Best Node.js Open Source Projects in GitHub

Metrics to figure out the best Node.js 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. The best ones are even used for the backbone of modern web and mobile applications.

What makes a project "best"?

The answer depends on the application and your own requirements, but generally, a good project will be well-maintained and well-documented. In addition, a project should have an active community where developers are contributing and sharing their knowledge with each other.

Moreover, the Node.js ecosystem is extensive and offers a wide array of open-source projects. There are Node.js frameworks that help with web development. There are Node.js libraries that support real-time communication. These projects are the foundation of many modern applications. This article highlights the ten best Node.js projects on GitHub. The ones listed were selected because of their popularity, community support, and versatility. 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.

In this article, we have included the following metrics to figure out the best Node.js projects:

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?

Active Community

When selecting which Node.js project to consider, we took into account projects that have an active and engaged community. We look at the number of active developers who are both using the project in their work and contributing to its development. We also look for activity on its forums, issues, and discussions 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. That's because active communities are usually full of developers who contribute to both the bug-fix process and the project's future development.

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.

1. Axios

• Website: Axios
• GitHub Stars: 100k
• Forks: 10.4k

Axios takes advantage of the Node.js JavaScript runtime environment to streamline HTTP requests, making it a go-to library for developers working on server-side data fetching. It is a JavaScript library that simplifies HTTP request handling for applications and builds on the promise standard for asynchronous requests. Axios supports various request methods that enable developers to create read update delete data using POST to create new entries, GET to read data, PUT/PATCH to update existing information, and DELETE to remove records. In addition, Axios 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.

2. Express

• Website: Express.js
• GitHub Stars: 61.1k
• Forks: 10.5k

Express is one of the most popular Node.js frameworks for building and crafting mobile and web apps. Thanks to its robust middleware and real-time capabilities, Express is also an excellent choice for developing chat applications. In the Node.js ecosystem, Express is very popular because of its minimalistic and open-source nature and essential routing and middleware features. Express, a Node.js framework, is increasingly popular due to the following reasons:

1. It provides developers with a streamlined, swift, and unbiased development methodology that is easy to understand.
2. Its extensive support of plugins and modules gives it an advantage over competing frameworks. Therefore, it a good choice for the creation of APIs and web applications.
3. It adheres to a user-friendly and minimalist design philosophy that reduces code repetition.
4. It offers a robust middleware and request handling capability to efficiently process requests from client side.
5. It provides seamless integration with several databases, including MySQL, MongoDB, and others.

With an impressive count of 61k stars and 10.5k 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.

3. Socket.io

• Website: Socket.io
• GitHub Stars: 58.4k
• Forks: 10.2k

Socket.IO is a great choice when you're building a web application with Node.js. It leverages WebSockets to enable seamless updates to user interfaces, making it a favorite for applications like live notifications and collaborative tools. In addition to supporting a large number of languages, which gives you the flexibility to choose the one that suits your project best, it's also compatible with all web browsers. If you like the idea of using a library that's actively developed and maintained, then you're in luck. Socket.IO has a lot of users who really like it and whose contributions help to ensure that it's here to stay and that it receives regular updates. It's open source as well, so you'll be able to contribute to the project and get help from other users anytime you need it.

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

4. Nest

• Website: Nest.js
• GitHub Stars: 57.2k
• Forks: 6.9k

Nest is a Node.js framework that is very easy to use and provides many great features. Its intuitive syntax and well-structured application framework make it a good choice for beginners to Node.js development. With tons of tutorials and documentation available, there is plenty of help for novices. Nest also has an incredible community that provides support, meaning there's always help available to get you back on track. Nest is a lightweight framework and is also very performant. The code is very easily refactorable to keep all your code clean and manageable. So if you're looking for a great Node.js framework to use, Nest is an excellent choice.

Nest is a modern and popular Node.js framework that enables the development of scalable web applications. To maximize its potential for your enterprise projects, hiring proficient developers is important.

See our Guide To Hire Node JS Developers In 2025 for expert hiring strategies.

5. Strapi

• Website: Strapi
• GitHub Stars: 54.2k
• Forks: 6.6k

Strapi is a headless CMS built using Node.js. It is an open-source project enables developers to create read update and delete content effortlessly. It leverages REST and GraphQL for data management. It was built to take advantage of the REST and GraphQL systems. Strapi has been used to manage applications for clients such as IBM, Walmart, and NASA. With such a rich feature set, it can be used to create just about any type of application imaginable. Strapi is an excellent technology for creating simple web pages, but it can also be used to build mobile applications.

The reason Strapi is so versatile is that it uses REST and GraphQL, which have powerful functionalities. REST is a common method of providing client-server communication, and it enables a lot of flexibility in handling web requests. GraphQL also lets us make web queries and manage responses to those queries. It also supports schema validation to ensure queries are compliant. The APIs are also easy to build, giving developers a lot of flexibility in where data gets stored and how it gets used. When combined, these functionalities create a robust, flexible, and comprehensive system for developing apps.

6. Meteor

• Website: Meteor
• GitHub Stars: 43.5k
• Forks: 5.3k

Meteor.js is a framework that provides an ecosystem for developing mobile, web, and desktop applications using JavaScript and TypeScript.

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.

7. Sheetjs

• Website: Sheet.js
• GitHub Stars: 33k
• Forks: 8k

SheetJS is a Node.js library that allows you to read, edit, and export spreadsheet files. It's an efficient, popular, and proven way to handle complex spreadsheets. With over a million weekly downloads, SheetJS is a popular choice for developers who work 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

8. Prisma

• Website: Prisma
• GitHub Stars: 31.9k
• Forks: 1.2k

Prisma is a popular open-source Node.js project and ORM (Object-Relational Mapping) that helps streamline communication between databases. Acting as an abstraction layer, it hides the complexities of database languages and provides an efficient way to interact with and manipulate them.  Thereby, it simplifies how developers create read update and delete database records, hiding complex database languages while streamlining data interactions. Its primary purpose is to create connections between Node.js projects and databases. Using Prisma, developers can focus on the logic of their application while Prisma handles the database work, giving it broad appeal.

What really makes Prisma an excellent tool is how safe its queries are. This really improves code quality and helps prevent errors. Plus, Prisma has an automatic migration system that makes changing schemas super easy. Another plus is how well it plays with Express and Nest.js, two super-popular Node.js frameworks. All of this makes Prisma versatile.

9. Sails.js

• Website: Sails.js
• GitHub Stars: 22.6k
• Forks: 2k

Sails.js is a Node.js MVC (Model-View-Controller) framework that is written entirely in JavaScript. You can use it to create data-driven web applications and APIs. It comes with Waterline ORM, which is a convenient way to interact with your data. If you're writing your own API, the framework can automatically generate your REST API. Overall, Sails.js has a great deal to offer application developers, so it's worth checking out if you're working on a production-ready application.

10. Eslint

• Website: Eslint
• GitHub Stars: 22.8k
• Forks: 4.2k

ESLint is a popular Node.js tool designed to assist developers in identifying and fixing errors in their JavaScript code. It offers a wide range of features, and it's highly customizable. To complement this with comprehensive testing, explore the Best Code Coverage Tools for Java and Node for insights on measuring and improving your code’s reliability

It's pluggable, meaning each rule in ESLint is a plugin that lets developers easily add or remove rules based on their requirements. ESLint can detect many common mistakes, such as syntax errors, unused variables, and coding patterns that are known to cause problems. Many major text editors also support ESLint. This support provides real-time feedback and highlights potential issues as developers write code.

These open-source Node.js tools help you get your web app development process up and running. Whether you need tools to build apps, enable real-time communication, manage content, or ensure code quality, there's a project on this list that's right for you.

Conclusion

This article covered the top ten Node.js projects on GitHub, focusing on popularity. Factors like the number of stars and community strength were used to evaluate popularity. We believe that these projects will continue to lead the Node.js community and ecosystem. Their engaged communities and ongoing development contribute to that success. We encourage developers to check out the GitHub repositories of these top Node.js projects, learn about their latest features, and contribute to their development. These projects not only highlight Node.js’s capabilities but also serve as excellent resources to learn Node.js and grow as a developer.

Node.js is used by organizations across industries, which is why it's so well-liked. If you need to create apps using the widely used programming language JavaScript, hiring Node.js developers would be a smart move.

To take your Node.js development to the next level, mastering performance monitoring is essential. Dive deeper with our Node.js Performance Monitoring: A Practical Guide and discover tools and techniques to keep your applications running smoothly.

The Brilworks team is your go-to crew for any project requiring expert Node.js development. Let us help you make something special, and if you’re stuck, reach out – we’re here to make it easy.