What problem it solves

Developers often need to install, select, and switch among multiple Node.js versions while working across projects. The project addresses this with a per-user, per-shell version manager that supports common POSIX-compliant shells and command-line workflows.

Key features

• Install and switch Node.js versions — Install a selected Node.js release and activate it from the command line. Versions can be run directly or used inside an isolated subshell.

  Source: README

• Aliases and default versions — Create named aliases for installed versions and designate a default for new shells. Aliases can also represent release categories such as LTS lines.

  Source: README

• Per-user shell integration — The manager is loaded into a shell profile and remains scoped to the user account. It supports POSIX-compliant shells including sh, dash, ksh, zsh, and bash.

  Source: README

• LTS and version-category selection — Commands can select versions by category, including LTS releases, and aliases can identify specific LTS lines. Remote version listings also annotate the `node` alias and local aliases.

  Source: README

• Project-specific version configuration — Use `.nvmrc` files to record a project's Node.js version and configure shell integration to switch versions automatically in matching directories.

  Source: README

Quick start

Copied verbatim from the project's README.

curl -o- https://raw.githubusercontent.com/nvm-sh/nvm/v0.41.0/install.sh | bash

$ nvm install 24
Now using node v24.14.0 (npm v11.9.0)
$ node -v
v24.14.0
$ nvm use 22
Now using node v22.22.1 (npm v10.9.4)
$ node -v
v22.22.1
$ nvm use 20
Now using node v20.20.1 (npm v10.8.2)
$ node -v
v20.20.1

Who it may suit

Inference: This may suit Node.js developers and teams that work across projects requiring different Node.js versions. It may also suit users of POSIX-compliant shells on unix, macOS, or Windows WSL.

Topics to discuss

• Which shell integration patterns should be documented more clearly for project-based version switching?

• How should teams standardize `.nvmrc` usage across repositories and onboarding workflows?

• Which migration or global-package workflows need clearer examples for users adopting `nvm`?

Written by ReadmeX AI from the project's README, source and public GitHub data; it may contain mistakes.

Read the original README https://github.com/nvm-sh/nvm#readme

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