canirequire

canirequire › ESM-only › yargs

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

yargs the modern, pirate-themed, successor to optimist.

Last verified Sep 9, 2026 against yargs@18.1.0. JSON

ESM-only ESM-only since 18.0.0 — last CommonJS version is 17.7.3

yargs dropped its CommonJS build in 18.0.0 (May 2025). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 17.7.3, published Jun 19, 2026.

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

yargs@18.1.0 declares engines "^20.19.0 || ^22.12.0 || >=23", so Node.js 18 is outside its supported range regardless of module format.

Latest
18.1.0 (Jul 26, 2026)
Module format
ESM-only
Last CommonJS version
17.7.3
ESM-only since
18.0.0 (May 27, 2025)
TypeScript types
Bundled
Node engines
^20.19.0 || ^22.12.0 || >=23
Weekly downloads
229.0M
License
MIT

Does yargs@18.1.0 actually load? Runtime test results

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

Runtimerequire("yargs")import "yargs"
Node.js 18✗ failsERR_REQUIRE_ESM✗ failsSyntaxError
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 yargs

ES modules (import)

import yargs from "yargs";

CommonJS (require)

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

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

// Or pin the last CommonJS release:
// npm install yargs@17.7.3

Module format by version

Derived from the type, main and exports fields of every stable release on npm (180 versions; the newest 60 shown).

VersionsFormatFirst published
18.0.0 – 18.1.0ESM-onlyMay 27, 2025
16.0.0 – 17.7.3Dual (CommonJS + ESM)Sep 9, 2020
10.1.2 – 15.4.1CommonJSJan 17, 2018

Frequently asked

Is yargs ESM-only?

yargs@18.1.0 is ESM-only. yargs dropped its CommonJS build in 18.0.0 (May 2025). The last version you can require() on every Node.js version, including 18 and older, is 17.7.3, published Jun 19, 2026.

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

17.7.3 is the last version of yargs with a CommonJS build. Install it with "npm install yargs@17.7.3". Every version from 18.0.0 on is ESM-only.

How do I use yargs from a CommonJS file?

Use a dynamic import: const mod = await import("yargs"). On Node.js 20.19+, 22.12+ and newer, a plain require("yargs") also works for ESM packages that do not use top-level await. Alternatively pin yargs@17.7.3.

Does yargs work in Bun?

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

Does yargs ship TypeScript types?

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

Links

Other esm-only packages

Similar popularity