You should be running a currently supported version of Node.js to run npm. For a list of which versions of Node.js are currently supported, please see the Node.js releases page.

npm comes bundled with node, & most third-party distributions, by default. Officially supported downloads/distributions can be found at: nodejs.org/en/download

You can download & install npm directly from npmjs.com using our custom install.sh script:

curl -qL https://www.npmjs.com/install.sh | sh

If you're looking to manage multiple versions of Node.js &/or npm, consider using a node version manager

npm <command>

• Documentation - Official docs & how-tos for all things npm
  • Note: you can also search docs locally with npm help-search <query>
• Bug Tracker - Search or submit bugs against the CLI
• Community Feedback and Discussions - Contribute ideas & discussion around the npm registry, website & CLI
• RFCs - Contribute ideas & specifications for the API/design of the npm CLI
• Service Status - Monitor the current status & see incident reports for the website & registry
• Project Status - See the health of all our maintained OSS projects in one view
• Support - Experiencing problems with the npm website or registry? File a ticket

• npm is configured to use the npm Public Registry at https://registry.npmjs.org by default; Usage of this registry is subject to Terms of Use available at https://npmjs.com/policies/terms
• You can configure npm to use any other compatible registry you prefer. You can read more about configuring third-party registries

npm should never be capitalized unless it is being displayed in a location that is customarily all-capitals (ex. titles on man pages).

Contrary to popular belief, npm is not an acronym for "Node Package Manager." It is a recursive backronymic abbreviation for "npm is not an acronym" (if the project were named "ninaa," then it would be an acronym). The precursor to npm was actually a bash utility named "pm", which was the shortform name of "pkgmakeinst" - a bash function that installed various things on various platforms. If npm were ever considered an acronym, it would be as "node pm" or, potentially, "new pm".