create-hest-app

create-hest-app

The easiest way to get started with HestJS is by using create-hest-app. This CLI tool enables you to quickly start building a new HestJS application, with everything set up for you.

Quick Start

To get started, use the following command:

Interactive

You can create a new project interactively by running:

npx create-hest-app@latest
# or
yarn create hest-app
# or
pnpm create hest-app
# or
bun create hest-app

create-hest-app

The easiest way to get started with HestJS is by using create-hest-app. This CLI tool enables you to quickly start building a new HestJS application, with everything set up for you.

Quick Start

To get started, use the following command:

npx create-hest-app@latest
# or
yarn create hest-app
# or 
pnpm create hest-app
# or
bun create hest-app

To create a new app in a specific folder, you can send a name as an argument. For example, the following command will create a new HestJS app called blog-app in a folder with the same name:

npx create-hest-app@latest blog-app

Options

create-hest-app comes with the following options:

• --eslint, --no-eslint - Initialize with ESLint configuration. (default: true)
• --template [name] - Initialize with a specific template. Available templates: base, cqrs
• --use-npm - Explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using npm
• --use-pnpm - Explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using pnpm
• --use-yarn - Explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using Yarn
• --use-bun - Explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using Bun
• --skip-install - Explicitly tell the CLI to skip installing packages

Interactive Experience

When you run npx create-hest-app@latest with no arguments, it launches an interactive experience that guides you through setting up a project.

On installation, you'll see the following prompts:

✔ Would you like to use ESLint? No
✔ Which template would you like to use? Base - A simple HestJS application with basic features
✔ Would you like to include Swagger/Scalar API documentation? (adds ~12MB to build size) No
✔ Which package manager would you like to use? bun
✔ Skip installing dependencies? Yes
Creating a new HestJS app in /private/tmp/test-hest-app.

Using template: base
Copying files from template...

Template files copied successfully!

Updated package.json with new app name: test-hest-app

Success! Created test-hest-app at test-hest-app
Inside that directory, you can run several commands:

  bun dev
    Starts the development server.

  bun build
    Builds the app for production.

  bun start
    Runs the built app in production mode.

Dependencies were not installed. To install them, run:

  cd test-hest-app
  bun install

Then start the development server:

  bun dev

Templates

create-hest-app ships with two templates:

Base Template

A simple HestJS application with basic features including:

• Basic controller and service structure
• Dependency injection with TSyringe
• Exception handling
• Request/response interceptors
• Built on Hono for high performance

CQRS Template

A complete application implementing the CQRS (Command Query Responsibility Segregation) pattern:

• Command and Query handlers
• Event-driven architecture
• Domain entities and repositories
• User management example with CRUD operations
• Advanced validation and error handling
• All Base template features included

Swagger/Scalar Documentation

Both templates can optionally include Swagger/Scalar API documentation:

• Interactive API documentation
• Type-safe schema generation
• Adds approximately 12MB to the final build size
• Perfect for API development and testing

Why use Create HestJS App?

create-hest-app allows you to create a new HestJS app within seconds. It is officially maintained by the HestJS team, and includes a number of benefits:

• Interactive Experience: Running npx create-hest-app@latest (with no arguments) launches an interactive experience that guides you through setting up a project.
• Zero Dependencies: Initializing a project is as quick as one command. No need to install or configure tools like TypeScript, ESLint, etc.
• Tested: The package is tested against all of its templates to ensure each one boots successfully.
• Up to date: Templates are kept up to date with the latest versions of HestJS and its ecosystem.

System Requirements

• Node.js 18.0 or later
• macOS, Windows (including WSL), and Linux are supported

License

MIT

Non-interactive

You can also pass command line arguments to set up a new project non-interactively. See create-hest-app --help:

Usage: create-hest-app [project-directory] [options]

Options:
  -V, --version                        display version number
  --ts, --typescript                   initialize as a TypeScript project (default)
  --js, --javascript                   initialize as a JavaScript project
  --eslint                             initialize with ESLint config
  --use-npm                            explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using npm
  --use-pnpm                           explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using pnpm
  --use-yarn                           explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using Yarn
  --use-bun                            explicitly tell the CLI to bootstrap the app using Bun
  --skip-install                       explicitly tell the CLI to skip installing packages
  --template <template-name>           specify the template to use (basic, api, full-featured)
  -h, --help                           display help for command

Why use Create HestJS App?

create-hest-app allows you to create a new HestJS app within seconds. It is officially maintained by the creators of HestJS, and includes a number of benefits:

• Interactive Experience: Running npx create-hest-app@latest (with no arguments) launches an interactive experience that guides you through setting up a project.
• Zero Dependencies: Initializing a project is as quick as one second. Create HestJS App has zero dependencies.
• Offline Support: Create HestJS App will automatically detect if you're offline and bootstrap your project using your local package cache.
• Support for Examples: Create HestJS App can bootstrap your application using different templates (basic, api, full-featured).
• Tested: The package is part of the HestJS monorepo and tested using the same integration test suite as HestJS itself, ensuring it works as expected with every release.

Templates

Basic

A simple HestJS application with minimal setup. Perfect for getting started quickly.

API

A RESTful API template with validation, documentation, and best practices for building APIs.

Full-featured

A complete application template with all HestJS features including CQRS, validation, logging, and more.

Getting Started

After the installation is complete:

• Run npm run dev or yarn dev or pnpm dev or bun dev to start the development server on http://localhost:3000
• Visit http://localhost:3000 to view your application
• Edit src/index.ts and see your changes reflected in the browser

Learn More

To learn more about HestJS, take a look at the following resources:

• HestJS Documentation - learn about HestJS features and API
• Learn HestJS - an interactive HestJS tutorial

Contributing

We welcome contributions to create-hest-app! Please see our Contributing Guide for details.

License

MIT