POporridgeraisin·Dec 9, 2024
I prefer GitHub.com/tj/n. It's really nice.
In Mise: Dev tools, env vars, task runnertj
n
Shell2011–2024
tj / n
n
Node version management
30Distinct people
31Mentions
0Explicit recommenders
19.5KGitHub stars
What to know before exploring
What it is
Node version management
GitHub
Where it is used
No documented product use was verified in the last source check.
What people are saying
No recommendation phrase was found in the indexed comments.
No classified warning is attached to this page. Read the discussions before treating silence as approval.
Also in these discussions
- nvm-sh/nvm · linked in 5 of the same discussions
- mklement0/n-install · linked in 2 of the same discussions
Mentioned in the same Hacker News threads. That is not proof they are substitutes.
This week on Hacker News
Nov 7–Nov 14 UTC · Direct repository links and separately labeled related project stories. Indexed through 11/14/2026, 3:56:07 PM UTC.
No direct repository links were found in the indexed HN discussions over the past seven days. Older discussions are available below.
Mentions over time
HN mentions by year31 dated mentions
Observed mentions: 2011-04-02 17:01:58 UTC to 2024-12-09 00:42:58 UTC.
Counts come from the repository’s dated source evidence. Index cutoff: 2026-11-02 08:16:59 UTC.
View mention counts and date ranges
| Period | Start (UTC) | End (exclusive, UTC) | Mentions | Submissions | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 2011-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2012-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2012 | 2012-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2013-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| 2013 | 2013-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2014-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2014 | 2014-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2015-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 | 2015-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2016-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| 2016 | 2016-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2017 | 2017-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| 2018 | 2018-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 1 | 3 |
| 2019 | 2019-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2020 | 2020-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| 2021 | 2021-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 4 | 0 | 4 |
| 2022 | 2022-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2023 | 2023-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | 2024-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 2025-01-01 00:00:00 UTC | 1 | 0 | 1 |
What Hacker News says
31 sourcesNice work, and good on you for taking matters into your own hands.
I did the same thing as you a few years ago, and then shortly afterwards discovered n [0], which really ought to be the go-to for managing multiple versions of Node.js in my opinion.
0: https://github.com/tj/n
In Show HN: Nuño's Stupid Node Version ManagerI am currently aware of the following Javascript "version managers":
- NVM: https://github.com/nvm-sh/nvm
- N: https://github.com/tj/n
- Volta: https://volta.sh/
- FNM: https://fnm.vercel.app/
- ASDF-VM: https://asdf-vm.com/
I started with NVM, which is so slow that I'm confused (and maybe even impressed) as to how it's possible to be so slow.
Then I switched to FNM, which is delightfully not-slow.
Then I switched to Volta, because it supports installing standalone "tools" other than just Node, like Yarn and the various LSP servers that I use. If it's slower than FNM, it's not enough slower to matter to me.
I tried N but don't use it. It seems to have a more "interactive" UI than FNM or Volta, so use N if you like that kind of thing.
I haven't used ASDF-VM, which apparently supports several languages/interpreters/compilers, including Node
Read the rest
. I have been meaning to try it. I am somewhat skeptical that a general-purpose "do everything" tool would be better than a collection of purpose-built tools like Pyenv, Rbenv, Plenv, NVM/FNM/Volta/N, etc. etc., but people seem to really like it.
I've found n [0] by TJ Holowaychuk to be vastly simpler and easier to deal with than nvm because n just swaps out binaries instead of using shell tricks and indirection.
[0] https://github.com/tj/n
In MacBook Setup for the Pros 2021This looks too complicated, I prefer the simpler solution: tj/n (https://github.com/tj/n)
Installed using n-install (https://github.com/mklement0/n-install)
In Voltan is still the simplest node version manager I've come across [0]. Maybe worth checking out if you're looking for an alternative.
I also use the companion n-install [1] utility to get setup very quickly.
[0] https://github.com/tj/n
[1] https://github.com/mklement0/n-install
In Asdf – An Extendable Version ManagerIf you don’t like NVM’s shell config shenanigans you can use n - https://github.com/tj/n
In How to Install Node.js for Ubuntu 20.04 LTS?How does it compare to n?
https://github.com/tj/n
In Show HN: Fnm – Fast and simple Node.js version manager built in ReasonMLnvm sucks! try n!
https://github.com/tj/n/
seriously, it's so much tidier!
In SHCL – An unholy union of Posix shell and Common Lisp--no-check-certificate for something that is intended to install software is unacceptable.
https://github.com/tj/n/pull/475/files
I guess nvm is better, needs some polishing, though (error prone for scripted usage, because of unpredictable exit > 0 behavior.
https://github.com/creationix/nvm
In Node v9.4.0https://github.com/tj/n is also a good version manager for node.
In Node v9.4.0N – Interactively Manage Your Node.js Versions
1 points · Open discussionAnother way is to use "n": https://github.com/tj/n
In Node v8.0.0 ReleasedShowing the 15 most recent of 31 sources. Enable JavaScript to search and browse every indexed mention.