Create Node Express Modular Starter

A CLI tool to generate a production-ready, modular, and reusable Node.js Express starter project for building scalable backend and SaaS applications.

Built with TypeScript, Clean Architecture, and industry best practices.

🚀 Quick Start

Generate a new project in seconds using npx:

npx create-node-express-modular my-app

🚀 Features

• Modular Architecture
  Feature-based modules (Controller, Service, Model, Validation, Interface, Routes).

• Authentication & Authorization
  Secure JWT-based auth (Access & Refresh Tokens) with role-based access control.

• Strict Validation
  End-to-end request validation using Zod (body, query, params).

• Centralized Error Handling
  Global error handler for Zod, Mongoose, and custom App errors.

• Security First
  Helmet, Rate Limiting, CORS configuration, and secure cookies.

• Database Best Practices
  Mongoose with clean schema design, indexing, and connection handling.

• File Upload Support
  Multer + Cloudinary integration for secure media uploads.

• Logging
  Production-ready logging using Winston.

• Email & OTP Utilities
  Built-in helpers for email sending and OTP workflows.

• Great Developer Experience
  ESLint, Prettier, TypeScript types, and clean project structure.

📂 Project Structure

src/
├── config/             # Environment configuration (Zod validated)
├── errors/             # Custom error classes & handlers
├── interface/          # Shared interfaces & types
├── middlewares/        # Auth, validation, error handlers
├── modules/            # Feature modules (Auth, User, etc.)
│   ├── auth/
│   └── user/
├── routes/             # Centralized router
├── utils/              # Shared utilities (JWT, Logger, Mail, etc.)
├── app.ts              # Express app setup
└── server.ts           # Entry point

🛠️ Getting Started (Generated Project)

After running the npx command, follow these steps inside your new project folder:

1. Install dependencies:

   npm install

2. Set up Environment Variables: Copy .env.example to .env and fill in the required values.

   cp .env.example .env

   [!NOTE] Make sure to configure MONGO_URI, ACCESS_TOKEN_SECRET, and REFRESH_TOKEN_SECRET.

3. Run the server:

   npm run dev

📜 Scripts

• npm run dev: Start development server with hot-reload.
• npm run build: Compile TypeScript to JavaScript.
• npm start: Start the production server (after build).
• npm run lint: Run ESLint.
• npm run lint:fix: Fix linting errors.
• npm run format: Format code with Prettier.

🤝 Contributing

Contributions are welcome! If you want to contribute to the CLI tool itself:

1. Clone the repository.
2. Install dependencies: npm install.
3. Use npm link to test the CLI locally.
4. Submit a pull request.

📄 License

This project is licensed under the ISC License.