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

JWA, JWS, JWE, JWT, JWK, JWKS for Node.js, Browser, Cloudflare Workers, Deno, Bun, and other Web-interoperable runtimes

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against jose@6.2.12. JSON

ESM-only ESM-only since 6.0.0 — last CommonJS version is 5.10.0

jose dropped its CommonJS build in 6.0.0 (February 2025). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 5.10.0, published Feb 17, 2025.

On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and every newer release, require("jose") works anyway: Node can load synchronous ES modules through require(). Verified on Node 20, 22, 24, 26. Node.js 18 and older still fail with ERR_REQUIRE_ESM.

Latest
6.2.12 (Sep 5, 2026)
Module format
ESM-only
Last CommonJS version
5.10.0
ESM-only since
6.0.0 (Feb 22, 2025)
TypeScript types
Bundled
Node engines
not declared
Weekly downloads
116.5M
License
MIT

Does jose@6.2.12 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("jose")import "jose"
Node.js 18✗ failsERR_REQUIRE_ESM✓ works
Node.js 20✓ works✓ works
Node.js 22✓ works✓ works
Node.js 24✓ works✓ works
Node.js 26✓ works✓ works
Bun 1.4✓ works✓ works

How to import jose

ES modules (import)

import jose from "jose";

CommonJS (require)

// Node.js 20.19+ / 22.12+ / newer (package has no top-level await):
const jose = require("jose");

// Any Node.js version:
const jose = await import("jose");

// Or pin the last CommonJS release:
// npm install jose@5.10.0

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm (244 versions; the newest 60 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
6.0.0 – 6.2.12ESM-onlyFeb 22, 2025
5.0.1 – 5.10.0Dual (CommonJS + ESM)Oct 25, 2023

Frequently asked

Is jose ESM-only?

jose@6.2.12 is ESM-only. jose dropped its CommonJS build in 6.0.0 (February 2025). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 5.10.0, published Feb 17, 2025.

Which version of jose still supports CommonJS / require()?

5.10.0 is the last version of jose with a CommonJS build. Install it with "npm install jose@5.10.0". Every version from 6.0.0 on is ESM-only.

How do I use jose from a CommonJS file?

Use a dynamic import: const mod = await import("jose"). On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and newer, a plain require("jose") also works for ESM packages that do not use top-level await. Alternatively pin jose@5.10.0.

Does jose work in Bun?

Yes. import "jose" loaded successfully in Bun 1.4 on Sep 9, 2026.

Does jose ship TypeScript types?

Yes. jose bundles its own type declarations; no @types package is needed.

Links

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