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

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Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against bower@1.8.14. Markdown · JSON

CommonJS CommonJS — require() works on every Node.js version we test

bower ships CommonJS only. require("bower") works on every Node.js version we test (18, 20, 22, 24 and 26) and in Bun. The package declares Node.js >=0.10.0. import "bower" also works because Node.js and Bun can import CommonJS from ES modules, but only the default export is guaranteed; named imports depend on Node's static analysis of the module.

What to do

  1. require("bower") works on every Node.js version we test (18, 20, 22, 24 and 26) and in Bun. The package declares Node.js >=0.10.0.
  2. From ES modules use the default import: import bower from "bower"; then destructure. Named imports only work when Node.js can statically detect the exports.
  3. TypeScript: no types are available for bower; declare the module yourself if you need them.
Latest
1.8.14 (Mar 14, 2022)
Module format
CommonJS
Last CommonJS version
1.8.14
TypeScript types
None
Node engines
>=0.10.0
Weekly downloads
376K
License
MIT

Does bower@1.8.14 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("bower")import "bower"
Node.js 18✓ works✓ works
Node.js 20✓ works✓ works
Node.js 22✓ works✓ works
Node.js 24✓ works✓ works
Node.js 26✓ works✓ works
Bun 1.4.0✓ works✓ works

How to import bower

ES modules (import)

import bower from "bower";

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)

const bower = require("bower");

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 (99 versions; the newest 60 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
1.2.0 – 1.8.14CommonJSAug 19, 2013

Frequently asked

Is bower ESM-only?

bower@1.8.14 is a CommonJS package. bower ships CommonJS only. require("bower") works on every Node.js version we test (18, 20, 22, 24 and 26) and in Bun. The package declares Node.js >=0.10.0. import "bower" also works because Node.js and Bun can import CommonJS from ES modules, but only the default export is guaranteed; named imports depend on Node's static analysis of the module.

Can I import bower with ES module syntax?

Yes. import bower from "bower" 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 bower work in Bun?

Yes. import "bower" loaded successfully in Bun 1.4.0 on Sep 9, 2026.

Does bower ship TypeScript types?

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

Links

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