Top Node.js Open Source Projects (Beginner to Advanced)

How to Find Best GitHub Nodejs projects

Node.js has a ton of fantastic open-source projects out there. This list includes anything and everything, from libraries to frameworks to full-fledged applications. And to find the "best" and "relevant" ones, you can look for the below-mentioned metrics to figure out the best Node.js projects:

1. Stars

The project should have atleast 10,000 stars in GitHub. A common metric for popularity is the number of stars received in a GitHub repository.

However, simply looking at the number of stars doesn't really tell the full story. We will also include activities around the project.

For example, a project could have a large number of stars but haven't been updated in six months.

• Is there a particular number of stars that signifies popularity?
• What about the last time the project was updated?
• Are there other criteria that might be more telling or more trustworthy than the number of stars on a project?

2. Active Community

We take into account projects that have an active and engaged community. We look at the number of active developers and activity on its forums and consider participation in related events, conferences, and meetups.

A project with an active community will usually have more reliable functionality, more helpful documentation, and better support than one with a less engaged community. 

3. Use Cases

The relevance of a project is based on how well it addresses the use cases for which it is intended. An effective project with a broad range of use cases is a good indication of the project's versatility.

You will need to consider whether you want to look at a project whose purpose is similar to yours or whether you should also try looking at projects that accomplish a variety of different things.

Top Node js Projects on GitHub

These projects represent the best of the collaborative nature of the Node.js community.

Here is the list of the top ten Node.js projects based on how popular they are, how much support they get, and how widely they’re applied.

Axios

Axios is a go-to library for developers working on server-side data fetching. It simplifies HTTP request handling for applications and builds. 

Axios supports various request methods to create, read, update, delete, data using POST, GET, PUT/PATCH, and DELETE.

In addition, it can also determine whether a request originates from a browser or a Node.js environment and then sends the requested data to the client side once the API call is completed. This makes it a go-to choice for handling asynchronous processes.

Express

Express.JS is one of the most popular Node.js frameworks for mobile and web app backend development. It has middleware and real-time capabilities, making it an excellent choice for developing chat applications.

Express is one of the sought-after open-source frameworks among Nodejs developers for its minimalist nature.

With an impressive count of over 68k stars and 21.7k forks on GitHub, Express strongly holds its place among the top open-source Node.js projects. Also, its wide adoption by over 20 million projects further demonstrates its immense popularity as a foundation for RESTful APIs and scalable web solutions.

Socket.io

Socket.IO is used for building web applications. It leverages WebSockets to enable seamless updates to user interfaces, making it a favorite for applications like live notifications and collaborative tools. 

Popular applications like Microsoft Office, Yammer, Zendesk, and Trello are prime examples of apps that utilize Socket.io.

Nest

Nest.JS is primarily a backend framework, known for its intuitive syntax popular among beginners. It has over 73.7k stars and 8.1k forks in the GitHub.

It is a strong competitor to frameworks such as Express and Koa. Launched in 2017, NestJS has its place in organizations such as Adidas, Capgemini, and Roche. It is very popular among startups and SaaS platforms 

Strapi

Strapi is an open-source headless CMS built with Node.js that leverages REST and GraphQL for data management.

It has been used by clients such as IBM, Walmart, and NASA, and its rich feature set allows developers to create virtually any type of application. Strapi works well for simple web pages and can also power mobile applications.

Its versatility comes from its use of REST and GraphQL. REST is a common method for client–server communication and offers flexibility in handling web requests, while GraphQL enables precise web queries and efficient response management.

Meteor

Meteor.js is is used for mobile, web, and desktop application development. It is one of the oldest Node.js frameworks, having been developed in 2012.

The framework is known for its versatility as it allows developers to implement a variety of different frameworks and technologies. Furthermore, it is well-integrated with popular libraries and tools such as React, Vue, Angular, MongoDB, Cordova, and npm.

Sheetjs

It is Node.js library that allows you to read, edit, and export spreadsheet files. With over a million weekly downloads, SheetJS is very choice among developers working with data. A few typical applications of SheetJS include:

1. Importing data

2. Generating professional reports

3. Modifying spreadsheet files

4. Editing and styling complex templates

5. Creating graphs and images

6. Customizing pivot tables

Prisma

Prisma is an open-source ORM (Object-Relational Mapping). It acts as an abstraction layer, enabling developers to interact with and manipulate databases without learning specialised database languages. 

It is primarily used to create connections between Node.js projects and databases. Prisma has over 44.4k stars in the GitHub. In 2023, Prisma is one of the most popular Nodejs ORM, and comparable to renowned libraries such as Bookshelf.js and Objection.js.

Sails.js

Sails.js is a Node.js MVC (Model-View-Controller) framework that is written entirely in JavaScript. It is used to create data-driven web applications and APIs. 

Eslint

ESLint is a open-source JavaScript tool to identify and fix errors in JavaScript code. With a wide range of features, it's pluggable, and highly customizable tool. ESLint is used to to detect to common mistakes, such as syntax errors, unused variables, and coding patterns that are known to cause problems. Many major text editors also support ESLint.