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

CLI app helper

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against meow@14.1.0. JSON

ESM-only ESM-only since 10.0.0 — last CommonJS version is 9.0.0

meow dropped its CommonJS build in 10.0.0 (May 2021). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 9.0.0, published Jan 7, 2021.

On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and every newer release, require("meow") 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.

meow@14.1.0 declares engines ">=20", so Node.js 18 is outside its supported range regardless of module format.

Latest
14.1.0 (Feb 20, 2026)
Module format
ESM-only
Last CommonJS version
9.0.0
ESM-only since
10.0.0 (May 5, 2021)
TypeScript types
Bundled
Node engines
>=20
Weekly downloads
36.7M
License
MIT

Does meow@14.1.0 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("meow")import "meow"
Node.js 18✗ failsERR_REQUIRE_ESM✗ failsError: yargs parser supports a minimum Node.js version of 20. Read our version support policy: https://github.com/yargs/yargs-parser#supported-nodejs-versions
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 meow

ES modules (import)

import meow from "meow";

CommonJS (require)

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

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

// Or pin the last CommonJS release:
// npm install meow@9.0.0

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm (46 versions; the newest 46 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
10.0.0 – 14.1.0ESM-onlyMay 5, 2021
1.0.0 – 9.0.0CommonJSOct 12, 2014

Frequently asked

Is meow ESM-only?

meow@14.1.0 is ESM-only. meow dropped its CommonJS build in 10.0.0 (May 2021). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 9.0.0, published Jan 7, 2021.

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

9.0.0 is the last version of meow with a CommonJS build. Install it with "npm install meow@9.0.0". Every version from 10.0.0 on is ESM-only.

How do I use meow from a CommonJS file?

Use a dynamic import: const mod = await import("meow"). On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and newer, a plain require("meow") also works for ESM packages that do not use top-level await. Alternatively pin meow@9.0.0.

Does meow work in Bun?

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

Does meow ship TypeScript types?

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

Links

Other esm-only packages

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