---
title: Simplified Node.js Version Management with fnm
slug: simplified-nodejs-version-management-with-fnm
date: 2023-08-29
tags: devtools, nodejs
---

# Simplified Node.js Version Management with fnm

Are you working on multiple projects that each require a different Node.js version, and are you tired of juggling between them?
Then I've got the right tool for you, [fnm (Fast Node Manager)](https://github.com/Schniz/fnm).

fnm is a Node.js version manager that allows you to install and switch between different Node.js versions on the fly.

What I especially like about fnm, compared to similar version managers, is that it provides a seamless experience by automatically switching to the correct version when it detects a `.node-version` (or `.nvm`) file in your project's directory.

For example, let's say you have two projects, `awesome-project` and `great-project`, and each of them requires a different Node.js version:

:::code-group

```bash [title=cd ./awesome-project]
cd ./awesome-project
> Can\'t find an installed Node version matching v18.16.x.
> Do you want to install it? answer [y/n]: y
> Installing Node v18.16.1 (x64)
> Using Node v18.16.1
```

```bash [title=cd ./great-project]
cd ./great-project
> Using Node v16.13.2
```

:::

In the preceding example, fnm automatically switched to the correct Node.js version for each project.
Because `awesome-project` requires a Node.js version that isn't installed yet, we received a prompt asking if we want to install it.

To set the Node.js version for a project, create a `.node-version` file in your project's directory and add the version number to it:

```txt:.node-version
18
```

Other helpful fnm commands are `install`, `use`, `default`, and `current`:

:::code-group

```bash [title=Install]
# Install a new Node.js version
fnm install 18
```

```bash [title=Default]
# Set the default Node.js version
# (used when no .node-version file is found)
fnm default 18
```

```bash [title=Use]
# Use the specified Node.js version for the current shell
fnm use 18
```

```bash [title=Current]
# Log the current Node.js version
fnm current
> v18.16.1
```

:::

Bonus: [GitHub Codespaces](https://github.com/features/codespaces) is great to use for switching between multiple project configurations that require bigger changes, when you just need a clean environment to work in, or to quickly test something out.
You can easily create a new Codespace while working (or using an existing Codespace for reviewing) for changes that have a big impact on your environment, e.g. an upgrade of an SDK, such as .NET, Node.js, ...