Fast, unopinionated, minimalist web framework for Node.js.
import express from 'express'
const app = express()
app.get('/', (req, res) => {
res.send('Hello World')
})
app.listen(3000, () => {
console.log('Server is running on http://localhost:3000')
})
This is a Node.js module available through the npm registry.
Before installing, download and install Node.js. Node.js 18 or higher is required.
If this is a brand new project, make sure to create a package.json first with
the npm init command.
Installation is done using the
npm install command:
npm install express
Follow our installing guide for more information.
PROTIP Be sure to read the migration guide to v5
The quickest way to get started with express is to utilize the executable express(1) to generate an application as shown below:
Install the executable. The executable's major version will match Express's:
npm install -g express-generator@4
Create the app:
express /tmp/foo && cd /tmp/foo
Install dependencies:
npm install
Start the server:
npm start
View the website at: http://localhost:3000
The Express philosophy is to provide small, robust tooling for HTTP servers, making it a great solution for single page applications, websites, hybrids, or public HTTP APIs.
Express does not force you to use any specific ORM or template engine. With support for over 14 template engines via @ladjs/consolidate, you can quickly craft your perfect framework.
To view the examples, clone the Express repository:
git clone https://github.com/expressjs/express.git --depth 1 && cd express
Then install the dependencies:
npm install
Then run whichever example you want:
node examples/content-negotiation
The Express.js project welcomes all constructive contributions. Contributions take many forms, from code for bug fixes and enhancements, to additions and fixes to documentation, additional tests, triaging incoming pull requests and issues, and more!
See the Contributing Guide for more technical details on contributing.
This project has a Code of Conduct. By participating, you are expected to uphold this code.
If you discover a security vulnerability in Express, please see Security Policies and Procedures.
To run the test suite, first install the dependencies:
npm install
Then run npm test:
npm test
For information about the governance of the express.js project, see GOVERNANCE.md.
The original author of Express is TJ Holowaychuk
Koa is a new web framework designed by the team behind Express, which aims to be a smaller, more expressive, and more robust foundation for web applications and APIs. Koa uses async functions to eliminate callback hell and simplify error handling. It does not bundle any middleware within its core, and it provides an elegant suite of methods that make writing servers fast and enjoyable.
Hapi is a rich framework for building applications and services. It enables developers to focus on writing reusable application logic instead of spending time building infrastructure. Hapi is known for its powerful plugin system and comprehensive API. Compared to Express, Hapi has a more rigid and structured approach, which can be beneficial for larger teams and projects.
Fastify is a web framework highly focused on providing the best performance out of the box. It is inspired by Express and Hapi but is built with a focus on speed and low overhead. Fastify is designed to be as fast as possible, and it achieves this by leveraging Node.js features and asynchronous patterns.
Sails.js is a modern MVC framework for Node.js that is built on top of Express. It is designed to emulate the familiar MVC pattern of frameworks like Ruby on Rails but with support for the requirements of modern apps: data-driven APIs with scalable, service-oriented architecture. Sails is especially good for building data-heavy enterprise-grade apps.
FAQs
Fast, unopinionated, minimalist web framework
The npm package express receives a total of 114,942,652 weekly downloads. As such, express popularity was classified as popular.
We found that express demonstrated a healthy version release cadence and project activity because the last version was released less than a year ago. It has 5 open source maintainers collaborating on the project.
Security News
On Front Lines’ Early Adopters: CISO podcast, Andrew Becherer shares lessons from Datadog, weighs the long-term costs of AI-built tools, and explains how founders can actually gain a CISO’s trust.
Security News
/Product
Socket for Origin scans dependency changes in pull requests and flags security risks based on your team’s policies. Now available in Cursor’s App Marketplace.
Security News
Agent Baseline’s new reference architecture shows how to secure software factories with four boundaries enforced outside the AI agent.