canirequire

canirequire › CommonJS › babel

Is babel ESM-only? Can you require() it?

Turn ES6 code into readable vanilla ES5 with source maps

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against babel@6.23.0. Markdown · JSON

CommonJS CommonJS on paper — require() failed in our runtime test

babel declares a CommonJS entry only, but require("babel") failed on every Node.js version in our probe: The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`. import "babel" resolves to the same file, so it fails the same way. That usually means a missing peer dependency, a browser-only global, or a package that is not meant to be loaded directly; see the runtime table below.

What to do

  1. require("babel") failed in our probe on every Node.js version (The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`); check the package README for peer dependencies or setup before relying on it.
  2. From ES modules use the default import: import babel from "babel"; then destructure. Named imports only work when Node.js can statically detect the exports.
  3. TypeScript: no types are available for babel; declare the module yourself if you need them.
  4. This package is deprecated: In 6.x, the babel package has been deprecated in favor of babel-cli. Check https://opencollective.com/babel to support the Babel maintainers
Latest
6.23.0 (Feb 13, 2017)
Module format
CommonJS
Last CommonJS version
6.23.0
TypeScript types
None
Node engines
not declared
Weekly downloads
169K
License
MIT

Deprecated: In 6.x, the babel package has been deprecated in favor of babel-cli. Check https://opencollective.com/babel to support the Babel maintainers

Does babel@6.23.0 actually load? Runtime test results

Installed and executed on Sep 9, 2026 with require("babel") from a CommonJS file and import "babel" from an ES module.

Runtimerequire("babel")import "babel"
Node.js 18✗ failsError✗ failsError
Node.js 20✗ failsError✗ failsError
Node.js 22✗ failsError✗ failsError
Node.js 24✗ failsError✗ failsError
Node.js 26✗ failsError✗ failsError
Bun 1.4.0✗ failsError✗ failsError

A failing require() on a CommonJS package usually means the package needs a browser/DOM global, a peer dependency, or a native binary that is not available in a bare Node.js process.

How to import babel

ES modules (import)

import babel from "babel";

Named imports from a CommonJS package only work when Node.js can statically detect them. If a named import fails, use the default import and destructure.

CommonJS (require)

// require("babel") failed in our probe on every Node.js version we test (The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`); see the runtime table.
const babel = require("babel");

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm, corrected where a runtime test of that version contradicted them (161 versions; the newest 60 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
5.5.2 – 6.23.0CommonJSJun 5, 2015

Frequently asked

Is babel ESM-only?

babel@6.23.0 declares a CommonJS entry, but require() fails at runtime. babel declares a CommonJS entry only, but require("babel") failed on every Node.js version in our probe: The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`. import "babel" resolves to the same file, so it fails the same way. That usually means a missing peer dependency, a browser-only global, or a package that is not meant to be loaded directly; see the runtime table below.

Can I require babel?

Not in practice. babel declares a CommonJS entry, but require("babel") failed on every Node.js version in our probe: The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`. Check the package README for peer dependencies or setup before relying on it.

Can I import babel with ES module syntax?

Yes. import babel from "babel" works in Node.js and Bun because they support importing CommonJS modules. Named imports work only when Node.js can statically detect the exports.

Does babel work in Bun?

Importing babel failed in Bun 1.4.0 on Sep 9, 2026: error: The node API for `babel` has been moved to `babel-core`.

Does babel ship TypeScript types?

No. babel ships no type declarations and there is no @types package for it.

Links

Other commonjs packages

Similar popularity