pnpm Cheat Sheet

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Comprehensive pnpm CLI reference for installs, dependency management, scripts, filtering, and inspection.

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Getting Started

Install pnpm, initialize projects, and get quick help.

Install pnpm with standalone script

Install pnpm via the official standalone script.

↗#

bashANYpnpminstallbootstrap

bash

curl -fsSL https://get.pnpm.io/install.sh | sh -

Install pnpm via the official standalone script.

Set up pnpm on your machine

Creates the pnpm home directory and updates shell configuration as needed.

↗#

bashANYpnpmsetupbootstrap

bash

pnpm setup

Creates the pnpm home directory and updates shell configuration as needed.

Initialize a package

Create a package.json interactively.

↗#

bashANYpnpminitpackage.json

bash

pnpm init

Create a package.json interactively.

Show pnpm help

Display top-level CLI help.

↗#

bashANYpnpmhelp

bash

pnpm help

Display top-level CLI help.

Show help for a command

Display help for a specific subcommand.

↗#

bashANYpnpmhelpdocs

bash

pnpm help add

Display help for a specific subcommand.

Show pnpm version

Print the installed pnpm version.

↗#

bashANYpnpmversion

bash

pnpm --version

Print the installed pnpm version.

Show Node.js version used by pnpm

Check the Node runtime in the current environment.

↗#

bashANYpnpmnodeenv

bash

pnpm exec node --version

Check the Node runtime in the current environment.

Install, Add, Remove, Update

Core package management commands.

Install all dependencies

Install dependencies from package.json and lockfile.

↗#

bashANYpnpminstalldeps

bash

pnpm install

Install dependencies from package.json and lockfile.

Install with frozen lockfile

Fail if the lockfile would need changes; common in CI.

↗#

bashANYpnpminstalllockfileci

bash

pnpm install --frozen-lockfile

Fail if the lockfile would need changes; common in CI.

Install in offline mode

Install using only already-fetched packages from the store.

↗#

bashANYpnpminstallofflinestore

bash

pnpm install --offline

Install using only already-fetched packages from the store.

Add dependency

Add a package to dependencies.

↗#

bashANYpnpmadddeps

bash

pnpm add lodash

Add a package to dependencies.

Add dev dependency

Add a package to devDependencies.

↗#

bashANYpnpmadddevDependencies

bash

pnpm add -D typescript

Add a package to devDependencies.

Add optional dependency

Add a package to optionalDependencies.

↗#

bashANYpnpmaddoptionalDependencies

bash

pnpm add -O fsevents

Add a package to optionalDependencies.

Add exact version

Save an exact version instead of a range.

↗#

bashANYpnpmaddversioning

bash

pnpm add react@18.3.1 --save-exact

Save an exact version instead of a range.

Remove dependency

Remove a package from dependencies.

↗#

bashANYpnpmremovedeps

bash

pnpm remove lodash

Remove a package from dependencies.

Update dependencies

Update dependencies according to the allowed ranges.

↗#

bashANYpnpmupdatedeps

bash

pnpm update

Update dependencies according to the allowed ranges.

Update package to latest

Update a package to the latest available version.

↗#

bashANYpnpmupdatelatest

bash

pnpm update react --latest

Update a package to the latest available version.

Dedupe lockfile

Reduce duplicates in the lockfile when possible.

↗#

bashANYpnpmdedupelockfile

bash

pnpm dedupe

Reduce duplicates in the lockfile when possible.

Import lockfile from npm or Yarn

Generate pnpm-lock.yaml from package-lock.json, npm-shrinkwrap.json, or yarn.lock.

↗#

bashANYpnpmimportmigration

bash

pnpm import

Generate pnpm-lock.yaml from package-lock.json, npm-shrinkwrap.json, or yarn.lock.

Run, Exec, and Inspect

Run scripts, binaries, and inspect dependency state.

Run a package script

Run a script from package.json.

↗#

bashANYpnpmrunscripts

bash

pnpm run build

Run a script from package.json.

Run script via shorthand

Run a script without typing run when there is no command ambiguity.

↗#

bashANYpnpmrunscripts

bash

pnpm test

Run a script without typing run when there is no command ambiguity.

Execute binary in project context

Run a locally installed binary without adding it to PATH manually.

↗#

bashANYpnpmexecbinaries

bash

pnpm exec eslint .

Run a locally installed binary without adding it to PATH manually.

Run one-off package

Download and run a package without permanently installing it.

↗#

bashANYpnpmdlxscaffold

bash

pnpm dlx create-vite@latest my-app

Download and run a package without permanently installing it.

List installed packages

Show installed packages in a tree structure.

↗#

bashANYpnpmlistinspect

bash

pnpm list

Show installed packages in a tree structure.

List top-level packages

Show only top-level dependencies.

↗#

bashANYpnpmlistinspect

bash

pnpm list --depth 0

Show only top-level dependencies.

Explain why a package is present

Show why a package is installed in the dependency graph.

↗#

bashANYpnpmwhyinspect

bash

pnpm why react

Show why a package is installed in the dependency graph.

Show outdated dependencies

List dependencies with newer versions available.

↗#

bashANYpnpmoutdatedinspect

bash

pnpm outdated

List dependencies with newer versions available.

Audit dependencies

Scan dependencies for known vulnerabilities.

↗#

bashANYpnpmauditsecurity

bash

pnpm audit

Scan dependencies for known vulnerabilities.

Attempt audit fixes

Try to apply non-breaking security updates automatically.

↗#

bashANYpnpmauditsecurityfix

bash

pnpm audit --fix

Try to apply non-breaking security updates automatically.

Print store path

Show the location of the content-addressable store.

↗#

bashANYpnpmstoreinspect

bash

pnpm store path

Show the location of the content-addressable store.

Filtering and Recursive Execution

Target specific workspace packages and run recursively.

Install across workspace

Run install recursively across workspace packages.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacerecursive

bash

pnpm -r install

Run install recursively across workspace packages.

Run build in all workspace packages

Run a script recursively in all packages.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacerecursivescripts

bash

pnpm -r run build

Run a script recursively in all packages.

Operate on one workspace package

Limit a command to a selected workspace package.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacefilter

bash

pnpm --filter @acme/web test

Limit a command to a selected workspace package.

Filter package and dependents

Target a package and packages that depend on it.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacefilterdependents

bash

pnpm --filter @acme/ui... build

Target a package and packages that depend on it.

Filter package and its deps

Target a package and its dependency chain.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacefilterdependencies

bash

pnpm --filter ...@acme/api test

Target a package and its dependency chain.

Filter by directory

Target packages by path selector.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspacefilterpath

bash

pnpm --filter ./packages/web... lint

Target packages by path selector.

Run in parallel

Run a script in parallel across packages.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspaceparallel

bash

pnpm -r --parallel run dev

Run a script in parallel across packages.

Stream prefixed output

Stream real-time output from recursive runs.

↗#

bashANYpnpmworkspaceoutput

bash

pnpm -r --stream test

Stream real-time output from recursive runs.

More in pnpm

pnpm CI, Env, and Patching

CI installs, fetch, production pruning, Node runtime management, patching, and troubleshooting.

pnpm Publish and Registry

Pack, publish, dist-tags, registries, auth, and package metadata queries.

pnpm Config and Store

Configuration, .npmrc, store/cache operations, and installation model settings.

pnpm Workspaces

Workspace setup, filtering, recursive execution, deploy flows, and catalogs.

pnpm Install and Dependencies

Dependency types, package sources, versions, lockfiles, and reproducible installs.

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