Provided by: npm_8.18.0~ds1-1_all 
NAME
npm-init - Create a package.json file
Synopsis
npm init <package-spec> (same as `npx <package-spec>)
npm init <@scope> (same as `npx <@scope>/create`)
aliases: create, innit
Description
npm init <initializer> can be used to set up a new or existing npm package.
initializer in this case is an npm package named create-<initializer>, which will be
installed by npm help npm-exec, and then have its main bin executed -- presumably creating
or updating package.json and running any other initialization-related operations.
The init command is transformed to a corresponding npm exec operation as follows:
• npm init foo -> npm exec create-foo
• npm init @usr/foo -> npm exec @usr/create-foo
• npm init @usr -> npm exec @usr/create
• npm init @usr@2.0.0 -> npm exec @usr/create@2.0.0
• npm init @usr/foo@2.0.0 -> npm exec @usr/create-foo@2.0.0
If the initializer is omitted (by just calling npm init), init will fall back to legacy
init behavior. It will ask you a bunch of questions, and then write a package.json for
you. It will attempt to make reasonable guesses based on existing fields, dependencies,
and options selected. It is strictly additive, so it will keep any fields and values that
were already set. You can also use -y/--yes to skip the questionnaire altogether. If you
pass --scope, it will create a scoped package.
Note: if a user already has the create-<initializer> package globally installed, that will
be what npm init uses. If you want npm to use the latest version, or another specific
version you must specify it:
• npm init foo@latest # fetches and runs the latest create-foo from
the registry
• npm init foo@1.2.3 # runs create-foo@1.2.3 specifically
Forwarding additional options
Any additional options will be passed directly to the command, so npm init foo -- --hello
will map to npm exec -- create-foo --hello.
To better illustrate how options are forwarded, here's a more evolved example showing
options passed to both the npm cli and a create package, both following commands are
equivalent:
• npm init foo -y --registry=<url> -- --hello -a
• npm exec -y --registry=<url> -- create-foo --hello -a
Examples
Create a new React-based project using create-react-app https://npm.im/create-react-app:
$ npm init react-app ./my-react-app
Create a new esm-compatible package using create-esm https://npm.im/create-esm:
$ mkdir my-esm-lib && cd my-esm-lib
$ npm init esm --yes
Generate a plain old package.json using legacy init:
$ mkdir my-npm-pkg && cd my-npm-pkg
$ git init
$ npm init
Generate it without having it ask any questions:
$ npm init -y
Workspaces support
It's possible to create a new workspace within your project by using the workspace config
option. When using npm init -w <dir> the cli will create the folders and boilerplate
expected while also adding a reference to your project package.json "workspaces": []
property in order to make sure that new generated workspace is properly set up as such.
Given a project with no workspaces, e.g:
.
+-- package.json
You may generate a new workspace using the legacy init:
$ npm init -w packages/a
That will generate a new folder and package.json file, while also updating your top-level
package.json to add the reference to this new workspace:
.
+-- package.json
`-- packages
`-- a
`-- package.json
The workspaces init also supports the npm init <initializer> -w <dir> syntax, following
the same set of rules explained earlier in the initial Description section of this page.
Similar to the previous example of creating a new React-based project using
create-react-app https://npm.im/create-react-app, the following syntax will make sure to
create the new react app as a nested workspace within your project and configure your
package.json to recognize it as such:
npm init -w packages/my-react-app react-app .
This will make sure to generate your react app as expected, one important consideration to
have in mind is that npm exec is going to be run in the context of the newly created
folder for that workspace, and that's the reason why in this example the initializer uses
the initializer name followed with a dot to represent the current directory in that
context, e.g: react-app .:
.
+-- package.json
`-- packages
+-- a
| `-- package.json
`-- my-react-app
+-- README
+-- package.json
`-- ...
Configuration
yes
• Default: null
• Type: null or Boolean
Automatically answer "yes" to any prompts that npm might print on the command line.
force
• Default: false
• Type: Boolean
Removes various protections against unfortunate side effects, common mistakes, unnecessary
performance degradation, and malicious input.
• Allow clobbering non-npm files in global installs.
• Allow the npm version command to work on an unclean git repository.
• Allow deleting the cache folder with npm cache clean.
• Allow installing packages that have an engines declaration requiring a different version
of npm.
• Allow installing packages that have an engines declaration requiring a different version
of node, even if --engine-strict is enabled.
• Allow npm audit fix to install modules outside your stated dependency range (including
SemVer-major changes).
• Allow unpublishing all versions of a published package.
• Allow conflicting peerDependencies to be installed in the root project.
• Implicitly set --yes during npm init.
• Allow clobbering existing values in npm pkg
• Allow unpublishing of entire packages (not just a single version).
If you don't have a clear idea of what you want to do, it is strongly recommended that you
do not use this option!
scope
• Default: the scope of the current project, if any, or ""
• Type: String
Associate an operation with a scope for a scoped registry.
Useful when logging in to or out of a private registry:
# log in, linking the scope to the custom registry
npm login --scope=@mycorp --registry=https://registry.mycorp.com
# log out, removing the link and the auth token
npm logout --scope=@mycorp
This will cause @mycorp to be mapped to the registry for future installation of packages
specified according to the pattern @mycorp/package.
This will also cause npm init to create a scoped package.
# accept all defaults, and create a package named "@foo/whatever",
# instead of just named "whatever"
npm init --scope=@foo --yes
workspace
• Default:
• Type: String (can be set multiple times)
Enable running a command in the context of the configured workspaces of the current
project while filtering by running only the workspaces defined by this configuration
option.
Valid values for the workspace config are either:
• Workspace names
• Path to a workspace directory
• Path to a parent workspace directory (will result in selecting all workspaces within
that folder)
When set for the npm init command, this may be set to the folder of a workspace which does
not yet exist, to create the folder and set it up as a brand new workspace within the
project.
This value is not exported to the environment for child processes.
workspaces
• Default: null
• Type: null or Boolean
Set to true to run the command in the context of all configured workspaces.
Explicitly setting this to false will cause commands like install to ignore workspaces
altogether. When not set explicitly:
• Commands that operate on the node_modules tree (install, update, etc.) will link
workspaces into the node_modules folder. - Commands that do other things (test, exec,
publish, etc.) will operate on the root project, unless one or more workspaces are
specified in the workspace config.
This value is not exported to the environment for child processes.
workspaces-update
• Default: true
• Type: Boolean
If set to true, the npm cli will run an update after operations that may possibly change
the workspaces installed to the node_modules folder.
include-workspace-root
• Default: false
• Type: Boolean
Include the workspace root when workspaces are enabled for a command.
When false, specifying individual workspaces via the workspace config, or all workspaces
via the workspaces flag, will cause npm to operate only on the specified workspaces, and
not on the root project.
This value is not exported to the environment for child processes.
See Also
• npm help package spec
• init-package-json module http://npm.im/init-package-json
• npm help package.json
• npm help version
• npm help scope
• npm help exec
• npm help workspaces
undefined NaN NPM-INIT(1)