Node.js is an open-source, cross-platform Javascript runtime environment, which was built on Google’s V8 Engine and developed using C++, it is an asynchronous server-side scripting language that executes JavaScript outside a web browser to develop scalable network applications.
It allows developers to build data-intensive and high-traffic backend applications such as chat apps and microservices. Notable companies that use Node.JS include GoDaddy, Netflix, Linked, Uber, PayPal, and Twitter just to mention a few.
This short guide demonstrates how to install Node.JS and NPM on Alpine Linux, but before installing, you should know about NPM.
NPM is Node.js’s package manager, which comes with a command-line tool, which you can use to search and install all open-source packages using a single command. You can also control your package’s versions, review dependencies, and even create custom scripts in your projects through the npm command-line utility.
Installing Node.JS on Alpine Linux
To get started, refresh the Alpine Linux repositories by running the following apk command:
# apk update
Next, we are going to install the Node.JS LTS release and NPM which is the package manager for NodeJS.
# apk add --update nodejs npm OR # apk add nodejs npm
This installs Node.JS, NPM, and all the additional packages and libraries, and dependencies from the Alpine Linux repositories.
![Install Node.JS in Alpine Linux](https://www.ubuntumint.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Install-NodeJS-in-Alpine-Linux.png)
If you want to install the current version of Node.js from the community repository, use the following command.
# apk add nodejs-current npm
Once the installation is complete, you can verify if Node.js is installed by running the command:
$ node -v
For NPM, run the following command.
$ npm -v
From the output, you can see that we have installed NodeJS version 16.14.2 and NPM 8.1.3.
![Check Nodejs Version](https://www.ubuntumint.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Check-Nodejs-Version.png)
And that brings us to the end of this short guide. We hope you can now comfortably install Node.JS and NPM on Alpine Linux.