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📝 Introduction

TypeScript Express Starter is an interactive CLI tool that generates production-ready TypeScript Express projects with your preferred stack configuration.

Instead of starting from scratch, this CLI provides a comprehensive project generator with multiple database integrations, development tools, and deployment configurations. Choose from 10+ templates and customize your development workflow in minutes.

• Interactive Setup: Choose database, ORM, linter, testing framework, and more
• Production Ready: Docker, PM2, NGINX configurations included
• Developer Experience: Hot reload, testing, linting, and formatting pre-configured
• Multiple Stacks: Support for 10+ database/ORM combinations

💎 CLI Features

• 🎯 Interactive Setup — Smart CLI with guided project configuration

• 🚀 Quick or Custom Mode — Start fast with presets or choose tools category by category

• 🗄️ Multiple Database Options — Prisma, Sequelize, TypeORM, Mongoose, Knex, and more

• 🛠️ Development Tools — Choose from ESLint, Biome, Jest, Vitest, Docker, PM2

• 📱 Template Selection — 10+ pre-configured project templates

• ⚡ Auto Configuration — Dependencies, scripts, and configs automatically setup

• 🔧 Smart Dependencies — Tool compatibility and requirement resolution

• 📦 Package Manager Agnostic — Works with npm, pnpm, or yarn

• 🚀 Zero Config Start — Generated projects work immediately

• 🎨 Customizable — Add your own templates and development tools

⚡️ Quick Start

# Install globally
npm install -g typescript-express-starter

# Run the interactive CLI
typescript-express-starter

┌  📘 TypeScript Express Starter
│
◇  Choose setup mode:
│  ● 🚀 Quick start (recommended preset) (Automatically selects a sensible toolset)
│  ○ 🛠 Custom (step-by-step) (Pick tools category by category)
│
◇  Which package manager do you want to use?
│  ● npm
│  ○ pnpm
│  ○ yarn
│
◇  Choose a template:
│  ● Express TypeScript (Basic Express + TypeScript starter · beginner · stable)
│  ○ Drizzle PostgreSQL (Modern SQL toolkit with type safety + full devtools · intermediate · stable)
│
◇  Enter your project name:
│  your-project-name
│
◇  Choose quick profile:
│  ○ Minimal (Template only (no additional devtools))
│  ● Recommended (Balanced default toolchain)
│  ○ Full (One tool from each category)
│
◇  Preset ────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╮
│                                                                     │
│  Quick profile selected: recommended (biome, tsup, vitest, docker)  │
│                                                                     │
├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────╯
│
◇  Configuration summary ────────────────────────╮
│                                                │
│  Setup mode     : quick                        │
│  Package manager: pnpm                         │
│  Template       : Express TypeScript           │
│  Project name   : your-project-name            │
│  Devtools       : Biome, tsup, Vitest, Docker  │
│                                                │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────╯
│
◆  Proceed with project generation?
│  ● Yes / ○ No
│
✔ 📦 Base dependencies installed!
│
└ 🎉 Project setup complete!

# Navigate to your project
cd your-project-name

# Start development server
npm run dev

Generated Project Features:

• 🌐 Express server: http://localhost:3000/
• 🔄 Hot reload with nodemon

📂 Generated Project Structure

When you create a new project, the CLI generates this structure:

your-project/
├── src/
│   ├── config/           # Configuration files, environment settings
│   ├── controllers/      # Request handling & response logic
│   ├── dtos/             # Data Transfer Objects for request/response
│   ├── entities/         # Database entities (if using ORM)
│   ├── exceptions/       # Custom exception classes
│   ├── interfaces/       # TypeScript interfaces and type definitions
│   ├── middlewares/      # Middlewares (logging, auth, error handling)
│   ├── repositories/     # Database access logic
│   ├── routes/           # API route definitions
│   ├── services/         # Business logic
│   ├── utils/            # Utility/helper functions
│   ├── app.ts            # Express app initialization
│   └── server.ts         # Server entry point
├── .env                   # Environment variables file
├── .env.development.local # Development environment variables
├── .env.production.local  # Production environment variables
├── .env.test.local        # Test environment variables
├── nodemon.json           # Nodemon configuration
├── package.json           # Project dependencies and scripts
└── tsconfig.json          # TypeScript configuration

🛠 Development Tools Available

Choose from these categories during project setup:

| Category | Available Tools | Description | | ------------- | --------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------- | | Linter | biome, eslint, oxlint | Code formatting & linting (Biome is all-in-one) | | Bundler | swc, tsup | Fast TypeScript compilation and bundling | | Testing | jest, vitest | Unit & integration testing frameworks | | Container | docker | Docker & docker-compose configuration |

To be added later (currently in progress):

| Category | Available Tools | Description | | ------------- | --------------- | ------------------------------------ | | Process | pm2 | Production process management | | CI/CD | github | GitHub Actions workflows | | Git Hooks | husky | Pre-commit hooks for quality control | | API Docs | swagger | OpenAPI/Swagger documentation |

Smart Selection: The CLI automatically resolves tool dependencies and compatibility.

🧩 Available Templates

Current template status with comprehensive compatibility tested:

✅ Production Ready & Fully Tested

| Template | Description | Status | Compatibility | | -------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | --------- | ------------- | | default | Express + TypeScript starter | ✅ Active | 🎯 Baseline | | drizzle-postgresql | Drizzle ORM + PostgreSQL (Type-safe, Zero overhead) | ✅ Active | 🌟 100% (8/8) |

🔧 Enhanced Development Tools Support

drizzle-postgresql template is fully compatible with:

Linters

• ✅ Biome - Modern unified tool (linter + formatter)
• ✅ ESLint + Prettier - Traditional reliable combination
• ✅ Oxlint - Rust-based high-performance linter (18ms!)

Compilers

• ✅ tsup - esbuild-based bundler (193ms build!)
• ✅ SWC - Rust-based native performance compiler

Test Runners

• ✅ Jest - Mature test framework with full E2E support
• ✅ Vitest - Modern Vite-based test runner

🎯 All 8 combinations tested and verified - Choose your preferred development experience!

🚧 Coming Soon

ORM/Database Integration

| Template | Description | Priority | | --------------- | --------------------------------------------------- | ---------- | | prisma | Type-safe database client with auto-generated types | 🔥 Next | | mongoose | Elegant MongoDB ODM for Node.js | 🔥 Next | | typeorm | Decorator-based Active Record ORM | 🚧 Planned | | sequelize | Mature Promise-based SQL ORM | 🚧 Planned | | mikro-orm | Data Mapper ORM pattern for TypeScript | 🚧 Planned | | typegoose | TypeScript-friendly Mongoose alternative | 🚧 Planned | | node-postgres | High-performance PostgreSQL native driver | 🚧 Planned | | knex | Flexible SQL query builder & migrations | 🚧 Planned |

Architecture/Controller Style

| Template | Description | Priority | | --------- | ------------------------------------- | ------------ | | graphql | GraphQL API schema with Apollo Server | 🚧 Knowledge |

🤔 Why Use This CLI?

vs. Manual Setup

| Aspect | Manual Setup | TypeScript Express Starter CLI | | ------------------ | ------------------------------- | ------------------------------------- | | Time | 🔴 Hours of configuration | ✅ 2-3 minutes interactive setup | | Configuration | 🔴 Manual dependency management | ✅ Auto-resolved, compatible versions | | Best Practices | 🔴 Research required | ✅ Pre-configured industry standards | | Consistency | 🔴 Varies by developer | ✅ Standardized project structure | | Updates | 🔴 Manual maintenance | ✅ CLI updates bring new features |

vs. Other Generators

| Feature | TypeScript Express Starter | Other Generators | | -------------------- | -------------------------- | ---------------- | | Database Choice | ✅ 10+ options planned | Limited options | | Tool Selection | ✅ Mix & match dev tools | Fixed stack | | TypeScript First | ✅ Built for TypeScript | Often JS-first | | Production Ready | ✅ Docker, PM2 included | Basic setup |

⭐️ Stargazers

🍴 Forkers

🤝 Contributors

💳 License

MIT