canirequire

canirequire › ESM-only › path-type

Is path-type ESM-only? Can you require() it?

Check if a path is a file, directory, or symlink

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against path-type@6.0.0. JSON

ESM-only ESM-only since 5.0.0 — last CommonJS version is 4.0.0

path-type dropped its CommonJS build in 5.0.0 (January 2021). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 4.0.0, published Mar 12, 2019.

On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and every newer release, require("path-type") 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
6.0.0 (Jul 26, 2024)
Module format
ESM-only
Last CommonJS version
4.0.0
ESM-only since
5.0.0 (Jan 27, 2021)
TypeScript types
Bundled
Node engines
>=18
Weekly downloads
89.9M
License
MIT

Does path-type@6.0.0 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("path-type")import "path-type"
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 path-type

ES modules (import)

import pathType from "path-type";

CommonJS (require)

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

// Any Node.js version:
const pathType = await import("path-type");

// Or pin the last CommonJS release:
// npm install path-type@4.0.0

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm (7 versions; the newest 7 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
5.0.0 – 6.0.0ESM-onlyJan 27, 2021
1.0.0 – 4.0.0CommonJSSep 4, 2015

Frequently asked

Is path-type ESM-only?

path-type@6.0.0 is ESM-only. path-type dropped its CommonJS build in 5.0.0 (January 2021). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 4.0.0, published Mar 12, 2019.

Which version of path-type still supports CommonJS / require()?

4.0.0 is the last version of path-type with a CommonJS build. Install it with "npm install path-type@4.0.0". Every version from 5.0.0 on is ESM-only.

How do I use path-type from a CommonJS file?

Use a dynamic import: const mod = await import("path-type"). On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and newer, a plain require("path-type") also works for ESM packages that do not use top-level await. Alternatively pin path-type@4.0.0.

Does path-type work in Bun?

Yes. import "path-type" loaded successfully in Bun 1.4 on Sep 9, 2026.

Does path-type ship TypeScript types?

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

Links

Other esm-only packages

Similar popularity