installed Node, a faster npm run, a pnpm-compatible package manager, and a built-in Node version manager — no config, no lock-in, no nub-specific public APIs.

Documentation: https://nubjs.com/docs

Install

# macOS / Linux
curl -fsSL https://nubjs.com/install.sh | bash

# Windows (PowerShell)
irm https://nubjs.com/install.ps1 | iex

# Or via npm
npm install -g @nubjs/nub

Quickstart

# Run TypeScript directly — no tsconfig, no build step
nub server.ts

# Run package.json scripts (faster than npm/pnpm run)
nub run dev
nub run build

# Execute a local or remote binary
nubx vitest --run

# Watch mode — restart on change
nub watch server.ts

What Nub does

• TypeScript just works. Files ending in .ts, .tsx, .mts, .cts, .jsx execute directly. Enums, decorators, parameter properties, and namespaces are handled. Source maps work in error traces.
• The .env loading is built in. Workspace-aware, with ${VAR} expansion and .env.local / .env.production layering.
• The script runner is faster. Running nub run resolves scripts, adds node_modules/.bin to PATH, and runs lifecycle hooks — without the per-invocation Node bootstrap that npm run / pnpm run pay.
• Auto-flag injection. Experimental Node features are unflagged based on your Node version; opt out with --no-experimental-*.
• The tsconfig paths resolve. A path like @lib/utils resolves via compilerOptions.paths with no build step. Extensionless and data-format imports (.jsonc, .json5, .toml, .yaml) work too.
• Polyfills. Temporal, URLPattern, RegExp.escape, Error.isError, Promise.try, navigator — feature-detected, native wins.
• Package management. Commands such as nub install / add / remove are pnpm-compatible on the CLI and lockfile-compatible with whatever the project already uses (npm / pnpm / bun round-trip, yarn read-only) — Nub does not impose its own lockfile format.
• Node version management. Nub provisions and pins the project's Node version, so nvm / corepack are not needed.

How it works

Nub is not a Node fork. It is a Rust CLI that orchestrates your installed Node via Node's own extension surfaces — module.registerHooks(), --import preloads, V8 flag injection, an N-API addon for fast transpilation, and a per-invocation PATH shim. Code targeting Node runs on Nub byte-for-byte. For orchestration without augmentation, use nub run --node.

There are no nub-specific public APIs to import, no nub:* module namespace, and no config field you author named after the tool. Adopting Nub is reversible — the project keeps running under plain Node and your existing package manager.

Requirements

Nub runs on your installed Node, version 18.19.0 or newer. The fast tier (sync module.registerHooks()) engages on Node 22.15+; versions 18.19–22.14 run in a compatibility tier via async module.register(). Supported platforms: macOS (arm64, x64), Linux (x64, arm64), Windows (x64).

License

MIT — see LICENSE. Full docs at https://nubjs.com/docs.