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

An evented streaming XML parser in JavaScript

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against sax@1.6.1. JSON

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

sax ships CommonJS only. require("sax") works everywhere. import "sax" 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.

Latest
1.6.1 (Jul 24, 2026)
Module format
CommonJS
Last CommonJS version
1.6.1
TypeScript types
@types/sax
Node engines
>=11.0.0
Weekly downloads
78.9M
License
BlueOak-1.0.0

Does sax@1.6.1 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("sax")import "sax"
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✓ works✓ works

How to import sax

ES modules (import)

import sax from "sax";

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 sax = require("sax");

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm (54 versions; the newest 54 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
0.1.0 – 1.6.1CommonJSFeb 9, 2011

Frequently asked

Is sax ESM-only?

sax@1.6.1 is a CommonJS package. sax ships CommonJS only. require("sax") works everywhere. import "sax" 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 sax with ES module syntax?

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

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

Does sax ship TypeScript types?

Not bundled. Install the community types with "npm install -D @types/sax".

Links

Other commonjs packages

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